Why Clue is the Best Parody Mystery Movie

[@TheGemsbok]

Quick note: The section after the Clue spoiler warning also includes a visual spoiler for episode 8 of season 1 of the show Father Brown, a 2013 BBC program about a fictional Catholic priest who investigates murders. I selected it for that part of the video because I was confident no one would care about it, but my wife assures me the aversion of some people to spoilers-even for works they would never consume-is boundless.

[@lapaba1236]

The Gemsbok Hey, I know that this is out of nowhere, but I really like your voice and your video. Thank you for putting out such quality content. Out of curiousity, have you seen The Kid with Bruce Willis? I'm curious what you thought of it if you have.

[@TheGemsbok]

Thanks so much for that very nice comment! I'll be putting up a game video this week, but next month's topic is likely to be a movie again. Unfortunately, I haven't seen The Kid, so I can't offer any opinion on it. To be honest, outside of the 80s and 90s, I haven't really dug into Disney's live-action stuff much. Do you recommend the film?

[@PaulSmall422]

As it happens I love Father Brown....but not as Mark Williams played him. The prior version was better but neither actor even came close to the actual character as Chesterton wrote him. Williams was and remains the farthest, almost as laughable a version as Cadfael was (I actually enjoyed the latter, but seriously, that kind of detective work in the 12th century?)

[@rbpgamemaster]

"Don't worry there's nothing illegal about any of this!" "Are you sure?" "Of course, this is america" Aged like fine wine

[@tgiacin435]

I didn’t know it was that free

[@mikagrossmann5370]

"It's a free country!" "I didn't know it was THAT free..."

[@turtlething4025]

@@mikagrossmann5370 my favorite line of the movie

[@kazmosis5326]

I love this movie because it's perfectly cast and every ending scans when you see who is missing in some scenes. Very very clever and fun.

[@kazmosis5326]

Plus little jokes hidden in the dialog eg Prof Plum worked at 'united nations organization and world health organization' which spells out uno who lol

[@TheGemsbok]

Well said. It's really quite clever. That's what puts it a cut above similar mystery comedies and mystery parodies from my perspective.

[@yeltifeltino8070]

Finally you cover a movie that MATTERS

[@TheGemsbok]

Hahaha, poor Andrei Tarkovsky . . .

[@dramoth64]

The perfect cast, the script nailed down and awesome direction! The setting was great. This is definitely one of my all time favourite Tim Curry movies.

[@TheGemsbok]

Agreed! Curry is an underrated actor in general. I find him consistently entertaining in pretty much all of his roles.

[@dramoth64]

@@TheGemsbok He was a brilliant character actor when he was still able to work. I would put that down to his years of work in the theatre before moving to the big screen. His performance of Pennywise has probably caused more cases of coulrophobia (fear of clowns) than the modern version of Pennywise has. And the fact that most of his movies go on to be cult classics speaks well of his broadspread appeal to the masses.

[@lightblueseaglass]

I completely agree. The cast of this film was just outstanding! I 've often thought "I bet they had a lot of fun and laughs filming this."

[@GreyWind1988]

Realistically you could have just said Tim Curry and left it at that. The best thing to me about the movie is the pacing. It starts with a nice slow burn. The characters are introduced quickly and effectively. You get a deal for who each character is. It doesn't overstay its introduction. As the tension builds, the movie starts getting faster and more suspenseful but certain moments give the audience time to breathe from both the humor and suspense. Then comes the back half. Tim Curry deserves an Oscar for that back half alone. Gone is the suspense and the jokes start flying, and boy do they all hit. Overall, this film is amazing.

[@TheGemsbok]

Great analysis! And agreed: Curry carries a significant portion of the film on his back. But that's not to discount some incredibly funny delivery by Eileen Brennan, Madeline Kahn, Martin Mull, and Christopher Lloyd---and the quality of the writing/pacing by Jonathan Lynn and John Landis.

