It's high time I got the whodunit threads going again. It's been nearly two years since I've started one.
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MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(November 26, 2016 09:32 AM)
Apparently there's also a modern version of the story, done as a miniseries. I've heard all sorts of contradictory reviews of that film. Someday I'll see it myself. Maybe.
Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
greenbudgie — 9 years ago(December 19, 2016 02:16 AM)
I don't think I will try to catch the porn version of 'And Then There Was None.' I saw the 1974 version of it yesterday in a UK Drama channel Agatha Christie weekend.
It was tiled 'Ten Little Indians but I notice that they use the ATTWN tile for it here on IMDb. I know that I've heard the music that they use after each murder in it somewhere before, so I'm going to check the 1965 version of it to see if the same music was used in that. -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(December 19, 2016 12:57 PM)
I have never been interested in seeing the 65 and 74 versions of that story. Maybe someday someone will film a faithful adaptation of the novel, with the correct ending and a horror feel to it.
Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(December 29, 2016 10:45 PM)
I was just discussing with someone else the 1934 film
The Ninth Guest
, which I really suspect was the inspiration for
And Then There Were None
. In this film, a bunch of guests are invited to a fancy penthouse suite for a partyand they start to get murdered off, one by one. I especially liked Donald Cook's performance, the way he tries to keep the guests calm, etc. Highly recommended!Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
greenbudgie — 9 years ago(December 30, 2016 01:20 AM)
'The Ninth Guest' sounds really good. I've just read your enthusiastic thread on the message boards for that film.
I must start checking all these old movies on Youtube. I always grab any of those 1930s mysteries if I see them on budget DVD if I can, but they seem to be very rare in that medium. -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(December 30, 2016 11:58 AM)
Better to find them on youtube or other places online.
I really don't know why these types of whodunits are so largely forgotten!
Of course, there are a lot of retro whodunits (like the David Suchet Poirot mysteries), but somehow, the ones actually filmed in the 20s, 30s, or 40s have their own charm.Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(February 06, 2017 12:15 AM)
I just watched
The Murder Man
again, a film which I have already mentioned here.
It's a terrific movie. I hope it's one which you will find. It's well worth a look! Great cast as well - Spencer Tracy, James Stewart, Robert Barrat, etc.Proud to be Canadian! -
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MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(November 25, 2016 10:59 AM)
I haven't seen the ones you mentioned, but I have seen other retro series, such as the David Suchet Poirot mysteries,
Ellery Queen
(1970s), some of the Miss Marple mysteries, etc. Overall they're very well done, but of course sometimes they slip up with things like hairdos (they'll throw in a modern hairdo instead of one from the correct time period), etc. No big deal. I try to track down mysteries filmed in the 30s and 40s in order to get the authentic feel.Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(November 26, 2016 11:38 PM)
The Unguarded Hour
(1936):
Fantastic whodunit-thriller-courtroom drama. (It seems to be a bit of all three.)
Anyhow, the film starts out with a rich and high-profile couple hosting a party. The husband has a chance to move up in position in his job (he's a lawyer). At the party, the wife is blackmailed by a man whose wife was once involved with the ambitious lawyer (years before he was married). She agrees to meet him at a certain time and to receive instructions about where/when to drop off the money and where/when to get the letters which her hubby wrote many years earlier. When she arrives at the designated spot, she becomes a witness to something which becomes a big part of a murder trial her husband has to deal with. Also, later her hubby gets into a scrape of his own.
I don't want to say anything more because I don't want to include spoilers. I'll just say that the film has some great twists and turns, with a terrific ending IMHO.
This film really needs to be better known.
My only problem with this film is that it has a 10 minute stretch which should have been done in about 2 or 3 minutes. Other than that, it's perfection.Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(November 29, 2016 12:05 AM)
The Verdict
(1946):
I've already mentioned this film on the noir thread, but since it's a whodunit, I'll say a few words here as well about the whodunit part. This is a locked room mystery. A lady is murdered and an innocent man is sent to the gallows. Later, the lady's nephew is found murdered in his bed - a knife through his chest. All the windows and doors to his room were locked. How was this crime committed?
This film really has a terrific ending, one of the best.
I think my favourite mystery endings would have to be as follows:
The Verdict
(1946)
The Kennel Murder Case
(novel by S. S. Van Dine; film released in 1933)
The Door Between
(novel by Ellery Queen)
The Three Coffins
(novel by John Dickson Carr)
The Eye of Apollo
(short story by G. K. Chesterton)
For anyone interested in locked room mysteries/impossible crimes, be sure to read stories by John Dickson Carr. He also wrote some great radio plays where are available on archive.org, as part of the Suspense series.Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(November 30, 2016 11:44 PM)
They Call it Murder
(1971):
It's been about 2 years since I've seen it. I thought that I'd give it another look.
This is the only Doug Selby mystery which has ever been filmed. This detective-D.A. was created by the Erle Stanley Gardner, who created Perry Mason. I would love to see all the Doug Selby mysteries in print again, and it would be nice if all of them could be filmed. I've only had the pleasure of reading a couple of the books which I was lucky enough to find.
This film is based on the novel
The D.A. Draws a Circle
(which I read once). It's a rather complicated story about multiple murders, characters involved in other shady deals, etc. Obviously I love Jim Hutton in the leading role, and I really liked Leslie Nielsen in a supporting role. He did a super job.
The film is a bit slow-moving at times, but still worth a look.Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(December 05, 2016 08:50 PM)
Currently watching the 1935 mystery-thriller
The Murder Man
, which revolves around the murder of a big-shot businessman and how a team of reporters handle reporting of the case, etc. Great cast, including Spencer Tracy, Virginia Bruce, James Stewart, and Robert Barrat.Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(December 06, 2016 04:20 PM)
All I can say about this film (besides the fact that it's fantastic) is that Spencer Tracy should have received acting noms, especially for his work in the final 15 minutes of the movie.
Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(December 06, 2016 09:38 PM)
Four films based on
Edgar Wallace
novels:
First viewings:
The Human Monster
(1930s, also known as
The Dark Eyes of London
)
The Door With Seven Locks
(1940)
Multiple viewings:
The Terror
(1930s, already reviewed on this thread)
Before Dawn
(1933)Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
MsELLERYqueen2 — 9 years ago(December 17, 2016 10:56 PM)
I keep forgetting to review
Before Dawn
on this thread. This one's highly recommended for those who like the following: isolated house, secret passage (and this one has something extra added to it), sinister characters, a lot of money stashed somewhere in the house, and fortune tellers. It should be obvious early on who the culprit is, but it's still a fun film to watch. Great to see Warner Oland play a character other than Charlie Chan!Jim Hutton (1934-79) & Ellery Queen = -
Angel_Buffy — 9 years ago(December 29, 2016 07:11 PM)
The Ninth Guest is a great mystery. It's one of those great films with people stuck somewhere and slowly being killed off, and they have to ask themselves is one of them a murderer? Or are they not as alone as they thought?
It strongly reminds me of And Then There Were None, but really interestingly, pre-dates it. It even gets a little creepy at parts.
It's one film that I think is a real shame has been largely forgotten.
