''Who's Harry Crumb?'' is a 1989 American

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

mystery film A mystery film is a genre of film that revolves around the solution of a problem or a crime. It focuses on the efforts of the detective, private investigator or amateur sleuth to solve the mysterious circumstances of an issue by means of clues, i ...

featuring

John Candy John Franklin Candy (October 31, 1950 – March 4, 1994) was a Canadian actor and comedian known mainly for his work in Hollywood films. Candy rose to fame in the 1970s as a member of the Toronto branch of the Second City and its '' SCTV'' seri ...

as the title character. Paul Flaherty directed the film, which co-stars

Annie Potts Anne Hampton Potts (born October 28, 1952) is an American actress. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for ''Corvette Summer'' (1978) and won a Genie Award for '' Heartaches'' (1981), before appearing in '' Ghostbusters'' (1984), ''Pretty ...

Jeffrey Jones Jeffrey Duncan Jones (born September 28, 1946) is an American character actor, best known for his roles as Emperor Joseph II in '' Amadeus'' (1984), Edward R. Rooney in ''Ferris Bueller's Day Off'' (1986), Charles Deetz in ''Beetlejuice'' (1988 ...

and

Shawnee Smith Shawnee Rebecca Smith (born July 3, 1969) is an American actress and singer. She is known for her portrayal of Amanda Young in the ''Saw'' franchise (2004–2010), which established her as a " scream queen" and as an influential figure in popula ...

. An uncredited cameo appearance is made by

Jim Belushi James Adam Belushi (; born June 15, 1954) is an American actor. He is best known for the role of Jim on the sitcom ''According to Jim'' (2001–2009). His other television roles include ''Saturday Night Live'' (1983–1985), '' Total Security'' ...

. The story concerns the often incompetent, sometimes brilliant,

private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI and informally called a private eye), a private detective, or inquiry agent is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigators of ...

Harry Crumb, who searches for a kidnapping victim.

Plot

While visiting a health studio in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...

, fashion model Jennifer Downing, the daughter of millionaire P.J. Downing, is kidnapped. Her father turns to a family friend, Eliot Draisen, who is president of the detective agency Crumb & Crumb, to investigate the case. Eliot is reluctant to supply P.J. with one of his capable detectives because, as it turns out, Eliot himself is the organizer of the kidnapping. To give the appearance of taking the investigation seriously, Eliot offers P.J. the services of Harry Crumb, the last descendant of the agency's founders. Eliot knows that Harry is incompetent and counts on this fact to get away with the crime. Harry returns to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

(by bus) from an assignment in the firm's

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

branch office (which he messed up, as usual). He is assisted in his investigation by P.J.'s younger daughter, Nikki, who is considerably smarter than he is. Harry deduces that Nikki's stepmother, Helen Downing, is having an affair with tennis coach Vince Barnes, and concludes she is behind the kidnapping. Helen is desired by Eliot, but all she is interested in is money. She tries to get rid of her husband on several occasions and does her best – along with Barnes – to get the ransom for herself. Also assigned to the case is Police Detective Casey, who (unlike Harry) is competent and experienced in kidnapping cases, and has a strongly negative opinion of private eyes. Eliot escapes to the airport, bound for

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. He makes the mistake of informing Helen of his plans; she and Barnes take the money and leave him bound and gagged. Harry arrives to confront Helen and Barnes just as their plane prepares to take off. Jennifer is freed and Eliot is found. Falsely believing Harry has deduced his part in the kidnapping and exasperated with Harry's dumb luck, Eliot confesses and is taken into police custody. Harry is thanked for his heroism in the case and even Det. Casey applauds Harry for solving the case. In the end, Harry takes over as the new president of his family's business, and promptly accepts a new assignment to investigate another case, this time a murder committed in a gay bar.

