The January Man

1989

The January Man

Critics Consensus

No consensus yet.

20%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 15

28%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 3,650
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Movie Info

This offbeat police thriller with heavy doses of humor was written by John Patrick Shanley, the former playwright who wrote Cher's hit romantic comedy Moonstruck. Kevin Kline stars as Nick Starkey, a brilliant former New York City police detective who has been exiled to the fire department because of his unorthodox ways. He's called back to service by his police commissioner brother Frank (Harvey Keitel) in the hopes that he can find a bizarre serial killer who's been murdering one woman a month. Nick's condition to agreeing to help is that he gets to cook dinner for Frank and his snooty wife Christine (Susan Sarandon), a former girlfriend of his. Ultimately, Nick uses his Zen-like intuition and some high-tech computer hardware (with prominent product placement plugs) to find the killer, pausing to have an affair with the mayor's beautiful daughter Bernadette (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio. In the improbable conclusion, Nick figures out the exact day the killer will strike and the exact apartment! January Man is too tongue-in-cheek to be taken seriously as a thriller. In addition to Keitel and Sarandon the stellar supporting cast includes Rod Steiger as the mayor and Danny Aiello as a tough police captain who rails against Nick's "beatnik" ways.

Cast

Kevin Kline
as Nick Starkey
Rod Steiger
as Mayor Eamon Flynn
Susan Sarandon
as Christine Starkey
Harvey Keitel
as Frank Starkey
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
as Bernadette Flynn
Danny Aiello
as Capt. Vincent Alcoa
Alan Rickman
as Ed
Faye Grant
as Alison Hawkins
Kenneth Welsh
as Roger Culver
Jayne Haynes
as Alma
Brian Tarantina
as Cone
Bruce MacVittie
as Rip
Bill Cobbs
as Detective Reilly
Greg Walker
as January Man
Tandy Cronyn
as Lana
Gerard Parkes
as Rev. Drew
Errol Slue
as Chief Sunday
Kenneth Welsh
as Roger Culver
William Christian
as Tim
Ann Talman
as Sarah
Bill Cwikowski
as Press Representative
Billie Neal
as Gwen
Malachy McCourt
as Hob
Paul Geier
as Det. Muse
Lázaro Pérez
as Ramon
Katherine E. Miller
as Olympia
Elizabeth Karr
as Newscaster-Reporter
Jerry Rector
as Newscaster-Reporter
Jane Sanders
as Mia
Colin Mochrie
as Pat
James Ryan
as Newscaster-Reporter
Grant Shaud
as Newscaster-Reporter
Warren Davis
as Bill
Joan Heney
as Claire
Maida Rogerson
as Mildred
James Mainprize
as Harry
J.B. Waters
as Police Officer
Majda Rogerson
as Mildred
Richard Johnson
as Newscaster-Reporter
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Critic Reviews for The January Man

All Critics (15) | Top Critics (1) | Fresh (3) | Rotten (12)

View All Critic Reviews (15)

Audience Reviews for The January Man

  • Sep 06, 2010
    I re-watched this recently, and I just had to lower my rating for it, it's worse than I remembered it. The story is predictable, cliched, and none of the characters are very interesting, especially the main guy played by Kline, who can't act. The rest of the cast is good, but they don't get a good script to work with. I did not like this movie.
    Aj V Super Reviewer
  • Feb 27, 2009
    Another overdone serial killer movie.
    Sunil J Super Reviewer
  • Feb 09, 2009
    One of the most uneven films I've seen in recent years. The cast and acting is amazing, the story interesting and a few scenes are fantastic. Then, when you least expect it, comes the scene where everything is flawed and you wonder if it's the same movie, or the same director. Many scenes are 5/5 stars and several scenes are 0/5. I did like it so the grade still represents a film that is both watchable and recommended.
    Stefan P Super Reviewer
  • Jan 14, 2009
    Wretched writing and poorly directed. I can give you six good reasons why this film should have been a hell of a lot better: Kevin Kline, Susan Sarandon, Harvey Keitel, Danny Aiello, Rod Steiger and Alan Rickman.
    Randy T Super Reviewer
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