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39 out of 54 people found the following comment useful :-
Tense and exciting., 15 October 2006

Author: PizzicatoFishCrouch from United Kingdom

Tony Wendice (Ray Milland), an ex-tennis player, unhappily married to Margot (Grace Kelly), correctly guesses that she has been cheating, with Mark Halliday (Robert Cummings). Mark writes crime stories. Unbeknown to Margot and Mark, Tony knows about the affair, and wants to teach Margot a little lesson, by taking away the thing that is her life. But, being too guileful to do it himself, Wendice blackmails one of his old school friends into murdering her, and the essential thing to doing it is his latchkey.

Dial M for Murder succeeds on many levels, and it is largely thanks to some superb dialogue, written from a tricksy-yet-capable script that never gets too deep. The cast are a treat. Ray Milland is an absolute gem, extremely sly and dispassionate, yet a character so full of self-assurance that one almost sides with him. Grace Kelly completes her great year (she gave an Oscar-winning performance in The Country Girl and also starred in Rear Window) by emanating the poised, beautiful being, that is vulnerable, yet oddly unassailable. And it's weird in that even though she's cheating on her husband, you care for her a lot more than him (although that could do with the fact that he's trying to kill her...) And John Williams, as the police detective, is quite wonderful.

Alfred Hitchcock manipulates and enthrals his audience here like the master that he is. Each scene has a sense of direction, great pacing, and is staged realistically. Stunning full colour photography and a haunting, atmospheric score from Dimitri Tiomkin complete this great package. The ending, when it comes, feels a little too nice to be truly realistic, but that is my only major quibble with an otherwise highly entertaining, thrilling movie.

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40 out of 62 people found the following comment useful :-
One of Hitchcock's best thrillers., 15 September 1999

Author: Charles Saint-Pierre from Montreal, Canada

1954 was a big year for Grace Kelly. She played in Hitchcock's classic "Rear window" and she won an Oscar for best actress in "The country girl" and most people tend to forget that she starred in yet another classic, "Dial M for murder". Starring Grace Kelly, Ray Milland, and Robert Cummings, it is simply one of Hitchcock's finest movies of all-time. In fact, I would consider it to be my second favorite Hitchcock movie ever, my first being "Psycho" (although I haven't seen "Rear window" yet).

Margot (Grace Kelly) is married to Tony Wendice (Ray Milland), an ex-tennis player. However, she has been seeing another man named Mark Halliday (Robert Cummings). Mark writes crime stories. The two of them think that Tony doesn't know about their relationship but they're wrong; Tony has known about this relationship for one year and seems to have had enough of it. So when Mark, who lives in New-York, comes to London to see Margot, Tony wants to go out with Mark and his wife. But the night of the event, Tony is unable to go. So he tells Margot to take Mark out and to have a good time. The only problem is that Tony doesn't really have something that's keeping him from going out with Margot and Mark. He has another plan, the plan being to blackmail one of his old college friends that has become a small time crook into murdering his wife.

What follows this is pure entertainment at its best. As usual, Hitchcock masterfully directs this movie and has the right actors to do the job. Ray Milland and Grace Kelly deliver very good performances and surprisingly enough, Robert Cummings does a rather good job in his role of Mark Halliday, the American crime novel writer who accidentally stumbles on the answer. But it is John Williams who steals the show with his great performance as Inspector Hubbard, the detective who holds the key to the whole mistery. He is simply excellent and pretty funny when he is supposed to be. Another of his great performances is in "Witness for the prosecution" where he played Brogan Moore, Charles Laughton's very good friend and seconding lawyer in the case. As for "Dial M for murder", well it's one of those movies that anyone should see at pretty much any cost.

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23 out of 35 people found the following comment useful :-
The perfect film for the perfect murder..., 21 February 2007

Author: José Luis Rivera Mendoza (jluis1984) from Mexico

After earning an Academy award nomination for her performance in John Ford's 1953 tale of romance and adventure, "Mogambo", the beautiful actress Grace Kelly proved that she was way more than just a pretty face and that there was real talent behind her image. However, what truly took her career to new levels were three now classic films she made directed by the legendary Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. Under his direction, Kelly made an integral part of the Master's films, becoming the perfect embodiment of Hitchcock's idea of a female protagonist. While Kelly debuted two years earlier in the classic Western "High Noon", one could say that it was Hitchcock who really introduced the beauty and talent of Grace Kelly to the world. "Dial M for Murder" was the first of Hitchcock's films with Kelly, and a movie where once again the Master returns to a familiar theme: the perfect murder.

