Dial M for Murder (1954)

Director:

Alfred Hitchcock

Writers:

Frederick Knott (screenplay)
Frederick Knott (adapted from his play)

Release Date:

29 May 1954 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Kiss By Kiss...Supreme Suspense Unfurls!

Plot:

An ex-tennis pro carries out a plot to murder his wife. When things go wrong, he improvises a brilliant plan B.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Blackmail | Evidence | Writer | Letter

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 3 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Ray Milland	...	Tony Wendice
Grace Kelly	...	Margot Mary Wendice
Robert Cummings	...	Mark Halliday
John Williams	...	Chief Inspector Hubbard
Anthony Dawson	...	Captain Lesgate (Swann)
Leo Britt	...	The Storyteller
Patrick Allen	...	Detective Pearson
George Leigh	...	Detective Williams
George Alderson	...	First Detective
Robin Hughes	...	Police Sergeant O'Brien
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Richard Bender	...	Banquet Member (uncredited)
Sanders Clark	...	Detective (uncredited)
Jack Cunningham	...	Bobby (uncredited)
Robert Dobson	...	Police Photographer (uncredited)
Guy Doleman	...	Detective (uncredited)
Bess Flowers	...	Woman Departing Ship (uncredited)
Robert Garvin	...	Banquet Member (uncredited)
Michael Hadlow	...	Undetermined Role (uncredited)
Sam Harris	...	Man in Phone Booth (uncredited)
Alfred Hitchcock	...	Man at Tony's Table at the Dinner in Photograph (uncredited)
Harold Miller	...	Men's Club Party Member (uncredited)
Martin Milner	...	Policeman Outside Wendice Flat (uncredited)
Forbes Murray	...	Judge at Margot's Trial (uncredited)
Ben Pollock	...	Banquet Member (uncredited)
Thayer Roberts	...	Detective (uncredited)

Directed by
Alfred Hitchcock

Writing credits
Frederick Knott		(screenplay)
Frederick Knott		(adapted from his play)

Produced by
Alfred Hitchcock	....	producer (uncredited)

Original Music by
Dimitri Tiomkin

Cinematography by
Robert Burks		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Rudi Fehr

Art Direction by
Edward Carrere

Set Decoration by
George James Hopkins

Makeup Department
Gordon Bau	....	makeup artist
Otis Malcolm	....	makeup artist (uncredited)
Gertrude Wheeler	....	hairdresser (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Mel Dellar	....	assistant director
C. Carter Gibson	....	second assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department
Herbert Plews	....	props (uncredited)

Sound Department
Oliver S. Garretson	....	sound
Stanley Martin	....	sound (uncredited)
Robert G. Wayne	....	sound (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Eddie Leon Albert	....	camera assistant (uncredited)
Wesley Anderson	....	camera operator (uncredited)
Pat Clark	....	still photographer (uncredited)
Vic Johnson	....	gaffer (uncredited)
Dudie Maschmeyer	....	grip (uncredited)
William John Ranaldi	....	camera assistant (uncredited)
Leonard J. South	....	camera technician (uncredited)
Claude Swanner	....	best boy (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Moss Mabry	....	wardrobe
Jack Delaney	....	wardrobe: men's (uncredited)
Lillian House	....	wardrobe: ladies' (uncredited)
Joan Joseff	....	costume jeweller (uncredited)

Music Department
Dimitri Tiomkin	....	conductor

Other crew
Rita Michaels	....	script supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Warner Bros (presents) (A Warner Bros.- First National Picture)

