Stakeout

"It's a tough job but somebody's got to do it!"

1987 1h 56m EN

😐

6.5

MID

★6.5TMDB · 474

ActionComedyRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Two detectives observe an escaped convict's ex-girlfriend, but complications set in when one of them falls for her.

“It's a tough job but somebody's got to do it!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Richard Dreyfuss
Det. Chris Lecce
Emilio Estevez
Det. Bill Reimers
Madeleine Stowe
Maria McGuire
Aidan Quinn
Richard "Stick" Montgomery
Dan Lauria
Det. Phil Coldshank
Forest Whitaker
Det. Jack Pismo
Earl Billings
Capt. Giles
Jackson Davies
FBI Agent Lusk

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Badham
Writers: Jim Kouf
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 4.5× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

39 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Stakeout Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Badham, shot by John Seale. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Arthur B. Rubinstein. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Michael Ripps shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Richard Dreyfuss and Emilio Estevez and Madeleine Stowe carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "It's a tough job but somebody's got to do it!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Badham directs. John Seale behind the camera. Arthur B. Rubinstein scores. Michael Ripps cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Made its money back 4.5× over at the box office.
239 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Part of the "Stakeout Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by John Badham, shot by John Seale. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Arthur B. Rubinstein. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Michael Ripps shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Richard Dreyfuss and Emilio Estevez and Madeleine Stowe carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "It's a tough job but somebody's got to do it!".
9IMDB entry: tt0094025 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 17 themes, including "prison", "police", "killing", "shower".

The technical file

Cinematography: John Seale
Original score: Arthur B. Rubinstein
Editing: Michael Ripps
Production design: Philip Harrison
Costume design: Mary E. Vogt
Makeup / hair: Sherry Linder-Gygli
Sound: Tom Beckert
Stunt coordinator: Conrad E. Palmisano
Runtime: 116 min · 1h 56m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $14,500,000
Box office: $65,673,233
Return: 453% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Stakeout (1987)

Part of

Stakeout Collection

This collection includes the 2 Stakeout Movies

Also by

John Badham

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Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

kevin20192024-01-25
★ 10/10
"Stakeout" is a perfectly packaged film which has been expertly crafted to successfully achieve maximum results. It has been aimed directly at the commercial market and this would ordinarily mean a somewhat cynical and by-the-numbers motion picture experience with lots of money thrown at it to accommodate the noisy action sequences with very little attention being paid to the rest of it. Of course a good deal of that also applies here, although with the significant difference being a lot more attention has been paid to making this entertaining above all else. What all this amounts to on this occasion is a very engaging and well paced film with considerably more depth of character and story than you would expect and it has a fair share of humorous and perilous surprises thrown into the mix for good measure.

Production companies