CLUE (1985)

CLUE (1985) (see below for trailer and preview images)

Directed by Jonathan Lynn
 
Starring: Tim Curry, Martin Mull, Lesley Ann Warren, Christopher Lloyd, Madeline Kahn, Eileen Brennan, Michael McKean, Colleen Camp, Lee Ving
 
IMDb 7.3/10                            Rotten Tomatoes 59%                                    Metacritic 36%

***NOTE***
​Some scenes depicted in this trailer do NOT appear in final release of film.

​So, imagine my surprise when I saw online that some places consider CLUE a horror movie!  Now, I love this movie.  I mean, ever since I was a little kid I have loved this movie. In fact, I’ll give you the quick story of the memory attached to it.  Here goes:
 
I was a small child when this came out, just five years old.  A few years later, it happened to be on TV the night my parents were getting ready to go to my Dad’s father’s funeral, my GrandDad.  My parents thought my brother and I were too young to attend a Catholic funeral at that age.  To Mom, the idea of an open casket at about eight years old and the heavy emotional environment and surroundings, well, she thought that just might be too much for such a young kid.  Dad, well, I know Dad agreed with that but, I think it was more he didn’t want me to see two specific things.  1. He didn’t want me to remember my GrandDad that way and 2. He didn’t want me to see him cry.

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My brother and I were in the living room watching this film as Mom and Dad are getting dressed for the funeral.  Keep in mind, I’m only like eight years old at the time.  The movie ends and I go downstairs to the basement to our rec-room for something.  I had already told my brother, who was three years older, that I was a little creeped out because of the movie.  (I don’t know why!  I think because, at that age, all the death and the “whodunit” aspect spooked me. Plus, a lot of the movie the characters are without lights, so that added to the creepiness.  I was also creeped out by our basement.  My childhood home was the original farmhouse in the neighborhood, built in 1901.  So, the basement seemed to just hurl evil and scream monsters and death at me as a kid.  
 
So, I grab my little stuffed Christmas dog to protect me and I headed downstairs.  I crept down the staircase one step at a time, slowly, carefully, looking down into the dank, darkness just waiting for something to rush me and grab me.  Halfway down the stairs, whatever I went down to the rec-room for was no longer important and all I wanted was to turn around and bolt up the stairs.  I turn to take my first step up and “BOO!!!!” There’s my brother, nose to nose with me, yelling “Boo” at me and scaring the bejeezes out of me.  I got so mad I ran up the stairs, past him laughing hysterically for “getting me good” and I run straight to my Dad and told him what happened.  By this time, I am bawling as if someone just ran over my favorite pet and that infuriated Dad.  Not to mention that my brother was pulling this kind of crap while they are getting ready to go bury Dad’s father.  
 
Yes, my brother got in trouble.  Major…trouble.

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​Later, I watched the movie again and I found it hilarious.  I couldn’t figure out why it had creeped me out (I still think it was the combination of the all over circumstances) but, I wasn’t creeped out anymore.  I laughed almost all the way through.  After that, I watched it so many times over the years I now know every line by heart, even without the film running.
 
What happens is very simple premise yet, (insert chuckle here) it’s anything but simple.  Seven different people are invited to a dinner party. We have Colonel Mustard, Professor Plum, Miss Scarlet, Mrs. Peacock, Mrs. White and Mr. Green.  The seventh and last guest to arrive is Mr. Boddy.  Throughout the awkward chitchat of strangers at a dinner table, they discover that they all received similar letters requesting their presence, all the letters refer to a financial liability, they all earn their living from the government and they are all being blackmailed…by Mr. Boddy. From that point on, it is a race against time to see if they can figure out which one of them is the killer before they all die.  

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​The sarcasm in this movie is fantastic and Tim Curry is the best in the film, by far.  Although, I am probably biased in saying that because I am a huge Tim Curry fan.  This was actually the first movie I saw him in.  I saw this BEFORE Rocky Horror Picture Show.  The film is full of witty banter, sideways insults, old-time slapstick and a fabulous “whodunit” plot that will keep you guessing (if you’ve never seen it before).  The comedy is classic to me and the acting is the perfect amount of “over the top”.  

​I absolutely, totally 100% dig this movie.  I think it’s a great classic type murder mystery and I think it’s got great comedic value.  Don’t be put off by the fact that it was made in 1985.  It’s still a good flick.  Plus, the movie has three different endings! When they do it right, multiple endings can really work.  And here it does.  The writers went to great lengths to try to be consistent all the way through the movie no matter what the ending.  I think they did a pretty good job.  I’d recommend this to anyone who like to laugh and likes mysteries.
 
RATINGS
5/5 Stars

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