(Film Review) Dial M for Murder (in 3D): in the way Hitchcock intended.

Rating: 8.3/10.0

Murder plots, adulterous wife, secret love letters, bribery, and conspiracy… Throw an icy blond beauty and you have a Hitchcock perfect recipe. Brighton Digital has remastered the classic Dial M for Murder for it’s original 3D – Yes, Dial M for Murder was originally shot in 3D. No, I’m not making this up! This is easily searchable information…

Well, first, let’s get the 3D discussion out of our system. Films are an essentially visual experience and 3D can give a real crispness and depth to a movie. The caveat is they should be shot in 3D; otherwise the conversion can look gimmicky and strange (Clash of the Titans, anyone?). Not every sci-fi or animation movie needs 3D to look great. Oblivion didn’t use it and it looked absolutely stunning. We have seen an increase in 3D movies; also because it is more expensive than the 2D versions, studios are able to increase their incomes in a time when the Internet, in general, makes easy to access movies in different ways. We don’t have to choose to be for it or against it, really. I think if people were given enough choice, this wouldn’t be that much of a deal.

First, we see a stolen kiss from a couple. Grace Kelly is just the epitome of classic beauty and she just looks exquisite. We learn that she just had an affair a year ago, but her relationship with her husband has improved since, although she still has feelings for her former lover. She decides to follow her heart and everything works out in the end. Are you for real? This is a Hitchcock movie. That is clearly not happening. But to say anything else would be spoiling this classic plot.

Carefully placed daffodils, a hand that just jumps out of the screen and the feeling of being in the room while the plot unfolds made this a unique experience, with all the elements that made Hitchcock a master in his craft.