[@GreyWind1988]

@@TheGemsbok looking back, it is amazing how they even got this cast assembled. Everyone plays their parts so well and they all work off each other amazingly well. And as you pointed out, the direction is fantastic with a great script with so many little jokes and jabs in there that it is really hard to find them all. Especially the political jokes about the UN, J Edgar Hoover and the like

[@glock0292]

Seen it probably 100 times since I was a kid. I guess I’ll put it on while I fall asleep. One of my favorite movies!

[@TheGemsbok]

Yes, given the premise, it's a surprisingly comforting film to watch.

[@tattie.b8594]

Omg yesss, people are shocked that I can fall asleep to it!

[@prodbysycho4710]

I knew I wasn't the only one😂

[@skyden24195]

"...But here's what really happened..." Two things about the real ending, which contribute to the greatness that is "Clue" the motion picture: 1.) The butler did it. 2.) An ever possibility of the game play is to find out that the pawn piece (character) you are playing as turns out to be the killer. This is why Mr. Green saying, "If you want to know who killed Mr. Body; *I* did; in the hall; with the revolver." - a brilliant tie-in to the actual possible conclusion of a game-round. (fyi, if you don't know, "Mr. Body" is the name of the murder victim In the game, but I'm sure many, if not all, movie watched game players know.)

[@daveycarter8190]

This is the best movie ever made in Hollywood history

[@pem1974]

Whenever I watch Clue on disc, I always let it pick an ending at random. I love literally not knowing who the killer will be until the end!

[@TheGemsbok]

In theory, I love the idea of it picking a random ending. But in practice, at least on the DVD I had where that was an option, it always presented the same ending.

[@pem1974]

@@TheGemsbok keep tryin! The odds are 1:3 you'll get a different one! 😁

[@susie9893]

I just like watching all of them together. It's how I watched it originally so it has sentimental value to me. This is just a feel good movie for me

[@Nabrashaa]

You're so right!! I can never watch mystery films the same again... No wonder I love Clue!

[@nessafitch6818]

I just watched this for the first time and bloody hell it's possibly one of the best films I've watched! Great writing, great cast chemistry and definitely the best murder mystery ever...and that's coming from someone who religiously watches murder mysteries!

[@legomeaker101potato]

As someone who doesn’t care for mystery stories (other than sherlock) i kinda want to watch this movie now

[@TheGemsbok]

Ha, well, ultimately it's a bit more comedy than mystery, so as long as you thought some of the clips shown in the video were funny, I think you will enjoy it.

[@catherineparr5817]

Tbh CLUE is what got me in to Murder Mystery’s. Tough it is a lot more comedy,for me it is definitely a re-watch!

[@susie9893]

I hope you have by now. As someone who grew up with this movie it's kinda incomprehensible to not always have known it. It feels like an old friend to me. One that I sit down with and have a laugh every so often

[@samuelbarber6177]

For a movie based on a board game, it has literally zero right to be as good as it is. It literally has Tim Curry and Christopher Lloyd and some genuinely hilarious jokes and lines. I think it might be one of the most quotable films I’ve ever seen.

[@kellyntaylor8184]

I was a big Tim Curry fan as I watched him in Annie (1982) since childhood. I loved watching his more mature films like It and my favorite The Three Musketeers. When my dad introduced this movie to me, I couldn’t help but watch it on loop as this movie had all the same fun I experienced in Tim Curry’s acting. I later introduced this movie to my sibling, who later one loved this movie and started quoting the movie

[@TexasRailfan2008]

I LOST IT when the singing telegram got shot 😂 😂

[@Cybertoy00]

I like how you've had the vocal clips go in time with your statements. Peacock: Oh, that guy doesn't matter!

[@dr.braxygilkeycruises1460]

I love this video! I love *CLUE!!* And I love this stellar cast!!!!! Two of the greatest words ever created are *Tim Curry.* How he didn't get an Oscar nomination just for his summation at the end of the movie is a travesty. And my beloved Madeline Kahn 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰. She remains one of my favorite actresses of all time. I will have to look through your other videos to see if you've done an analysis of Mell Brooks' *Blazing Saddles.* 🤗

[@ZOOTSUITBEATNICK1]

Nice job on this. It's my second or third most-watched movie. Whenever I need a laugh...it's on.

