DIAL M FOR MURDER (DVD) DVD

Dial M for Murder
Based on the popular mystery play by Frederick Knott, Dial M For Murder is more talky and stagebound than most Hitchcock films, but no less enjoyable. British tennis pro Ray Milland suspects that his wealthy wife Grace Kelly is fooling around with handsome American Robert Cummings. Milland blackmails a disgraced former army comrade (Anthony Dawson) into murdering Kelly and making it look like the work of a burglar. But Milland's carefully mapped-out scheme does not take into account the notion that Kelly might fight back and kill her assailant. When the police (represented by John Williams) investigate, Milland improvises quickly, subtly planting the suggestion that his wife has committed first-degree murder. He almost gets away with it; to tell you more would spoil the fun of the film's final thirty minutes. Hitchcock claimed that he chose this single-set play because he was worn out from several earlier, more ambitious projects, and wanted to "recharge his batteries." Compelled by Warner Bros. to film Dial M for Murder in 3-D, Hitchcock perversely refused to throw in the standard in-your-face gimmickry of most stereoscopic films of the era--though watch how he visually emphasizes an important piece of evidence towards the end of the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Ray Milland as Tom Wendice Grace Kelly as Margot Wendice Robert Cummings as Mark Halliday John Williams as Chief Inspector Hubbard Anthony Dawson as Captain Swan Lesgate Patrick Allen as Detective Pearson Leo Britt as The Storyteller George Leigh as William George Alderson as The Detective Robin Hughes as A Police Sergeant

Crew Edward Carrere - Art Director George James Hopkins - Art Director Moss Mabry - Costume Designer Mel Dellar - First Assistant Director Alfred Hitchcock - Director Rudi Fehr - Editor Dimitri Tiomkin - Composer (Music Score) Gordon Bau - Makeup Robert Burks - Cinematographer Alfred Hitchcock - Producer George James Hopkins - Set Designer Oliver S. Garretson - Sound/Sound Designer Frederick Knott - Screenwriter Frederick Knott - Play Author

Dial M for Murder
Alfred's Hitchcock's adaptation of Frederick Knott's play is hardly the director at his best, though it remains an above-average suspense-melodrama with a typically Hitchcockian villain. It focuses on the efforts of Ray Milland's character, an idler who fears that his wealthy wife might leave him and wants her murdered so that he might inherit her money. The machinery of the play is standard but enjoyable in its tight construction, with only the business of the key being of dubious plausibility. Its most compelling element is Milland's character, who has shades of Cary Grant in Suspicion (1941) and Robert Walker in Strangers on a Train (1951). Most memorable is an ugly scene in which he blackmails an old "friend" into agreeing to kill his wife, played by Grace Kelly. Milland is near the top of his game here, and John Williams turns in his usual fine performance as the wily Scotland Yard inspector. Kelly, and Robert Cummings as her lover, are forced to contend with underwritten stock characters. Neither comes off particularly well. ~ Michael Costello, All Movie Guide
 

Alfred Hitchcock: Directors Guild of America, Best Director (nominated) Grace Kelly: National Board of Review, Best Actress (winner) Grace Kelly: New York Film Critics Circle, Best Actress (winner) John Williams: National Board of Review, Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Pic (winner)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, French Subtitle Options: English, French, Spanish Sound Processing: DD1: Dolby Digital Mono Additional Features: cc New documentaries "Hitchcock and Dial M" and "3D: A Brief History" Theatrical trailer Languages: English & Français Subtitles: English, Français, & Español DVD Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1: Pre-1954 Standard MPAA Rating: PG DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 105 min   DVD Chapters: Side #1 -- 1. Credits. [1:07] 2. Blackmail Note. [5:45] 3. Tony Bows Out. [1:55] 4. Calling About a Car. [2:03] 5. Schools (and Hitchcock) Photo. [3:00] 6. What Tony Saw. [4:57] 7. Your Word Against Mine. [5:33] 8. Murder Plan. [5:27] 9. Key Player Paid. [3:17] 10. Purse Snatcher. [5:55] 11. Running Late. [3:09] 12. Murder Calling. [4:28] 13. Ghastly Accident. [3:47] 14. Improvising a Frame-Up. [3:01] 15. Intermission. [:46] 16. Chief Inspector Hubbard. [5:19] 17. Reenacting the Crime. [3:29] 18. Wendice's Web of Evidence. [4:01] 19. Hubbard's Question. [4:51] 20. Guilty. [1:02] 21. Mark's Murder Scenario. [5:37] 22. Troublesome Latchkeys. [3:03] 23. Incriminating Attaché Case. [5:50] 24. Tony's Out, Hubbard's In. [5:48] 25. Key to the Case. [2:40] 26. Hubbard Explains It All. [4:56] 27. The Trap Is Sprung. [2:48] 28. Drinking in Defeat. [1:31]