Clue (1985) Movie Review

Quick, how many board games to movie conversions can you name? Not many. At least if you are like me. It is just not a hot category for the movie industry, unlike video games. Considering how good Clue is and how well it holds true to the source material, it is a shame more movies like this were not created. Considering the lack of box office success, it is probably easy to understand why no one tried too soon. The idea of Clue leaves so much open to play with though.

Board game to movie, an odd combination

Clue is obviously based on the board game of the same name. Set in the mid 1950’s, Clue tells the tale of six party guests who receive odd invitations to a New England mansion that is out of the way. So out of the way that some of the guests experience trouble in their travel.
The characters all feature names from the board game – Mrs. Peacock, Mr. Green, Colonel Mustard, Professor Plum, Miss Scarlet, Mrs. White. A seventh guest arrives throwing a wrench in the festivities and causing a bit of havoc, as if finding dead bodies is not wild enough.
We are quickly introduced to the general mansion and fans of the board game will be right at home here. It is nice seeing a set to the room names, actual layout of a building, and more.
There is a common thread between each of the guests which is doled out to viewers as the story unfolds. It turns out there is a lot of dirty laundry among this group.

So much going on like it should be

With any good mystery, there should be more going on than we can see in one sitting. Everything should pull together at the end as well. Clue does both those things perfectly. There is a ton of stuff going on. Characters dying, characters missing but we don’t notice at first, and more going on here.
The police get involved, extra characters appear for literally seconds before leaving, and more. It is a wild ride but so worth the time to watch. Clue has garnered a cult following, and for good reason.
This is the whole movie, spoilers obviously

This is the whole movie, spoilers obviously

Star power to spare

Clue has tons of star power. For me, standouts include Tim Curry, of course, Christopher Lloyd (Doc from the Back to the Future franchise), Eileen Brennan (Jeepers Creepers, Private Benjamin), Madeline Kahn (Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, The Muppet Movie), and Martin Mull (101 Dalmatians, Jingle All the Way, The Larry Sanders Show, Sabrina the Teenage Which).

Three endings to keep you guessing

Clue was released in a unique manner. There were three endings filmed and theaters were sent one of them. This would keep fans from spoiling the ending for others and it would make for multiple viewings. That is if you knew which version was playing at which theater.
I will not ruin the endings here, if you watch Clue on home media, or a streaming option, you will be given all three endings. The question is, which one is your favorite?
If you want a fun movie with star power that will warrant more than one viewing, give Clue a try. You won’t be sorry. It holds up extremely well – there is very little here to “age” the movie (okay, there is a home phone used).
Want to watch Clue? Check out eBay. or Amazon. for a deal. If you have Paramount Plus then you can watch it there. It is also available on YouTube free with ads.
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