Dial M for Murder
Dial M for Murder was produced in 1953 and released in 1954.
Francois Truffaut. Now, we
come to 1953, the year in which you made Dial
M for Murder.
Alfred Hitchcock. There isn't very much we can say about that one, is there?
Francois Truffaut: Hitchcock
Cast
Ray Milland... Tony Wendice
Grace Kelly... Margot Mary Wendice
Robert Cummings... Mark Halliday
John Williams... Chief Inspector Hubbard
Anthony Dawson... Captain Lesgate - aka Charles Alexander Swann
Leo Britt... The Storyteller
Patrick Allen... Detective Pearson
George Leigh... Detective Williams
George Alderson... First Detective
Robin Hughes... Police Sergeant O'Brien
Murder scenes
- Scissors
- Strangulation (attempted)
Strangulation motif
| The Lodger, 1926/1927 | |
| Number Seventeen, 1931/1932 | The bum is "strangled" in the bathroom by Sheldrake |
| Secret Agent, 1935/1936 | The organ player in Langenthal is strangled. |
| Sabotage, 1936 | The film the boy soon to be bombed is carrying is "Bartholomew the Strangler" |
| Young and Innocent, 1937/1938 | Christine (Pamela Carme) is strangled with a rain coat belt. |
| The Lady Vanishes, 1937/1938 | |
| Jamaica Inn, 1938/1939 | The thiefs try to hang Jem suspecting him of stealing from the goods |
| Shadow of a Doubt, 1942/1943 | |
| Notorious 1945-46/1946 | |
| Rope 1948 | David is killed with a rope. |
| Stage Fright, 1949/1950 | The murderer (Jonathan) almost succeeds in strangling Eve Gill in the theatre. |
| Strangers on a Train, 1950/1951 | Marion is strangled by Bruno. |
| Dial M for Murder, 1953/1954 | Margo is almost strangled during the murder attempt. |
| Rear Window 1953/1954 | Thorwald tries to strangle Jeff when they meet. |
| The Man Who Knew Too Much 1956 | |
| Torn Curtain, 1965-66/1966 | |
| Frenzy, 1971/1972 | The rapist serial killer uses a necktie. |
Some examples of the blackmail theme and where it occurs in Hitchcock's films
Blackmail, 1929 |
Tracy (Donald Calthrop) is blackmailing Alice (Anny Ondra, dubbed by Joan Barry) and Frank (John Longden). He saw that Alice was at the artist the night he was killed; ha also has one of her gloves, which can be used as evidence against her. |
Rebecca 1939/1940 |
Rebecca's lover Jack Favell (George Sanders) tries to blackmail Maxim showing him a letter from Rebecca urging him excitedly to meet her, which seems to suggest she was not suicidal. |
Stage Fright, 1949/1950 |
When Nellie Goode (Kay Walsh) uncovers the deception that is going on, Eve (Jane Wyman) manages to buy her off with blackmail money. With time running out, she persuades Smith (Michael Wilding) to accompany her to a garden party where Charlotte (Marlene Dietrich) is singing on stage in a large tent. |
I Confess, 1952/1953 |
The murderered lawyer blackmailed the Ruth Grandfort (Anne Baxter) who was in love with Father Logan (Montgomery Clift) |
Dial M for Murder, 1953/1954 |
Tony (Ray Milland) has been investigating Captain Lesgate - aka Charles Alexander Swann (Anthony Dawson) in order to blackmail him into committing the murder. Tony tells Swann of Margot's affair, including a love letter from Mark (Robert Cummings) which she once kept in her handbag. Six months ago, Tony stole the handbag and anonymously blackmailed her. After tricking Swann into leaving his fingerprints on the letter, Tony offers to pay him £1,000 to kill Margot (Grace Kelly). If he refuses, Tony will turn him in to the police as the blackmailer. |