Distributors

• Warner Bros (1954) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1954) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (1955) (France) (theatrical)
• Victor Company of Japan (JVC) (1985) (Japan) (video) (VHD)
• Warner Home Video (1987) (USA) (VHS)
• MGM/UA Home Entertainment (1992) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Video (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• Warner Home Video (1999) (Germany) (video)
• Warner Home Video (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• AFEX (1955) (Austria) (theatrical)
• Chapel Distribution (1997) (Australia) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. Finland (1954) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Warner-Columbia Films (1984) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Mainostelevisio (MTV3) (1985) (1996) (Finland) (TV)
• Sandrew Metronome Distribution (2004) (Finland) (DVD)
• Sociedade Importadora de Filmes (SIF) (Portugal)
• TV3 (1988) (Finland) (TV)
• Warner Bros. Entertainment Finland Oy (2006) (Finland) (DVD) (6-disc Alfred Hitchcock Prestige Collection)
• Warner Home Video (????) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Warner Home Vídeo (????) (Brazil) (VHS)
• Yleisradio (YLE) (1967) (1999) (2006) (Finland) (TV)

Also Known As:

"Alfred Hitchcock's Dial M for Murder" - UK (complete title), USA (complete title)

Runtime:

105 min | Portugal:88 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (WarnerColor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Norway:16 | USA:Approved (PCA #16708) | USA:PG (1982 re-release) | UK:PG (re-rating) (2008) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Spain:T | West Germany:12 (video) (re-rated) | West Germany:16 (nf) (original rating) | South Korea:12 (DVD rating) (2004) | Brazil:16 | Canada:PG (video rating) | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) (passed with cuts) | UK:PG (video rating: 100m) (1987) | UK:PG (video rating) (2003) (2004) | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Stage 20, Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company:

Warner Bros

Trivia:

Filmed in 3D, which explains the prevalence of low-angle shots with lamps and other objects between us and the cast members. There was only a brief original release in 3D, followed by a conventional, "flat" release; The New York Times review mentioned it opened with the "flat" release at the Paramount in New York. The 3D version was reissued in 1980.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Inspector Hubbard is looking out the bedroom window at Margot and the policemen walking toward the apartment, their legs suddenly disappear from view, revealing where the projected scene of the street meets the edge of the physical set.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Margot Mary Wendice:let me get you another drink. Mark, before Tony comes I ought to explain something.
Mark Halliday:Yes, I've been waiting for that.
Margot Mary Wendice:I haven't told him anything about us.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Simpsons: Dial 'N' for Nerder (#19.14)" (2008)

One of Hitchcock's best thrillers.

1954 was a big year for Grace Kelly. She played in Hitchcock's classic "Rear window" and she won an Oscar for best actress in "The country girl" and most people tend to forget that she starred in yet another classic, "Dial M for murder". Starring Grace Kelly, Ray Milland, and Robert Cummings, it is simply one of Hitchcock's finest movies of all-time. In fact, I would consider it to be my second favorite Hitchcock movie ever, my first being "Psycho" (although I haven't seen "Rear window" yet).

Margot (Grace Kelly) is married to Tony Wendice (Ray Milland), an ex-tennis player. However, she has been seeing another man named Mark Halliday (Robert Cummings). Mark writes crime stories. The two of them think that Tony doesn't know about their relationship but they're wrong; Tony has known about this relationship for one year and seems to have had enough of it. So when Mark, who lives in New-York, comes to London to see Margot, Tony wants to go out with Mark and his wife. But the night of the event, Tony is unable to go. So he tells Margot to take Mark out and to have a good time. The only problem is that Tony doesn't really have something that's keeping him from going out with Margot and Mark. He has another plan, the plan being to blackmail one of his old college friends that has become a small time crook into murdering his wife.

What follows this is pure entertainment at its best. As usual, Hitchcock masterfully directs this movie and has the right actors to do the job. Ray Milland and Grace Kelly deliver very good performances and surprisingly enough, Robert Cummings does a rather good job in his role of Mark Halliday, the American crime novel writer who accidentally stumbles on the answer. But it is John Williams who steals the show with his great performance as Inspector Hubbard, the detective who holds the key to the whole mistery. He is simply excellent and pretty funny when he is supposed to be. Another of his great performances is in "Witness for the prosecution" where he played Brogan Moore, Charles Laughton's very good friend and seconding lawyer in the case. As for "Dial M for murder", well it's one of those movies that anyone should see at pretty much any cost.