[@TheGemsbok]

Thank you! And agreed: in addition to being a modern classic, it's also a very comfortable film to revisit.

[@lauranoble9578]

Clue is my comfort movie. Growing up, I always watched it when I was sick. Now I watch it when I want to feel better.

[@sirloin9348]

Dude, how do you not have millions of subscribers? This is easily one of the best film reviews I've ever seen. Please keep it up, good sir

[@TheGemsbok]

Thank you! I will certainly keep it up. I just keep telling myself that my channel exploding in popularity is 'right around the corner' . . . ha.

[@decusq]

Something i love about this film is the Director and writers could have made endings for ALL of the characters when you think about it. The Maid Accessory makes it all possible for any of the characters at certain times to commit the murders. However I imagine there wasn't enough time to film them all so they chose Peacock and Scarlet to have the alternate endings. Personally i love the Scarlet ending the most but I can just as well like the other ideas too X3.

[@ser132]

the Scarlet ending is my fave, as well.

[@FatherTime89]

I was always a fan of the board game and I randomly found Clue the movie in a blockbuster bargain bin. I thought "well since I really liked the board game and I've never heard of the movie it probably wasn't very good but I can get some enjoyment out of it". So I rented it and my brother and I thought it was hilarious. It's now one of my favorite comedies.

[@bradhirsch4845]

I loved it AT THE TIME. I was nine years old when it came out and I loved it in the theater and when it came out on rental, I made my mom let me rent it several times. It was a camp favorite with me when it came out. Y'all found it later. I am an OG fan.

[@Taverens_Pull]

But there's just one thing I don't understand. (One thing?) How did Evette, Mrs Peacock and Prof Plum all get the candlestick up on top of the door frame?

[@jayzepickle6637]

I LOVE clue! My family had it on DVD so I watched and rewatched it throughout my childhood, slowly understanding jokes more and more. Whenever we had movie night and couldnt decide what film to pick, the instant fix was clue. It never got old no matter how many times we watched it and we loved quoting the iconic lines. I cant believe it was considered a "flop" initially.

[@southpawSara]

Regarding the movie being panned... as I understand it, it was because people were pissed off about the randomized selection of endings

[@loganmedia1142]

It happened to be on television late one night in the early 1990s when I felt like watching something. I'd never heard of it before that. I discovered Heathers and Noises Off the same way.

[@mandymorrow5473]

I just watched this movie earlier today. I love it sooo much.

[@TheGemsbok]

It really is a gem!

[@boredracc]

Wow. This is a really well polished video. I’m glad I found this channel.

[@TheGemsbok]

Thank you for that very nice comment! I think I'm finally getting the hang of this whole 'video editing' thing.

[@mikebearthegamer1365]

This movie is what introduced me to christopher lloyd and tim curry. It's one of my favorites.

[@Wonderlandisdestroyed]

Finally! A video about the movie that was not 9 years ago!

[@TheGemsbok]

Actually, all 5 of the movies I've covered in this series so far are more than 9 years old!

[@007sMoneyPenny]

This is actually funny. All other famous murder series or films, with their outstanding characters, you showed here as well (Columbo, Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot, , Sherlock Holmes with Basil Rathbone,..) are also my favorites. “Clue” is the first film in my A. Prime movies collection, I bought for years. And I pick this one multiple times a year and watch it. This well written and performed murder comedy is and will never boring me.

[@peterfranks6243]

Loved it back then, love it now. Like fine wine it gets better with age. Classic

[@TheGemsbok]

Completely agreed.

[@LearnandPlayEveryday]

Clue is one of my all time favorite movies!!! It’s subtle humor & witty script make me laugh! Love it❤️

[@Corer]

I've always loved this film, great video my man :)

[@TheGemsbok]

Thank you! As you might expect, I'm pretty fond of the film myself . . .

