Deathtrap

Starring:Michael Caine, Christopher Reeve, Dyan Cannon, Irene Worth, Henry Jones, Joe Silver, Tony DiBenedetto, Al LeBreton, Francis B. Creamer Jr., Stewart Klein, Jeffrey Lyons, Joel Siegel, Jenny Lumet, Jayne Heller, George Peck, Perry Rosen
Director: Sidney Lumet
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product Type: DVD

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Man (Christopher Reeve) writes play. Older washed-up hack (the blissfully hammy Michael Caine) covets play. A meeting is arranged in a remote cabin festooned with various sharp objects. To reveal anything more would serve to ruin one of the most wondrously convoluted plots of the '80s and '90s. It's a cerebrum-bending romp from start to finish, with marvelously airtight plotting that simultaneously parodies and honors its genre, and two vibrant, continuously morphing lead performances (pity poor Dyan Cannon's weak-link wife, though, who gets stuck with the shrillest character and worst dialogue of the lot). Based on Ira Levin's long-running play, this adaptation's rhythm is thrown off a bit by director Sidney Lumet's somewhat misguided attempts to open it up for the screen, but the script and performers are so playfully adept that, as one of the characters says, "even a gifted director (which Lumet most certainly is, based on evidence such as Dog Day Afternoon and Network) couldn't hurt it." Delirious, nasty fun that's twistier than a corkscrew and loaded with enough red herrings to keep Flipper fed for a year. --Andrew Wright

Description

Ira Levin's cat-and-mouse Broadway suspense smash about a playwright's deadly game of murder gets diabolically comic screen treatment.

Customer Reviews:

Deathtrap-What a plot!.......2007-03-18

A well done adaptation of Ira Levin's Broadway hit. Michael Caine, Dyan Cannon and Cristopher Reeve deliver beautifully in this comedy that takes unexpected turns and surprising twists. Michael Caine is a playwright who has hit the wall with a series of Broadway flops. He has a plan and conspires with his wife, Dyna Cannon, to obtain a play from a former student, Christopher Reeve, a play that will save Caine's career.
Sounds boring? Anything but. From here the plot is full of laughs as it thickens.
The interaction between Caine and Reeve works wonderfully, their stage relationship a surprise. As always, Caine is superb and this was a great vehicle for Reeve to break away from his Superman role. "Deathtrap" is pure acting without the bells and whistles of today's computerized films.
I greatly enjoyed "Deathtrap" and encourage purchasing this DVD to add your collection. I highly recommend this title to teens and students as a cultural break from the currently popular but mindless films.

Everything it should be..........2007-02-19

Suspense, tension, humor, surprise twists... this one's got it all. It works on so many levels.

I watched this again recently and for the first time realized what an opportunity this was for Reeve to display more of his acting range. As for Michael Caine, well he was brilliant as ever in his Deathtrap role.

Well worth picking up.

Deathtrap.......2006-11-11

Arrived in excellent condition when promised. Since this was a gift, I really don't know how well it could be viewed.

What Happined?.......2006-05-14

I saw this play live over in Austin and loved it! It was funney and was very good. Then I bought the movie, and I wanted to burn it! They got everything WRONG! They changed the begining, thay changed the ending when thay had a perfect beging and RELLY funny ending! The beging I could deal with but then the ending, I just didn't see the point in it. And the actress for the wife is HORRIBLE HORRIBLE HORRIBLE! This movie version is a wast of tome and money! If you are lucky enough to see it live, keep the memories and don't buy the movie unless you want to be as dissipointed as I am. DON'T BUY THIS MOVIE!

Bon Mots and Claustrophobia.......2006-04-27

I feel strongly that movies should be judged by the standards of their day. Thus, one can't quibble with the special effects of the original STAR WARS because they were state-of-the-art for their time.

That said, DEATHTRAP may well have been a vicious little thriller upon its release, but it feels rather dated to the modern viewer. *SPOILER ALERT* The production values, claustrophobic setting, and soundtrack have not worn well, and even the famous scene where Michael Caine and Christopher Reeves kiss may have once outraged and shocked audiences, but today it is downright chaste (and hardly convincing.)

Yet the film is still worth watching on a rainy day. DEATHTRAP's dialogue does retain some wonderfully barbed bon mots, and Michael Caine is really in his element as a plotting playwright. Reeves acquits himself well enough, but in the end, the film's downright silly ending leaves one with a stale taste in the mouth. More popcorn!

Average customer rating:

Deathtrap/Night Shift
Starring: Michael Caine , Dyan Cannon , Francis B. Creamer Jr. , Tony DiBenedetto , and Jayne Heller
Director: Sidney Lumet
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Deathtrap

ASIN: B0000DC15C
Release Date: 2003-11-18

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