A Perfect Murder (Special Widescreen & Full Screen Edition)

When I first watched this movie, I was transfixed by an actor I'd never seen before--Viggo Mortensen. He plays the cuckolding lover with such gentleness, such sensuous passion, I found myself thinking about him and his performance weeks after I saw the movie at the theatre. With Michael Douglas and Gwyneth Paltrow starring, this remake of "Dial M for Murder" is absolutely fabulous. In fact, I like this movie better than the original because Ray Milland was too easy to hate as the greedy jealous husband while Michael Douglas is still charming as hell, even when we know he's a controlling, arrogant, self-serving villain. Also, Grace Kelly was much blander than Gwyneth as the victim. Gwyneth shows spunk, justified suspicion and intelligence. I'm sure that's partly due to the 48 years of cultural changes that separate these films, but I remember wishing that Grace was a bit brighter when I first watched it in the early 1960's--and I was just a child. In Perfect Murder, there was one glaringly outdated scene--Gwyneth gets out of the tub to answer a phone ringing in the kitchen; in 1998, when this was made, every New York yuppie would have an answering machine, and probably a phone in the bathroom as well. Although I wince a bit when I watch this scene, I overlook it because I assume the writer/director wanted to keep the film as close to the original as possible, and the scene following it is so well done that it is just a blip. I only mention it because it seems to stand out (then I've watched it dozens of times) and I want to give a complete review. Still, it is a masterpiece, in my opinion.

A Perfect Murder is a re-make of the Hitchcock film, "Dial M for Murder." Steven Taylor, played by Michael Douglas, pays David, an artist played by Viggo Montenson, to kill his wife Emily, played by Gwyneth Paltrow. Emily and David are having a affair. The plan seems perfect, but is it? The murder is thwarted and the rules change. There is much suspense, and the plot contains several twists that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Douglas, Paltrow, and Mortenson do excellent jobs with their roles. The DVD contains commentary by the director and Michael Douglas. It also has an alternate ending that I don't think works as well as the one in the theatrical release. "A Perfect Murder" is a very good movie.

To make a long story short, if you only ever own one Michael Douglas movie on dvd, it should be this one! Great story, great movie!