The movie is the story of Tony Wendice (Ray Milland), a former tennis player married to the beautiful and wealthy Margot (Grace Kelly) and living in an nice apartment in London. Life is good for Tony, until he discovers that his wife is cheating on him with an old flame of her, famous crime novel writer Mark Halliday (Robert Cummings). After that discovery, Tony spends a whole years plotting the perfect way to murder his wife in order to inherit her money, carefully planning every detail of the crime. When Mark visits London again, Tony finds the perfect chance to set his plan in motion, and as planned, he recruits Charles Swann (Anthony Dawson) to kill his wife. However, bad luck and a sudden change of events will test Tony's plan's infallibility as, just as Mark points out, human action can originate flaws even in the most perfectly devised plan.

Like most Hitchcock's films, "Dial M for Murder" was an adaptation of another art-form, this time a popular play by Frederick Knott. As Knott was also the writer of the screenplay, the movie remains extremely faithful to the play, although of course, not without its differences. Knott's script is wonderfully constructed, as like in the play, the dialog is witty and simply captivating, with many twists and turns that spiced up the complex plot and keep it from being boring or tiresome. An interesting feature of the movie is that oddly, there are no black and white morality in the characters, and it's easy not only to sympathize with Margot (despite she being cheating on her husband) but also to sympathize with Tony (despite he wanting to kill his wife), as the characters are wonderfully developed with very detailed personalities.

It seems that Hitchcock's knows that the dialog is the highlight of the play, as he deliberately focuses on his actors and uses an elegant camera-work to frame the whole movie inside the apartment. The movie literally is shot entirely in one single room (only two other sets are used, and only briefly), but Hitchcock's classy way of using the camera allow a highly dynamic flow that never lets the movie be tiresome. This is also very helpful as Hitchcock just lets his characters keep speaking, carefully describing actions and events (when other directors would use flashbacks) in a similar way to a what the real play would be. While this approach could easily get boring, Hitchcock's use of colors and overall visual imagery simply creates the perfect medium to allow Knott's dialog to shine.

Without disrespecting John Ford or Fred Zinnemann, I think that it was Hitchcock who finally could allow Kelly's talent to shine beyond her physical beauty. Grace Kelly makes her character shine with her subtle and restrained performance, specially showing her skill in the second half of the film. While often Kelly receives top honors in this movie, it is actually Ray Milland who makes the whole movie work with his suave and charming "villian". Milland's performance is simply terrific, making his character nice enough to win the sympathies of the audience, yet still frighteningly intelligent as the mastermind of the plot. John Williams appears as the Inspector in charge to solve the complex puzzle, and delivers a classic performance as the Enlgish gentleman decided to find the final answer. Only Robert Cummings seems miscast as Mark Halliday, although a lot of his weak performance could be blamed to Milland, Kelly and Williams overshadowing him with their excellent work.

In many ways, "Dial M for Murder" shares many things with "Rope", as not only the two films are based on successful plays, they are also about committing the perfect murder and oddly, they are both "experiments": while "Rope" was conceived as a "movie in one take", "Dial M for Murder" was done as 3-D movie. Sadly, the interest in 3-D was dying when the film was released, so few theaters carried the movie complete with the gimmick; a real shame, as Hitchcock's use of the technology, unlike most 3-D films of its time, was conceived as a way to enhance the claustrophobia of the Wendices' apartment instead of using it to merely shock the audience with "stuff coming out of the screen" (as seen in for example, "House of Wax"). While not too fond of the gimmick, Hitchcock truly gave it a good and intelligent (albeit subtle) use to it.

"Dial M for Murder" is probably less celebrated than the Master's most famous movies, the fact that it came out the same years as "Rear Window" (again with Grace Kelly) may have had something to do with it too. While a subtler and more restrained tale of suspense, this is still the Master at his best, as the movie proves that when he was at the top of his game, no other director was comparable to him. 9/10

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33 out of 55 people found the following comment useful :-
Superior Hitchcock with an exquisite Grace Kelly, 21 July 2002
Author: Dennis Littrell (dalittrell@yahoo.com) from SoCal

This is a fine example of the kind of mystery that little old ladies from Pasadena (or Russell Square) adore. Perhaps Arsenic and Old Lace (1944) starring Cary Grant might be comparable in its gentile and bloodless ability to glue us to the screen.

This is certainly one of Hitchcock's best, but most of the credit must go to a devilishly clever play written by Frederick Knott from which the movie was adapted. (He also wrote Wait Until Dark (1967) starring Audrey Hepburn.) Hitchcock does a good job in not tinkering unnecessarily with the material. He also has the exquisitely beautiful Grace Kelly to play the part of Margot Wendice.

