"Well, to Make a Long Story Short..." "Too Late!"
Added 11/11/2009
This was the first of the movies based on a board game, and it works remarkably well. As in the classic game, we've got Miss Scarlett (Lesley Ann Warren), Mrs. White (Madeline Kahn), Mrs. Peacock (Eileen Brennan), Mr. Green (Michael McKean), Colonel Mustard (Martin Mull), and Professor Plum (Christopher Lloyd). The year is 1954, and the six of them have been invited to a mansion for a mysterious reason. They are met by Wadsworth the butler (Tim Curry), who says all will be revealed after dinner.
Over dinner, the six guests learn that they all live in Washington DC. And just as dinner is ending, a seventh guest shows up, Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving). The other guests quickly learn that all of them are being blackmailed, and Mr. Boddy is the one doing it. The power goes out momentarily, and Mr. Boddy is dead. Now the other guests need to figure out who did it, and which of the weapons he had just passed out was used because the mayhem is just getting started.
Did I mention this was a comedy? It's definitely fashioned in the screwball sense of the term, and as such, it works quite well. I've seen it twice now, and I've laughed so hard every time. Not only are some of the actions quite over the top, the dialogue can be quite quick paced and witty.
The big gimmick of the movie is the multiple endings (just like in the game, you never know who done it). All three of them are on the DVD. Okay, so they require a grain of salt to fully believe, but they certainly work for this film.
The movie is more adult in nature than it truly needs to be. I will confess I find some of those moments funny. But parents may want to preview it before they let their kids watch it.
Looking back on it, I'm not that surprised this movie works so well. The board game really does lend itself to a mystery story. If only other games worked so well as movies.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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funnier with every viewing
Added 10/12/2009
CLUE is one of the funniest films in our collection. And it does get funnier with every viewing. We've never had or played the board game the film is based upon, so I can honestly say the film stands on its own.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Murderously Funny
Added 9/19/2009
From each of the guests' exasperated looks to the goings on of the evening to Tim Curry's witty exchanges with Martin Mull, this is one of the most underappreciated films of the 1980s. Set in 1954, each guest is invited to a mysterious dinner party reguarding blackmail. They eventually wind up in a murder mystery when their host is killed in the dark. All the weapons are present, the rooms are present and most importantly of all, the characters. All of the actors play them to the hilt. Michael McKean as the over-excited Mr. Green, Eileen Brennan as the befuddled Mrs. Peacock, Christopher Lloyd as woman-crazy Prof. Plum, Madeline Khan as the tragic Mrs. White, Martin Mull as the clueless Col. Mustard, Lesley Ann-Warren as the sultry Miss Scarlett and Tim Curry as the always witty Wadsworth. They all have chemistry with each other and it tells during the dialogue. And be sure to always keep an eye out for clues, because you may notice a few people missing when they discover the body of the dead cook. And no matter what ending occurs (I prefer to set it on random) the clues almost always deduce whodunit. And to keep a long story short (too late), this is a great movie to watch during Halloween or during a dark and stormy night.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Shamefully over-rated on Amazon
Added 8/10/2009
I understand people's affection for the game, which both the regular and jr. versions I've enjoyed many times with family. However, this movie is plodding, dull, and lacks any intrigue. Half the movie is Tim Curry explaining and re-explaining the plot and details, it became extremely annoying listening to him talk. Also, of the three endings, one is good - spoiler warning - , the one where everyone is implicated, although not really coherent in retrospect, and least it has a slice of elegance. Why they bothered with the other two stale endings is baffling to me. However, the main point is, the bulk of the movie was extremely tiresome, filled with several non-sequiters, dull acting, bad cinematography, questionable historical setting and uninspired directing. Half of the movie is characters vainly searching rooms or running from one to another re-enacting the whole bloody drawn-out movie over again. (sigh) thumbs firmly down. If you want a comic mystery with some intrigue and chemistry, see Murder by Death. In many ways, Clue is an extremely pale comparison.
2 out of 6 people found this helpful.
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Cover of DVD is not what is advertised
Added 7/21/2009
This movie is great, and I have no complaints about it. The problem is this: what is pictured is not what you'll recieve after ordering it from Amazon. Some people will not care either way, but it's not right for Amazon to post something for sale and then take the liberty of sending their customers something different.
3 out of 7 people found this helpful.
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"Well, to Make a Long Story Short..." "Too Late!"
Added 11/11/2009
This was the first of the movies based on a board game, and it works remarkably well. As in the classic game, we've got Miss Scarlett (Lesley Ann Warren), Mrs. White (Madeline Kahn), Mrs. Peacock (Eileen Brennan), Mr. Green (Michael McKean), Colonel Mustard (Martin Mull), and Professor Plum (Christopher Lloyd). The year is 1954, and the six of them have been invited to a mansion for a mysterious reason. They are met by Wadsworth the butler (Tim Curry), who says all will be revealed after dinner.
Over dinner, the six guests learn that they all live in Washington DC. And just as dinner is ending, a seventh guest shows up, Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving). The other guests quickly learn that all of them are being blackmailed, and Mr. Boddy is the one doing it. The power goes out momentarily, and Mr. Boddy is dead. Now the other guests need to figure out who did it, and which of the weapons he had just passed out was used because the mayhem is just getting started.
Did I mention this was a comedy? It's definitely fashioned in the screwball sense of the term, and as such, it works quite well. I've seen it twice now, and I've laughed so hard every time. Not only are some of the actions quite over the top, the dialogue can be quite quick paced and witty.
The big gimmick of the movie is the multiple endings (just like in the game, you never know who done it). All three of them are on the DVD. Okay, so they require a grain of salt to fully believe, but they certainly work for this film.
The movie is more adult in nature than it truly needs to be. I will confess I find some of those moments funny. But parents may want to preview it before they let their kids watch it.
Looking back on it, I'm not that surprised this movie works so well. The board game really does lend itself to a mystery story. If only other games worked so well as movies.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
funnier with every viewing
Added 10/12/2009
CLUE is one of the funniest films in our collection. And it does get funnier with every viewing. We've never had or played the board game the film is based upon, so I can honestly say the film stands on its own.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Murderously Funny
Added 9/19/2009
From each of the guests' exasperated looks to the goings on of the evening to Tim Curry's witty exchanges with Martin Mull, this is one of the most underappreciated films of the 1980s. Set in 1954, each guest is invited to a mysterious dinner party reguarding blackmail. They eventually wind up in a murder mystery when their host is killed in the dark. All the weapons are present, the rooms are present and most importantly of all, the characters. All of the actors play them to the hilt. Michael McKean as the over-excited Mr. Green, Eileen Brennan as the befuddled Mrs. Peacock, Christopher Lloyd as woman-crazy Prof. Plum, Madeline Khan as the tragic Mrs. White, Martin Mull as the clueless Col. Mustard, Lesley Ann-Warren as the sultry Miss Scarlett and Tim Curry as the always witty Wadsworth. They all have chemistry with each other and it tells during the dialogue. And be sure to always keep an eye out for clues, because you may notice a few people missing when they discover the body of the dead cook. And no matter what ending occurs (I prefer to set it on random) the clues almost always deduce whodunit. And to keep a long story short (too late), this is a great movie to watch during Halloween or during a dark and stormy night.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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