Sign up

So You Want to Be a Detective

1948Movie11 min

ComedyCrime
68
GoodGoodWatch score
IMDb6.9

Where to watch

Set your services

Not streaming in any country yet.

Story

Joe McDoakes imagines himself as a private detective on a murder case. Throughout the film, he spars verbally with narrator Art Gilmore.

Cast

4 of 4

Crew

Directed by
Richard L. Bare
Written by
Richard L. Bare, David Swift
Produced by
Gordon Hollingshead
Music by
William Lava

Everyone

Pick a department, or search for a name or a job (“editor”, “stunt”).

Facts

June 26, 1948 · 11 min · Comedy, Crime

Released
June 26, 1948
Runtime
11 min
Genres
Comedy, Crime
Original language
English
Made in
United States

Tropes

P.O.V. Cam, I Have a Family, Or Was It a Dream? +9

  • P.O.V. Cam
  • I Have a Family
  • Or Was It a Dream?
  • Gratuitous Laboratory Flasks
  • Surreal Humor
  • Ms. Fanservice
  • Unbroken First-Person Perspective
  • Pun
  • The Dog Was the Mastermind
  • Medium Awareness
  • Literal Metaphor
  • Impairment Shot

12 of 20 tropes. From TV Tropes.

Q&A

3 questions, like "Is So You Want to Be a Detective worth watching?"

Questions about So You Want to Be a Detective

Quick answers from GoodWatch data.

Is So You Want to Be a Detective worth watching?

68
GoodGoodWatch score

Mostly, it's well received, with a GoodWatch score of 68 (IMDb 6.9).

Is So You Want to Be a Detective a sequel?

  1. So You Want to Give Up Smoking (1942)
  2. So You Think You Need Glasses (1942)
  3. So You Think You're Allergic (1945)
  4. So You Want to Play the Horses (1946)
  5. So You Want to Keep Your Hair (1946)
  6. So You Think You're a Nervous Wreck (1946)
  7. So You're Going to Be a Father (1947)
  8. So You Want to Be in Pictures (1947)
  9. So You Want to Be a Salesman (1947)
  10. So You Want to Hold Your Wife (1947)
  11. So You Want an Apartment (1948)
  12. So You Want to Be a Gambler (1948)
  13. So You Want to Build a House (1948)
  14. So You Want to Be a Detective (1948)
  15. So You Want to Be in Politics (1948)
  16. So You Want to Be on the Radio (1948)
  17. So You Want to Be a Baby Sitter (1949)
  18. So You Want to Be Popular (1949)
  19. So You Want to Be a Muscle Man (1949)
  20. So You're Having In-Law Trouble (1949)
  21. So You Want to Get Rich Quick (1949)
  22. So You Want to Throw a Party (1950)
  23. So You Think You're Not Guilty (1950)
  24. So You Want to Hold Your Husband (1950)
  25. So You Want to Move (1950)
  26. So You're Going to Have an Operation (1950)
  27. So You Want to Be a Handyman (1951)
  28. So You Want to Be a Cowboy (1951)
  29. So You Want to Be a Paper Hanger (1951)
  30. So You Want to Buy a Used Car (1951)
  31. So You Want to Be a Bachelor (1951)
  32. So You Want to Be a Plumber (1951)
  33. So You Want to Get It Wholesale (1952)
  34. So You Want to Enjoy Life (1952)
  35. So You Want to Go to a Convention (1952)
  36. So You Never Tell a Lie (1952)
  37. So You're Going to the Dentist (1952)
  38. So You Want to Wear the Pants (1952)
  39. So You Want to Be a Musician (1953)
  40. So You Want a Television Set (1953)
  41. So You Love Your Dog (1953)
  42. So You Think You Can't Sleep (1953)
  43. So You Want to Be an Heir (1953)
  44. So You're Having Neighbor Trouble (1954)
  45. So You Want to Be Your Own Boss (1954)
  46. So You Want to Go to a Nightclub (1954)
  47. So You're Taking in a Roomer (1954)
  48. So You Want to Know Your Relatives (1954)
  49. So You Don't Trust Your Wife (1955)
  50. So You Want to Be a Gladiator (1955)
  51. So You Want to Be on a Jury (1955)
  52. So You Want a Model Railroad (1955)
  53. So You Want to Be a V.P. (1955)
  54. So You Want to Be a Policeman (1955)
  55. So You Think the Grass Is Greener (1956)
  56. So You Want to Be Pretty (1956)
  57. So You Want to Play the Piano (1956)
  58. So Your Wife Wants to Work (1956)

Yes: it's movie 14 of 58 in its series, after So You Want to Build a House (1948) and before So You Want to Be in Politics (1948).

What tropes does So You Want to Be a Detective use?

P.O.V. CamI Have a FamilyOr Was It a Dream?Gratuitous Laboratory FlasksSurreal HumorMs. FanserviceUnbroken First-Person PerspectivePunThe Dog Was the MastermindMedium AwarenessLiteral MetaphorImpairment Shotand 8 more

TV Tropes lists 20 tropes for it, including P.O.V. Cam, I Have a Family, and Or Was It a Dream?.