Cast

as Harry Crumb *

as Eliot Draisen *

as Helen Downing *

Tim Thomerson Joseph Timothy "Tim" Thomerson (born April 8, 1946) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Jack Deth in the ''Trancers'' film series and for his work in numerous low-budget features and for his comedic television r ...

as Vince Barnes *

Barry Corbin Leonard Barrie Corbin (born October 16, 1940) is an American actor. He is best known for his starring role as Maurice Minnifield on the television series '' Northern Exposure'' (1990–1995), which earned him two consecutive Primetime Emmy Awar ...

as P.J. Downing *

as Nikki Downing *

Valri Bromfield Valri Bromfield (born February 10, 1949) is a Canadian comedian, actress, writer, and television producer who started her career as one half of a comedy team with Dan Aykroyd. Together, they joined the first Toronto company of The Second City wh ...

as Detective Casey *

Renée Coleman Renée Coleman (born January 8, 1962) is a Canadian actress who has appeared in several TV shows and movies. Acting She is best known for her role in the NBC TV series ''Quantum Leap'', in which she played the role of Alia, the "evil leaper." ...

as Jennifer Downing * Wesley Mann as Tim *Doug Steckler as Dwayne *Tamsin Kelsey as Marie * Joe Flaherty as Doorman *Lori O'Byrne as Karen *Michele Goodger as Mrs. MacIntyre *

Beverley Elliott Beverley Elliott (born 31 December 1960) is a Canadian actress and singer-songwriter. She is best known for playing the role of Granny in ''Once Upon a Time (TV series), Once Upon a Time'', Maggie Krell in ''Harper's Island'', Brick Bannerman i ...

as Joanne *P. Lynn Johnson as Kelly *Peter Yunker as Jeffrey Brandt *

Garwin Sanford Garwin Sanford (born 14 March 1955) is a Canadian film and television actor known for his roles on ''Stargate SG-1'' and ''Stargate Atlantis''. Career Sanford's most notable roles are Narim in ''Stargate SG-1'' and Simon Wallace in ''Stargate ...

as Dennis Kimball *

Tony Dakota Tony Dakota (born 1982) is an American actor known for his roles as Clavo on the television series ''21 Jump Street'' and Georgie Denbrough in the 1990 television mini-series version of Stephen King's epic horror novel '' It''.Holloway, Diane ( ...

as Freddy *

Manny Perry Manny Perry is an American stunt coordinator and stuntman. He has performed in dozens of films including ''Armageddon'', ''Con Air'', and '' The Mighty Ducks''. He played the role of Big Jim Slade in '' Kentucky Fried Movie''. He has also had act ...

as Cop In Car *

Tino Insana Silvio Peter "Tino" Insana (February 15, 1948 – May 31, 2017) was an American actor, producer, writer, and comedian. Life and career Insana was born in Chicago, Illinois on February 15, 1948, the son of Silvio A. Insana, a musician, and Hilora ...

as Smokey *

Deanna Oliver Deanna Oliver (born September 27, 1952) is an American actress and writer. She hails from Spokane, Washington. Oliver performed the voice of Toaster in the film ''The Brave Little Toaster'' (1987) and its sequels. In addition, she was a writer o ...

as Woman In Apartment *

as Man on Bus (uncredited)

Box office

''Who's Harry Crumb?'' grossed $10,982,364 in North America. The film was released in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

on July 6, 1989, and failed to reach the Top 15.

Reception

The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 27%, with an average rating of 4.03/10, based on eleven reviews. In March 2018, ''Den of Geek'' included the film as one of "The Underrated Movies of 1989", commenting "In truth, ''Who's Harry Crumb?'' isn't necessarily vintage Candy either, but it's still a lot of fun, and gives him a title role that he clearly enjoyed."

References

External links

Who's Harry Crumb?
a
TheGreatWhiteDope's Mecha-Blog-Zilla
* * * {{Amg movie, 54416, Who's Harry Crumb?

at the New York Times

1989 films 1980s comedy mystery films 1980s comedy thriller films American comedy thriller films American comedy mystery films American detective films Films about kidnapping Films set in Los Angeles NBC Productions films TriStar Pictures films Films scored by Michel Colombier 1989 comedy films Films produced by Arnon Milchan 1980s English-language films Films directed by Paul Flaherty 1980s American films