Dial "M" for Murder

• Director: Boris Sagal
• AMG Rating:
• Genre: Thriller
• Movie Type: Psychological Thriller
• Themes: Treacherous Spouses, Mind Games, Miscarriage of Justice
• Main Cast: Angie Dickinson, Christopher Plummer, Anthony Quayle
• Release Year: 1981
• Country: US
• Run Time: 100 minutes

Plot

This second film version of Frederick Knott's suspense play stars Christopher Plummer as a wealthy Londoner, who works out a meticulous scheme to murder his wife (Angie Dickinson) and escape undetected. The plan goes awry when the wife fights off the man hired to commit the murder, killing her attacker with a pair of scissors. Thinking quickly, Plummer manages to convince the police that his wife is guilty of premeditated murder. The woman is sentenced to hang for her "crime", but a diligent police inspector (Anthony Quayle) has second thoughts about her guilt. A serviceable made-for-TV job, the 1981 Dial 'M' for Murder suffers only when compared to Alfred Hitchcock's 1954 filmization of the same play. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast

Angie Dickinson - Margot Wendice; Gerry Gibson - Sgt. Williams; Leo Lewis - Sgt. Pearson; Ron Moody - Captain Lesgate "Swann"; Christopher Plummer - Tony Wendice; Anthony Quayle - Inspector Hubbard; Dwight Schultz - TV Director; Clement St. George - Man at Party; Michael Parks - Max Halliday; John Touchstone - Sgt. Thompson

Credit

Boris Sagal - Director, David G. Blangsted - Editor, Freyda Rothstein - Executive Producer, Billy Goldenberg - Composer (Music Score), Ron Hobbs - Production Designer, Michel Hugo - Cinematographer, Peter Katz - Producer, John Gay - Screenwriter, Frederick Knott - Play Author

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Sorry, Wrong Number; Downfall; The Double Kill; A Perfect Murder; Oshibka Tony Vendisa