[@benhaggitt4466]

Honestly it's my favorite 80s film. There's so many jokes fitted in it's genius

[@Zodia195]

I did watch this movie as a kid (I was 11 or 12) and pretty much 99% of the adult jokes went over my head haha. Like Ms. Scarlet's 'real job', I honestly didn't see anything wrong with it due to how it was phrased lol. Now that I know what it meant, I was like, "wow that's good writing" lol. I'll be honest, the Clue version my family owns has 4 extra chars so I was surprised they didn't show up. Learned the version we had was like a special made edition. The extra chars were Ms. Peach, Monsieur Brunette, Madam Rose, and Sgt. Gray.

[@bandotaku]

You had the VHS version, didn't you?

[@Zodia195]

@@bandotaku Yep I did.

[@bandotaku]

@@Zodia195 Such a gem! My family plays the regular version normally, but picked up that version some years ago and we had a lot of fun with it.

[@zakaroonie]

Was the floor in the house intentional as squares like moving clue pieces? I've wondered that for years.

[@Jackster1]

I just noticed that!

[@PonjiNinja]

This is actually really cool, now I need to watch clue lol. It might be nice to get a pop filter to avoid stuff like the air at the beginning but this was still a super fun watch.

[@TheGemsbok]

Thanks for the nice comment! In terms of 'the air,' do you just mean the plosives on the 'p' sounds? Because I already use a pop filter; those are just there because I have poor mic discipline and speak directly into it.

[@PonjiNinja]

@@TheGemsbok Yeah that's what I meant. Angeling the mic away might help, your voice is really enjoyable to listen too when it's not happening.

[@TheGemsbok]

Haha, again, very nice comment. Thanks. I'll see what I can do.

[@Lostmonster]

One of my top 3 favorite films of all time.

[@TheJedwardo]

this is definitely in my top 5 movies along with fellow tim curry movie, rocky horror

[@FatherTime89]

You know as much as I love the movie, part of me is glad it failed at the box office, so that other movies wouldn't imitate its "different theaters have different endings so you got to buy multiple tickets to see all of them" feature. It's fitting for Clue because the source material has randomized endings, but imagine if mainstream movies kept doing this to get more ticket sales.

[@TheGemsbok]

I see what you mean, and I agree. It was a great idea for this movie in particular (and benefits the movie immensely in all later distribution methods that put the three endings together---for reasons outlined in the video), but it's also a gimmick that would get old immediately if it spread.

[@patrckhh20]

And did you notice the cars they drive at the beginning are the colors of their pseudonyms?

[@mrickard3621]

GREAT FILM AND VERY GOOD MOVIE - WOULD APPRECIATE MORE FOCUS ON YOUR TEASE OF THE GREAT LOLLIPOP ADVENTURE.

[@TheGemsbok]

Haha, yes . . . that's actually some kind of cheapo straight-to-DVD movie. Turns out there were fewer total boardgame-based films than I thought when I wrote the article, so I had to pad out that graphic with that one.

[@p_nk7279]

I love Clue! I also like Murder by Death a lot - the names themselves crack me up! Jessica Marbles! Dick & Dora Charles! And many lines, etc. Peter Falk!

[@TheGemsbok]

If nothing else, I can at least confirm that I am a great admirer of the work of Peter Falk---including in Murder By Death.

[@jayjohnson2773]

IS the! IS the! Please say your articles and prepositions!

[@Aardydarling]

@@jayjohnson2773 who are you talking to

[@jayjohnson2773]

@@Aardydarling The person who posted the comment. It is a reference to Murder By Death.

[@Aardydarling]

@@jayjohnson2773 ohh ok

[@theriddler8695]

Columbo having the first name of Frank is a myth....technically his name is never mentioned in the series!! Clue was a great flick for what it was worth. It has gained cult status. I just found out that Carrie Fisher was to have played Miss Scarlett but was shelved due to her battle with drug addiction. Leslie Ann Warren was her replacement. The Cook had a semi regular role in M*A*S*H and she just passed this year.

[@TheGemsbok]

Strictly speaking, it's not a myth. His first name being Frank *is* in the series, and I would consider it canonical. It's never said out loud, and they make some jokes about that periodically---but you can clearly see it on his police ID in a few episodes. Anyway, thank you for your comment.

