1976 Directed by Robert Moore
Lionel Twain invites the world's five greatest detectives to a 'dinner and murder'. Included are a blind butler, a deaf-mute maid, screams, spinning rooms, secret passages, false identities and more plot turns and twists than are decently allowed.
Een lijk als nagerecht, Prosklisi se gevma apo enan ypopsifio dolofono
Really bad idea to go into this thinking “I know it’s a parody, but it’ll still be a fun mystery.” Didn’t realize it was more the “fuck you” kind of parody. A stacked cast making the occasionally funny joke sandwiched between some good old fashioned Big Yikes moments. Clue did It better by leaving out all the Mr. Magoo shit. Above all, Christmas is about watching as many movies in a row with famous comedy actors doing unbelievably racist makeup characters.
35
Clue's problematic cousin - not nearly as charming or as inventive in its playful subversion of the whodunnit.
The combination of a stellar ensemble cast that plays everything admirably straight and a script that understands that good parody comes from loving what you're making fun off, make Murder by Death an absolute delight to watch after years of not having seen it.
The amount of jokes in every scene is staggering. Sure, some of them miss their mark, but more often than not the language is clever and the jokes are tongue in cheek and give a great cross section of the detective genre and ridicules it to the extreme.
With such a great cast, it is tough to pick a favourite performance, but for me, Peter Falk steals and owns this film from start to finish.
Lovely stuff.
Just a little dose of Knives Out Lite™️ in preparation for Glass Onion.
A spoof of the then-previous couple decades of whodunnits and detective noirs, Murder by Death is fun, silly, and perhaps best known for two things: the only ever acting role of the legendary Truman Capote, and an outrageously poorly aged performance by Peter Sellers (regardless of how offensive it is nowadays, though, hearing him say “two two Twain” will never not get a laugh out of me). Also featuring Sir Alec Guinness and Columbo himself, Peter Falk, among others.
Clue did the same shtick better, but this is still quite enjoyable.
P.S. Hot damn, Maggie Smith was a smoke back in the day.
"I don't understand pops, was there a murder or wasn't there?"
"Yes. Killed good weekend."
Hokey, pretty fun, Murder by Death is the predecessor to Clue, Knives Out, and other comedy mysteries I love.
It’s a great concept, and it is a great cast! It’s fun to see parodies of detectives I’ve come to love over the years. The jokes unfortunately don’t always land, either being too slapstick or too confusing. It’s meant to exist as a parody of the genre in general, and while I understood that I didn’t always enjoy it.
While all performances are fun, Peter Falk delivers an oddly GREAT dramatic performance. Like I’m not sure why but he really goes for it, makes me wish he could have done some solid noirs. Gonna have to check out Columbo one of these days.
Watchable, passable, it’s pretty fascinating. If you’re into Clue, it’s worth giving a shot.
finally, the movie that answers the age-old question "what if Clue was an insufferable, racist, homophobic, unfunny dumpster fire?"
"Murder by Death" is a delightful send up of mystery fiction boasting a script that features a joke, riff, zinger, or gag almost every other line. The laughs come quickly and consistently in a film that deserves to be considered with the best comedies of the 1970s.
With a set up that is now classic, the film focuses on a dinner party where a group of detectives are assembled to solve a murder mystery. The detective who solves the case will be awarded copious amounts of cash from a shadowy benefactor. The actual plot is less important than the characters and their interactions, but the narrative serves as a sturdy engine for the film's comedy. The central mystery is comically…
I just smiled and giggled all the way through this. A fantastically fun murder mystery spoof. I would kill to live in those sets!
Woke up today with THE strongest urge to watch this. TCM just knew. Funny how the universe works sometimes
