After chatting about the wonderful Tim Curry the other night, I thought it about time I revisited Clue. It’s his performance I remember but this really is an outstanding assemble cast. Arriving at an old spooky looking mansion on a stormy night. It’s not that unlike Rocky Horror, but there’s no transvestite aliens living in this one. There is a muderer though, for this is based on the board game, Cluedo. Curry is Walworth, the butler. He’s a cutting personality with a love of a sarcastic line. Greeting the guests one by one and showing them to the library. They’ve all received a letter, giving them an alias and not much more. Sitting down to dinner, they’ve a lot of questions. Shrouded in mystery and silly one liners, we learn about them as they learn about each other. Seven guests, three staff and no sign of the host. We find that everyone is there because they’re being blackmailed. As tensions rise, so does the body count and the comedic mayhem. Running around the rather lovely old stately mansion. The pace is nippy and fun. Everyone’s a suspect, until they’re dead. Trapped together, the dwindling cast try to figure out who the murderer is. “Who would wanna kill the cook? Dinner wasn’t that bad”. It’s like Naked Gun, but with genuine tension. Brilliantly put together, it really keeps you guessing. The best bits though are when Wadsworth thinks he’s cracked the mystery and offers his explanation… and not just one!
8/10