[@charlieclark9552]

I dont know man, judge wargrave gave me chills with his reveal

[@jessiebelle5316]

This is just the only film I can seriously watch and not get sick of. Still laugh. I love it. Tim Curry can do no wrong. Tim Curry running around recounting the moments up to the death is to much. Amazing cast. Yet I ask my friends and they ha ent seen it. Watch it

[@sammythefunny8561]

My favorite movie!!!

[@zakaroonie]

Also part of movir is like house on Haunted Hill

[@jaybrown4753]

It's such a mild "sex" scene but they edit it out on cable.

[@sanner.b.4460]

I Love The Movie

[@dancolon47]

Check out "Murder By Death" ... one of the greatest mystery parodies ever!

[@reiwelsch]

reason number 1: Tim Curry

[@TheGemsbok]

reason number 2: Tim Curry

[@johnrush910]

Remember the actors like this. Tim Curry's health has declined.

[@codyt.346]

The flipping of the video is hurting my brain, lol

[@jyesucevitz]

if you want to respect jumanji then call the best movies based on preexisting board games? have you done a clue movie vs Psych clue episode?

[@TimpossibleOne]

CLUE IS THE BEST BOARD GAME MOVIE.

[@sonnestt]

I take umbridge with your headline....the greatest detective parody is "Murder by Death"...okay, we'll take turns, you look over the first dead naked body we find and I'll look over the second 🕵️‍♂️

[@MrGordonSims]

I love Clue, but to imply that Murder by Death is somehow inferior doesn’t seem right to me. Both movies are hilarious and deserving of classic comedy status.

[@Terryfan]

When the movie came out each theater got a different ending

[@freshtendrills5969]

Yvette. Yum! Hey OHH!!!

[@PaulSmall422]

Why is your version flipped sidewise? I'm loving the content because I heartily agree. Murder by Death and the Cheap Detective are amateurish and flat by comparison (the latter far better than the former, which is a total waste).

[@TheGemsbok]

Unfortunately, flipping the image horizontally is a necessary concession to prevent the video from facing numerous incorrect/automatic copyright strikes. I do try to avoid it where it would be particularly distracting or noticeable for most viewers, though.

[@NbSkaz]

I love Clue It's the most perfectly cast movie but you can't just be throwing out Columbo's first name like it's nothing lol c'mon man...

[@TheGemsbok]

The world deserves to know.

[@davidyoung]

You are incorrect about 'largely inaccessible to critics'. All three versions were shown to critics when the film came out.

[@TheGemsbok]

All three separate versions of the film, or a version of the film that stacks all three endings like it does on VHS and DVD? Because the former being available to critics is obvious, but the sentiment in the video concerns the latter.

[@davidyoung]

Watch the Siskel and Ebert review of the film. They were shown all three endings, just as the home-media releases showed.@@TheGemsbok

[@TheGemsbok]

Interesting. I didn't know that. I assumed that all contemporary critics had the same experience as theater-goers, but I guess that was only true for most.

[@lucyfuir6386]

Now I'm gonna go home and sleep with my wife

[@jaybrown4753]

Everythings backwards. Does this mean Mrs peacock was a man?

[@Spottedfeather]

Not a parody

[@TheGemsbok]

I can see why you would say that. But I would direct your attention to the second half of this video, in which I argue for the opposite point-of-view.

[@sophiaoconnor777]

Lieutenant Columbo! Not Frank Columbo. Just does not sound right. Don't like it. No Sir, don't like it at all.

[@Garch-the-Great]

I recently saw "Murder by Death" for the first time, expecting something similar... but wow, it's PAINFULLY slow and unfunny, and there really isn't even a mystery. I'm still in shock that Neil Simon wrote it and it's been lavished with glorious reviews.

[@Sarah_Gravydog316]

John Cleese was the one who came up with the idea of turning Cluedo/Clue into a movie, & wrote a script, & he was going to play the butler, but it was all re-written by Landis & Jonathan Lynn after Lynn came aboard

[@Sarah_Gravydog316]

In high school, I auditioned to be Miss Scarlet, & everyone said I was Yvette because of my massive cleavage (LOL) but I did get to be the understudy for Miss Scarlet, & got to wear a $500 custom-made maid outfit just like in the movie.