Clue: The Movie

Growing up in the 1980s, we had a well-used Clue game. It was one of our favorites. We also rented our share of movies. So imagine my surprise when a friend mentioned that she had watched the Clue movie over the weekend. What Clue movie? Like the board game Clue?

I had no idea that there was a movie based on this classic game. Naturally, I had to watch it.

So one night, we settled in with our popcorn and blankets and started the movie.

The Start

The movie Clue came out in 1985. As with any older movie, you need to remember when it came out, what the sound and picture quality was when it came out and the style of movies current at the time. The sound and picture quality was no problem for us. But at first, we forgot what classic 80s movies were like. But once we took a pause and explained to the kids that 80s were full of slap stick and one liners and general nonsense, we started seeing the movie for what it was meant to be.

The premise

The movie is set in the 1950s in an old mansion high on a hillside during, of course, a dark and stormy night. The characters have all received letters inviting them to a dinner party. The letter also directs them to use their assigned alias. The alias are Col Mustard, Miss Scarlet, Mrs. Peacock, Mr. Green, Professor Plum and Mrs. White. None of the characters wear their colours, which was a bit of a surprise. In fact, Mrs. White is dressed in all black and is not the maid. There is, however, a maid as a character,  Yvette, who plays a big part in the movie. The guests are greeted by the butler who acts as host for the evening.

Together they find out why they were summoned to the party. The classic weapons also make an appearance—the candle stick, the revolver, the lead pipe, the rope, the knife, and the wrench. When the lights go out and somebody kills Mr. Body, the group has to figure out whodunit.  

The Action

What happens in the quest to answer this question is a blur of accusations, slap stick humor, craziness and surprise after surprise. There is a lot of action packed into this movie so much so it’s almost hard to keep track of it.

The movie Clue has you guessing right up to the end with twists and turns, secret passages and identity crisis.

The movie does have some light graphic content. There is blood and we do witness murder. We didn’t mind it as we watch a lot of murder mysteries and what you see isn’t very graphic. But if you have young kids or your kids are sensitive, this may not be the movie for you.

The Ending

Without giving anything away, we didn’t see the ending coming.

When Clue was originally in the theaters, it was shown with three different endings. Depending on what theater you went to, there was a different ending. So just like in the real board game, there was a different ending every time you saw it.  Luckily, you can now see all the ends with the movie.

Conclusion

The movie Clue is a great, fun 1980’s movie full of twists and turns, slap stick humor and subtle one liners that are so well delivered that you can miss them but are worth the re-watch for. A true mystery with laugh out loud humor that keeps you engaged long after the movie is over.

We’ve already re-watched it. And although we know the ending, we were still surprised by the clues because there is just so much to see and hear in this movie. We plan to watch it again.

It’s easy to see why, although not a box office smash, the movie Clue has become a cult classic. I would recommend this movie for kids 10 and up with the lesson of 80s humor, unless they are sensitive to death scenes. Luckily, the movie Clue is available on Amazon Prime to watch as many times as you’d like.

To buy or rent the movie click here to see the options

Rating:

If you’re inspired to play the game after watching the movie, you can get your copy here.

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