Ray Milland plays, with a kind of high-toned Brit panache, her diabolical husband, Tony Wendice, a one-time tennis star who married mostly for security. John Williams is the prim and proper Chief Inspector Hubbard. He lends to the part a bit of Sherlock Holmesian flair. One especially liked his taking a moment to comb his mustache after the case is solved. Robert Cummings, unfortunately plays Margot's American boyfriend as inventively as a sawhorse. For those of you who might have blinked, Hitchcock makes his traditional appearance in the photo on the wall from Tony Wendice's undergraduate days.

The fulcrum of the plot is the latchkey. It is the clue that (literally) unlocks the mystery. There is a modernized redoing of this movie called A Perfect Murder (1998) starring Michael Douglas and Gwyneth Paltrow in which a similar business with latchkeys is employed. I am not very good with clues so it was only after seeing that movie and Dial M for Murder for the second time that I finally understood what happened. Follow the latchkey!

Of course I was too distracted by Grace Kelly to fully appreciate such intricacies. I found myself struck with the ironic notion that anyone, even a cuckolded husband, might want to kill Grace Kelly or that a jury might find her guilty of anything! She remains in my psyche America's fairytale princess who quit Hollywood at the height of her popularity after only five years and eleven movies to become a real princess by marrying Prince Rainier of Monaco. Something was lost there, and something was gained. She was in essence the original Jackie Kennedy Onassis. I think, however, that the old saw about the man who marries for money, earning it, might apply to American princesses as well.

At any rate, Grace Kelly's cool and sublime bearing was on fine display here. Hitchcock cloths her in discreet nightgowns and snug (but certainly not clinging) dresses that show off her delicate figure and her exquisite arms and hint oh so coyly at her subtle sexuality. She was 25-years-old, stunningly beautiful, and in full confidence of her ability as an actress. She had just finished starring opposite James Stewart in another splendid Hitchcock one-room mystery, Rear Window (1954), and was about to make The Country Girl (1954) with Bing Crosby for which she would win an Oscar for Best Actress.

So see this for Grace Kelly who makes Gwyneth Paltrow (whom I adore) look downright gawky, and for Ray Milland whose urbane scheming seems a layer or two of hell removed from Michael Douglas's evil manipulations.

By the way, the "original theatrical trailer" preceding these Warner Brothers Classic videos is what we used to call the "Coming Attractions"--that is, clips directly from the movie and a promo. You might want to fast forward to the movie itself.

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26 out of 42 people found the following comment useful :-
A classic stage murder thriller..., 17 February 2002

Author: ironside (robertfrangie@hotmail.com) from Mexico

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Ray Milland schemes to knock off his lovely wife (Grace Kelly) in order to support his flagging bank balance...

His cause is "justified" by the fact that his wife is guilty of cheating on him...

Milland develops a carefully constructed murder plan, contacting Captain Lesgate (John Williams), an old college classmate operating illegal ventures, to whom he outlines his murder scheme and then blackmails into carrying it out...

The movie takes off from there as an intense character battle between three different characters... Tony, done by Ray Milland in outstanding performance, is icily intense and incredibly wild. He is easily the best of the three... Grace Kelly & Robert Cummings both pale in comparison, although Grace is slightly better, for the merely reason that her character is left for to do the least amount of truly suspenseful acting...

The murder is set up and is deliciously evil: The defining moment is when Ray Milland wipes clean every object he touches as he explains to Anthony Dawson how to carry out the murder of his adulterous wife, thus not incriminating himself... They discuss the closing of the screen door to the porch, the placement of the golden key, and the time it will take his woman to answer the distracting phone call...

Grace Kelly is the smart but vulnerable Margot... She begins her role dressed in bright crimson reds but as the film progresses and finds herself accused, her outfits become darker... Kelly is ingénue enough to be sympathetic but also tough enough to be respected... Her most memorable image was on the phone, oblivious to the assassin behind her...

Robert Cummings does not fare at all because of his comical face... He is the weakest cast member bringing so little to the table...

John Williams is excellent as the dangerous murder weapon tricked by a clever scoundrel... but he somewhere along makes one fatal mistake...

Anthony Dawson is absolutely brilliant, delightful as the eccentric Chief Inspector watching how the easy-talking husband is trying to cover his tracks... As soon as he arrives on scene to investigate the murder, there's an instant feeling of electricity... Here's a guy who can read human nature from a mile away... He takes compassion on Kelly, but unfortunately, the two don't partner up as in cop buddy movies...

