Dial M for Murder

Introduction

Welcome to my corner! Last week, I shared my thoughts on the film The Time Machine. This week, I'm sharing my thoughts on the film Dial M for Murder.

On March 12, the TCM TV channel played Dial M for Murder during the daytime as part of their celebration of National Alfred Hitchcock Day. Hitchcock directed this movie... obviously.

Enjoy!

Dial M for Murder

Dial M for Murder is a 1954 American crime thriller film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Ray Milland, Grace Kelly, Robert Cummings, Anthony Dawson and John Williams. Both the screenplay and the successful stage play on which it was based were written by English playwright Frederick Knott. The play premiered in 1952 on BBC Television, before being performed on stage in the same year in London's West End in June, and then New York's Broadway in October.

Originally intended to be shown in dual-strip polarized 3-D, the film played in most cinemas in ordinary 2-D owing to the loss of interest in the 3-D process ( the projection of which was difficult and error-prone) by the time of its release. The film earned an estimated $2.7 million in North American box office sales in 1954.

Plot: Ex-tennis pro tony Wendice (Ray Milland) wants to have his wealthy wife, Margot (Grace Kelly), murdered so he can get his hands on her inheritance. When he discovers her affair with Mark Halliday (Robert Cummings), he comes up with the perfect plan to kill her. He blackmails an old acquaintance into carrying out the murder, but the carefully-orchestrated set-up goes awry, and Margot stays alive. Now Wendice must frantically scheme to outwit the police and avoid having his plot detected.

Acting: Ray Milland played Tony Wendice. I don't think I've seen any of Milland's other work. I loved him in this role! He was cool, calm, collected, but manipulative and murderous at the same time. It seems wrong to say it (more on that later), but he was my favorite part of the movie.

Grace Kelly played Margot Mary Wendice. The only other Grace Kelly movie I've seen was Rear Window with James Stewart. Another Alfred Hitchcock movie! And coincidentally, the next movie he made. I loved Rear Window! I really liked Dial M for Murder as well, but not because of Kelly.

She was fine in Rear Window, but I could not stand her in this movie. Not necessarily because of bad acting on her part, but because of her voice/accent was just really strong, but I was really annoyed by it from the moment she spoke. I could not get past it. Her voice did not bother me in Rear Window, so I'm not sure.

Robert Cummings played Mark Halliday. His role wasn't that large in the movie. Nothing remarkable to speak about, but nothing horrible to speak of either. Kind of a forgetful role.

John Williams played Chief Inspector Hubbard. His role wasn't particularly large either; however, he left more of an impression on me than Cummings playing Halliday. He was just as smart and conniving as Milland playing Wendice. He was also surprisingly funny at times. I enjoyed watching him on screen.

Technical aspects: According to his biographer Donald Spoto, Hitchcock was not enthusiastic about the film, and Spoto quotes Grace Kelly to the effect that "the only reason [Hitchcock] could remain calm was that he was already preparing his next picture, Rear Window.

I won't like, I did like Rear Window more than Dial M for Murder, but I did enjoy both immensely. I'm curious to know why he wasn't enthusiastic about this movie though. Maybe he was just more excited about Rear Window on the horizon? Even with lackluster drive for this movie, it still turned out great. I guess that's what happens with a legendary director at the wheel.

Alfred Hitchcock's cameo is a signature occurrence in most of his films. In Dial M for Murder, he can be seen 13 minutes into the film, in a black-and white reunion photograph, sitting at a banquet table among former students and faculty.

I didn't even notice his cameo, but when I read that he had one, the first thing I thought of was the reunion photo. And I was right!

Themes: Dial M for Murder explores themes of betrayal, greed, manipulation, and the illusion of appearances versus reality, all within a tightly controlled and suspenseful environment.

Betrayal: Tony and Margot are married, but apparently not happy. Margot is cheating on Tony with her old friend, Mark. I don't remember if they said how long this affair was going on, but I think it had been going on for months, or maybe even years. After Tony finds out, he's mad and wants revenge, understandably so. He decides to blackmail someone into killing Margot, in which case he'll get her money. I suppose that's where the greed comes into play.

Instead of trying to work it our like a civilized married couple, he jumps to murder plots. I think the money was just icing on the cake, but Tony would be broke without Margot.

Manipulation and illusion of reality go hand-in-hand. Tony is a master manipulator, and strangely enough I can't stop routing for him. He's able to create doubt in the minds of others while also coming off as a trustworthy individual.

Final Thoughts: I enjoyed this movie a lot, mostly because of Milland as Tony. I know this may seem wrong and twisted to say, but I was actually rooting for Tony to get away with it. I couldn't feel bad for Margot. As I said before, she annoyed me from the beginning. And to add cheating on top of that? There was no way I was cheering for her. Sure, she didn't deserve to be murdered, but she wasn't really free of guilt either.

I feel a little bit better knowing that Tony probably wouldn't have been executed for attempted murder. Heck, he probably wouldn't even be in jail that long. He may have instigated it all, but he didn't actually kill anyone.

I feel like a horrible person defending Tony to this extent, but it's honestly how I feel about the situation. Let me know if you feel any different after watching the movie!

Where to watch it: Dial M for Murder is available to watch on the streaming services Xumo Play and PLEX (according to Google), or you can purchase or rent a digital copy for a few dollars. I've also donated a DVD copy of the film to the Emil M. Larson Library in Clark for you all to enjoy if you choose to.

That's it for this week! What were your thoughts? Feel free to share them with us! You can call us, email us, visit us at the office, leave us a comment or message on Facebook, or even mail us something. Keep the comments, suggestions, questions, submissions, etc. coming our way! We'd love to hear from you!