Dial "M" For Murder (1953)
Starring: Grace Kelly, Ray Milland, Robert Cummings, John Williams, Anthony Dawson
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Synopsis: Hitchcock recreates stage production with fair effect
Reviewed by: Shahryar Khan

Stagey yet largely effective Hitchcock thriller with yet another amazing murder sequence. Not as taut as some of his great works this still has its share of plot twists and turns.

The alluring Grace Kelly turns in another solid performance alongside Ray Milland. Originally released in 3D which enhanced the murder scene even further. Dial M for Murder had been an extremely successful stage thriller by the author Fredrick Knott and had been the talk of theatre in London and New York.

The play was skillfully crafted, plausible and full of suspense. The stage play had only one set where the entire action took place. At the time, Hitchcock was under contract with Warner Brothers to direct a film after he had completed the highly controversial "I Confess" and was already planning "Rear Window" which became one of the classics of cinema.

In between these two highly charged films, he decided to play safe and make a film version of the theatre hit that would earn him and his producers some profit. Initially, Hitchcock considered filming 'Dial M' in 3D but virtually abandoned the idea when 3D films did not take off. (A few scenes were indeed shot using 3D and added to a selected number of prints of the film).

Always the perfect craftsman, Hitchcock saw a challenge in filming what was, after all, a successful single-set play. As with "Rope", Hitchcock confined himself, mostly, to the couple's apartment and then invested the characters with identities, that led, apart from the thriller aspect of the film, to audience involvement in the development of the characters.

Typically, Hitchcock made Ray Milland's suave villain more attractive than the good guy, (Robert Cummings). Grace Kelly gave a brilliant performance so that an adulterous wife was seen as innocent as a nun. Hitchcock's ability to draw outstanding performances from the smaller part players also contributed to the films success. There are some memorable scenes in the film notably the performance of Anthony Dawson as the petty crook who is blackmailed by Ray Milland into committing the murder.

Also, has there in the history of cinema been a more brilliantly played detective than John Williams in Dial M? The answer to this question is yes - only one, Martin Balsam's playing of Arbogast in 'Psycho'. The acting, the taut camera angles - (Hitchcock dug a 6 foot pit behind the desk to film the famous scissors - murder scene) and the suspense is superbly maintained.

For instance, when Ray Milland, away at a sporting dinner is late by a few minutes in making his telephone call to the contract killer hiding behind the curtain, will he wait or leave? Will Grace Kelly take the call? And when it finally comes through (Hitchcock actually filmed the call at the London Telephone Exchange), the suspense is compelling. Hitchcock watchers of his cameo performances will find him beaming from a snapshot of an old boys dinner.