The film, however, belongs to the sinister Ray Milland, the cold logic husband who designs the murder to look like a routine burglary gone wrong, and leads Scotland Yard into believing his wife is guilty of deliberate murder...

Milland, a genteel charmer with an icy murderous side, is perfect as Tony Wendice... If ever there was a demonstration of venality, Milland's Tony Wendice was it: courteous on the outside, devious on the inside... We see his cheery domestic manner with his wife... He blithely sends her out for the evening with her lover, then without breaking his stride sits down at the telephone and calls Swan, the man he intends to enlist for the murder... There is something chilling about the way in which Milland operates in these scenes: Once Swan arrives, the polite smile never leaves Milland's face as he switches gears from exchanging pleasantries to blackmail and murder.. The entire scene was shot from the ceiling...

'Dial M for Murder' holds its grip pretty well... Hitchcock provides the tension in many directorial tricks: Margot's unexpected change in plans for the evening; a hiding place for a key blocked by Mark at a critical moment; a stopped watch; an occupied telephone box; Margot's wavering hand holding the telephone that almost blocks Swan's access to her neck; Tony taking the key out of Swan's pocket and even briefing his wife what to tell the police...

'Dial M for Murder' is a classic stage murder thriller... It never reaches the heights that 'Rear Window' did, but it has to be one of the most brilliant stage thrillers ever written... The score, composed by Dimitri Tiomkin, is both eerie & precarious...

"Dial M for Murder" is a film that makes you pay attention. It is a definite must-see!

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8 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
"Do you really believe in the perfect murder? ", 4 July 2007

Author: Galina from Virginia, USA

The hit Broadway play by Frederick Knott "Dial M for Murder" has been adapted to the screen several times, including the films made in West Germany and Sweden, as well as a TV movie in 1981 (TV) by Boris Seagal and the film "A Perfect Murder" (1998) directed by Andrew Davis with Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Viggo Mortensen. Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 adaptation was the first and certainly the best one even if the master himself considered it one of his lesser efforts. "Dial M for Murder" will be remembered as Hitchcock's first color film and the first of three thrillers he had made with Grace Kelly, the future Princess of Monaco, in the prime of her beauty and her talent. Using color proved to be very effective in the film. The first two scenes featuring Kelly wearing a white morning dress in the idyllic scene with her husband Tony and right after that kissing passionately her American lover, writer (Robert Cummings) in the red dress, immediately, without many words tell the viewer that the story of passion, deception, betrayal, and ultimately, murder will follow.

Ray Milland (Tony Wendice) is a surprisingly sympathetic villain (which is perhaps not surprising from the actor with talent, charm, and charisma that equal and remind a lot of both Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart) who knows about his wife cheating and decides to teach her a lesson by plotting a very clever murder which will make him a sole heir to her money (she is a wealthy one in the family). His plan is perfect and almost works but Margot managed to not only escape the murderer but to turn the table on him while stunned Wendice is on the phone and listens how his well thought of plan collapses. Wendice is very resourceful and he proved to be a master of improvisation because it took him a few minutes in a cab to switch to a plan B that turned a terrified victim Margot into a cold-blooded murderess. Now it is up to seasoned and shrewd inspector Hubbard (John Williams) to find the crucial piece of evidence and to solve the case.

As always with Hitchcock, his directing is impeccable, the camera rarely leaves Wendice's apartment but the film is never claustrophobic which is the case for many plays' adaptation. It breathes and moves freely and we almost forget that we are in the same room for close to two hours. I would not call "Dial M for Murder" my favorite Hitchcock's film but it is enjoyable, clever, and witty thriller with the interesting twists, outstanding performances, and more than one truly memorable scenes.

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8 out of 12 people found the following comment useful :-
A very good thriller with a great cast, 25 August 2005

Author: NewEnglandPat from Virginia

Alfred Hitchcock serves up a grand suspense yarn about an elaborate murder-for-hire scheme. Ray Milland, Grace Kelly and Robert Cummings form the triangle in the case of a husband who wants to eliminate his wife in order to inherit her considerable wealth. That his wife is involved in an extramarital affair means little to him as he sets into motion his plan that eventually unravels due to dogged detective work. As with most murder mysteries, money is the reason Milland wants to dispatch Kelly and enlists the help of an outsider to do the dirty work. John Williams is the droll inspector who takes the case apart and puts it back together with logic and old fashioned police sleuthing. The film has a parallel with another Hitchcock film, "Rope", in that both pictures were filmed almost entirely with one set piece. Still, this mystery remains one of the genre's best films.

