The Film Experience

Part One Gosford Park, etcetera
Part Two The Maltese Falcon, etcetera
...and now we conclude the countdown of the best whodunnits in honor of the impending release of the all star mystery Knives Out.

by Eurocheese

2. Memento
I know Christopher Nolan isn’t everyone’s cup of tea – fair enough. Whodunnits are essentially excuses to get inside the head of a killer. To start with a murder, realize the killer can’t trust his own thoughts , and try to put together who is pulling the strings in his mind… what an impressive conceit to thrill die hard mystery fans. Disorienting the audience in every scene while cutting in clips of a paranoid, trapped man trying to piece together his memories, without giving anything away? I have to believe Agatha Christie herself would applaud the finale...

We often throw around terms like reinvented, but as far as a new approach to the genre, this film can take your breath away.

Favorite performance: As much as I love Carrie Anne-Moss' tough as nails, manipulative Natalie, the top prize has to go to Guy Pearce. An underrated actor with one hell of a resume, Pearce is front and center in every scene of the film. It requires an imaginative performer who, despite knowing where the story is heading, keeps the audience present in every scene.

Favorite scene: "Hm... I don't feel drunk..."

1. Clue
I’ve literally had this movie memorized since the 6th grade and while I probably shouldn’t admit it, it’s my favorite film of all time. The creepy mansion and colorful characters are ripe with possibilities, and every single actor takes their character to the extreme in the best possible way. If you are a true actressexual, you owe it to yourself to see the brilliant comedic trio of Eileen Brennan, Lesley Ann Warren and Madeline Kahn tear up the screen with one brilliant line reading after another, and Tim Curry’s increasingly manic performance is one for the ages. Famously bombing at the box office thanks in part to its confusing marketing strategy involving multiple endings (though what more could a whodunnit fan want?), this endlessly quotable classic is the definition of the on-screen whodunnit. At least for those of us who've memorized it, it will be the bar by which all films that follow in its genre are measured.

Favorite performance: I could easily say THE ENTIRE CAST, or the trio of ladies, but in the end it's Madeline Kahn's killer line deliveries that slay me the most.

There's of course the brilliant "flames" line she famously added herself, but then there are exchanges like this that she delivers flawlessly:

MUSTARD: How many husbands have you had?

WHITE: Mine, or other women's?

MUSTARD: Yours!

WHITE: Five.

MUSTARD: Five?!

WHITE: Yes, just the five. Husbands should be like Kleenex - soft, strong and disposable.

Favorite scene: Can't pick one! The dinner scene, Mrs. Peacock screaming about the brandy, splitting up to search the house, putting on a show for the cop ("These people are just having a good time!"), the singing telegram girl, Wadsworth's increasingly insane explanation of the night, his use of Mr. Green as Boddy's stand in ("Will you STOP THAT?" "No."), "the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand," and each of the hilarious endings. Even the site of all the characters running down the Hall to their next clue might qualify. Clue is pure joy throughout.

Runners Up To the Whodunnit List
(No, we didn't forget about them!)

Death on the Nile (1978). The best Agatha Christie adaptation, with an incredible star-studded actressy cast (Bette Davis! Angela Lansbury! Mia Farrow!)
In the Heat of the Night (1967). The only qualifying Best Picture winner. And it has much more than the mystery on its mind.
LA Confidential (1997). Curtis Hanson and great cast and crew look under the hood of the classic noir
Laura (1944) A classic has more than a few tricks up its sleeve
The Scream films (enjoy them all, but the 1996 first is the best)
Zodiac (2007). This sprawling reality based serial killer hunt is David Fincher at his finest.

Which films in this genre do you love most know that you've seen all my choices?