Lucien Lessard Eddie Mintz (Chevy Chase) is a fast-talking arms dealer, who seals weapons to third world countries. When he meets an man (Wallace Shawn) is about to commit suicide. He tells Eddie, he can't finish his deal. He's a sales rep for the American defense contractor Lock-Up. This mysterious man has an contract that is worth $300 Million. When he commit suicide, Eddie takes his contract and he actually succeed making an deal. But the mysterious man widow (Sigourney Weaver) wants part of the money. Eddie and his soon to be born again Christian partner Ray (The late Gregory Hines) tries to make it an deal done with anyone, who is interested in the contract. Which Lock-Up are trying to sell an product titled "The Peacemaker UAV" that actually has problems of its own. When the deal is nearly done, Ray has second thoughts about the deal and nothing goes as planned.Directed by Oscar-Winner:William Friedkin (Bug, The Exorcist, To Live and Die in L.A.) made an watchable if sometimes amusing dark comedy. Chase gives 110 percent to his performance, he is entertaining to watch in the movie. The late Hines is actually pretty good in the movie as well. Perphas not the devilish satire that some people were expecting and also not as zestfulness as you liked it to be. But sometimes, the movie comes pretty close to be spot on.DVD has an sharp anamorphic Widescreen (1.85:1) transfer and an good Dolby Stereo 2.0 Surround Sound. DVD only special features is the original theatrical trailer. "Deal of the Century" does have some good sequences, some laughs and some fine satire as well but the movie doesn't quite breakthrough. Perphas more of a curio today, it is one of the rarely seen movies from director Friedkin. It is certainly worth an look if you are an fan of Friedkin or actor:Chase. Written by Paul Brickman (Men Don't Leave, Risky Business, True Crime), who also one of the executive producers of the movie. (*** ½/*****).

macduff50 I loved this movie when it came out, and I still think it's one of Friedkin's most under- rated efforts. Where it lost a lot of the audience was in its requirement that they actually think about what was being presented to them. The jokes are not the usual Chevvy Chase, fall on his ass kind of thing, but for the most part have an actual point behind them. Where the film failed, I think, is culturally; audiences at the multiplex tend not to like to have to think about the entertainments they consume, so the movie got lukewarm reviews, and poor audiences. Look at the scene for example, where Gregory Hines' character is accosted by a mugger, and the way in which the scene escalates, for a perfect mini-allegory of the cold war, and the simplicity of its essential "strategies."In truth, the movie falls between two stools, in terms of the audience it was aiming at. It's too much a Hollywood production to play on the art-house circuit; but its ethos is too "political" to play well in the major exhibition houses, ie, suburban multiplexes. It might be the case too, that because its satirical target is the military, some thought it as somehow "anti-American" and stayed away for that reason. But it's a fine film, well-structured and well scripted (in my opinion), having as its core the moral redemption of an immoral man. It also features – a rarity for American commercial movies – a black man in a major, well-thought out role who's not just a comedy sidekick for the hero. Give this one a chance, and it will reward multiple viewings.

chrisdfilm It seems like everyone's opinion on this movie is evenly divided. People either love it or hate it. Personally, I am not a Chevy Chase fan by any stretch of the imagination. But I like many of William Friedkin's films so I wanted to give this a chance and went in without too many preconceptions.It obviously can't stand up to a comparison to DR. STRANGELOVE as a few here have done. However, it still remains a fairly on-target, unflattering satire of the weapons industry and by extrapolation, other mass production industries that love to sell the government and public crap product cosmetically hyped as the next great answer to all their fears and desires, product that ends up being useless or obsolete within a year (if it even works properly in the first place). There are some pretty funny scenes sprinkled throughout and I was pleasantly surprised through the whole film how much dark, subversively funny jabs Friedkin gets away with. Especially in a big studio movie. There's one scene in particular that makes the film well worth seeing --Gregory Hines (I believe it was him) gets into a verbal altercation with another extremely hotheaded driver (a maniacal Tony Plana) (over a fender bender? it's been a while since I've seen it) -- the verbal sparring quickly escalates into a life-threatening situation and the emotional dynamics the two actors bring to the scene is scarily believable while remaining extremely funny. This scene alone provides a microcosmic metaphor for the provocations of nations going to war and perfectly illustrates the pointless absurdity of aggressive behaviour in general. Also of note, it's great to see the underrated Vince Edwards in a large supporting role as the ruthless air weapons manufacturer. DEAL OF THE CENTURY is never less than amusing and has some extremely funny sequences -- much better than many of these IMDb reviews would lead you to believe.

Squonk Sit in a hard chair if you intend on staying awake through all of Deal of the Century. This movie is just plain boring. It deals with Chase, Weaver, and Hines trying to sell a bunch of pilotless planes to a dictator who looks like Saddam Hussein's chipper twin. There are a few funny lines. Overall you'll just wonder what on earth is going on but won't care enough to rewind and try to find out. Wallace Shawn is the only bright spot in this mess, but he's eliminated quickly.