DIAL M FOR MURDER (1954)

Alfred Hitchcock’s smoothly entertaining theatrical thriller isn’t so much adapted from Frederick Knott’s stage play as lightly trimmed. Only the opening gets a uniquely filmic construct, cutting from husband Ray Milland with wife Grace Kelly (in bridal white) to lover Robert Cummings with mistress Grace Kelly (now in shocking red) though it largely plays out in an apartment drawing room we barely leave over the course of the film. Yet, even with a first act full of talkie exposition as Milland blackmails old school acquaintance Anthony Dawson into murder-for-hire, there’s not a moment without visual interest as Hitch cunningly sidesteps & glides his way around the small space, holding back on close-ups and virtuoso shots only as needed for emphasis while color-coding Kelly’s wardrobe & makeup down (that drab brown coat!) as she falls into a legal abyss. Even more effective when seen, as originally intended, with the subtle play of Hitchcock’s sophisticated use of the 3D process. (Currently available ‘with’ or ‘without.’) Naturally, the suspense peaks during the famous attempted murder, but act two has its own cerebral thrills, drawn to our attention in a great character turn from Inspector John Williams, quietly hilarious when, as he says, he gets his blood up. It’s no more than a puzzle, but with just the right amount of pleasurable jolts and tingly sensations.

DOUBLE-BILL: Of many tv versions, a Hallmark Hall of Fame telecast from 1958, finds Dawson & Williams reprising the roles they played on film and originated on B’way, now against Maurice Evans who had Milland’s role on stage with them. The only film remake, A PERFECT MURDER/’98, with Michael Douglas, Gwyneth Paltrow & Viggo Mortensen, skimps on the twists & turns. It’s DIAL M FOR DUMMIES.

ATTENTION MUST BE PAID: Two oddities. There’s a really bad shot of Dawson on the couch, an upward diagonal pan across him as he sits, listening to Milland explain things. Considering the phenomenal precision of every shot in the pic, this gaffe really sticks out. Cover for a missing angle? A patch for a screwed up 3D element on the negative? Then, right at the end, a funny moment of indecision when Detective Williams has some dialogue to tell us exactly what is happening just outside the door as Milland almost doesn’t figure out just what is going on with the mixed up latch keys, the key to the case! The speech is straight from the play where Milland’s action wouldn’t have been seen on stage. Hence all the verbal description. Yet, Hitchcock plays it both ways, giving us all Williams’ dialogue and using parallel editing to show Milland’s actions on the doorstep. Why so? Best explanation is that they wanted to make all the key swapping business crystal clear for even the slowest wit in the audience. (Hands please.)