Thursday, June 2, 2011

Movie Moments: #47


 

Murder by Death (1976)


Comment:
A very funny Neil Simon movie with a great cast that spoofs not only various fictional detectives but also the Agatha Christie style of whodunit where characters keep getting murdered, one by one.  If you ever get your hands on a copy, don’t let people borrow it, you won’t get it back,

Synopsis:
A mysterious Lionel Twain invites various famous detectives to his country mansion and challenges them to solve a murder that will take place at midnight.  The detectives themselves started getting killed and various personal histories are revealed.

Quote:
Jessica Marbles:: I smell gas!
Miss Withers: I can't help it, I'm old.
Jessica Marbles: No, not that kind of gas. The kind that kills!
Miss Withers: Well, sometimes my gas . . .

Trivia:
All of the detectives in the film are parodies of the work of three authors: Dashiell Hammett, whose Nick Charles and Sam Spade were the basis for Dick Charleston and Sam Diamond, respectively; Agatha Christie, whose Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple inspired Milo Perrier and Miss Marbles; Earl Derr Biggers’ Charlie Chan was the basis for Inspector Sidney Wang and his son.

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