''More Than Murder'' is a 1984 American

made-for-television A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

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

starring

Stacy Keach Walter Stacy Keach Jr. (born June 2, 1941) is an American actor, active in theatre, film and television since the 1960s. Keach first distinguished himself in Off-Broadway productions and remains a prominent figure in American theatre across his ...

Mickey Spillane Frank Morrison Spillane (; March 9, 1918July 17, 2006), better known as Mickey Spillane, was an American crime novelist, called the "king of pulp fiction". His stories often feature his signature detective character, Mike Hammer. More than 225 ...

's iconic

hardboiled Hardboiled (or hard-boiled) fiction is a literary genre that shares some of its characters and settings with crime fiction (especially detective fiction and noir fiction). The genre's typical protagonist is a detective who battles the violence o ...

private detective A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private investigat ...

Mike Hammer Michael Hammer or Mike Hammer may refer to: * Michael Hammer (politician) (born 1977), Austrian politician * Michael Armand Hammer (1955–2022), American philanthropist and businessman * Michael Martin Hammer (1948–2008), engineer and author * Mi ...

. It aired on January 26, 1984, at 9:00 p.m. and was the second of two

pilots An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they are ...

featuring Keach in the part - the other being '' Murder Me, Murder You'' (1983) - that blazed a path for the 1980s version of the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

series '' Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer'', which debuted on January 28, 1984.

Plot

When his longtime friend Captain Pat Chambers is wounded in a drug bust and arrested as an accessory to drug trafficking, private detective Mike Hammer vows to help him clear his name. Assistant District Attorney Barrington dislikes Hammer and believes that Chambers is guilty.

Reception

In review printed in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' on January 27, 1984, John J. O'Connor wrote, "Mr. Keach has cultivated a perfect kind of New York-seedy look. His suit nearly always needs pressing, and his hat is inevitably worn at a jaunty angle. And most of his lines are delivered with a low-keyed snarl." O'Connor concluded, "Is this supposed age of liberation ready for an unrepentant male chauvinist pig? Network television seems to think so." In the book ''Mickey Spillane on Screen: A Complete Study of the Television and Film Adaptations'' by

Max Allan Collins Max Allan Collins (born March 3, 1948) is an American mystery writer, noted for his graphic literature. His work has been published in several formats, such as his '' Ms. Tree'' series and his '' Road to Perdition'' series was the basis for a fi ...

and James L. Traylor, the authors state that ''More Than Murder'' "has an episodic TV approach that makes it a lesser film than its predecessor."

Home media

After almost 25 years, ''More Than Murder'' was released on DVD by

Sony Pictures Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment studio conglomerate that produces, acquires, and distributes filmed entertainment (theatrical motion pictures, television programs, and rec ...

as the second disc of a two-DVD set also featuring the 1983 TV movie '' Murder Me, Murder You''.

References

External links

* {{Gary Nelson 1980s mystery films 1984 television films 1984 films American detective films CBS films Films about the illegal drug trade Films based on American novels Films based on works by Mickey Spillane Films directed by Gary Nelson Films set in New York City 1980s English-language films 1980s American films Mike Hammer (character) films American mystery television films English-language mystery films