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12 out of 20 people found the following comment useful :-
Excellent Hitchcock thriller, 17 January 2002
Author: Philip Borrington from England

Surprisingly this is a lesser-known Hitchcock film but still stands up today as an exciting thriller full of twists and turns.

Ray Milland is excellent as ex-tennis pro Tony Wendice who decides to commit the perfect murder of his wife (Grace Kelly) when he learns of her affair with Robert Cummings (who isn't given much to do). In fact, Milland's subtle performance has you wanting the murder plot to work! Though it has to be said, Kelly's helpless female turn does not help in this regard either.

Hitchcock's skill here is to totally involve the viewer in the labyrinthine plot involving keys, telephone calls and stockings so that at the end of the film you haven't even noticed that virtually all the scenes are in one room.

If you like clever, wordy films with a touch of humour then I recommend `Dial M For Murder'. 8/10

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6 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :-
One Of Hitchcock's Best, 18 October 2008

Author: Lechuguilla from Dallas, Texas

Based on a stage play, the film's plot takes place mostly in one apartment, a cozy abode complete with a fire burning in the fireplace. An aging tennis pro named Tony Wendice (Ray Milland) plans his wife's murder with the help of an old acquaintance.

Wendice is charming, debonair, and intelligent, a man with great foresight who constructs his crime in meticulous detail. Half the fun of this film is watching, and listening to, this guy as he articulates his scheme with confident coolness. Ray Milland is just terrific in the role.

Naturally, complications ensue as the film's plot moves along. Not even the scheming Tony Wendice can foresee every possible contingency. And in the second half we get to watch him squirm, mentally struggle, and improvise, as his airtight plan starts to unravel.

The Frederick Knott script is heavy on dialogue, but the film is so engaging that it never seems "talky". Hitchcock's direction is fine. Color cinematography includes some clever camera angles that help break up the monotony of such an enclosed setting. Yet, the film has a claustrophobic feel that actually enhances the anxiety and tension of the situations the characters find themselves in.

Dimitri Tiomkin's elegant score fits well with the formal attire of the characters. The impression is thus conveyed that Tony and his wife are sophisticated, well off financially, and connected to society's upper crust. Grace Kelly and Robert Cummings give fine performances in support roles. And John Williams' performance is as outstanding as that of Ray Milland.

This film is not a whodunit. The story is simple and straightforward. It's more of a character study, particularly of Tony Wendice.

With a terrific story, engaging characters, excellent acting, clever photography, and credible production design, "Dial M For Murder" is thoroughly enjoyable. It is one of my three favorite Alfred Hitchcock films.

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10 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :-
An Absorbing Cat-and-Mouse Game, 24 May 2001
Author: Snow Leopard from Ohio

One of Alfred Hitchcock's best-known films, "Dial M For Murder" is a carefully crafted and absorbing cat-and-mouse game that keeps the viewer's attention all the way until the end. The very simple settings and small cast focus all of our attention on the battle of wits a between a scheming husband, played with style by Ray Milland, and the rest of the characters.

The story begins when retired tennis pro Tony Wendice (Milland) decides to eliminate his rich, unfaithful wife Margot. He has laid out an elaborate scheme that starts with blackmailing an old college classmate to do the job for him. But things do not work out as planned, and Wendice must spend the rest of the film constantly trying to improvise his way out of difficulty.

The blackmailing scene at the beginning makes a great prelude to all that follows. The way that Wendice approaches such a sordid business in such a debonair fashion both initiates all of the plot action and also establishes some nice character contrasts. (Also watch this scene carefully for one of Hitchcock's most subtle cameo appearances.)

The rest of the plot is complicated and contains some fine surprises. As always, it is handled expertly by Hitchcock, who makes sure that we focus both on the characters and on the clues. Milland gives a fine performance as Wendice, making us admire his poise and resourcefulness despite his amoral coldness. Hitchcock favorite John Williams is excellent as the police inspector.

The only thing that keeps this from being one of Hitchcock's very best films is the weaknesses in the other two major characters. As Margot, Grace Kelly is charming as always, but her character makes too many obvious mistakes for us to sympathize with her as deeply as we could. As Margot's boyfriend, Robert Cummings is too over-eager and one-dimensional for us to like him very much. These imperfections keep the viewer's emotional involvement from being even stronger, but even so the story is still filled with suspense and interest.

"Dial M For Murder" will bring a lot of satisfaction to mystery and thriller fans as they watch it and try to figure out what will happen next.

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