I only wrote down two notes during my watching of DIAL M FOR MURDER last month on Reel 13: "They cut right to the chase" and "Why does Hitchcock love tennis players?" The former is a reference to the efficiency with which the film begins (efficiency is one of many Hitchcock trademark qualities) – the film opens with Grace Kelly kissing her American lover. They talk briefly, Ray Milland (a retired tennis player in this film) enters and the murder plot begins. No time wasted. The second note refers to the random abundance of tennis players in Hitchcock's milieu (STRANGERS ON A TRAIN, which aired on Reel 13 in May, is another notable example). It's not really that relevant, but it struck me as interesting.
It's not these notes, in particular, that strike me as much as the infinitesimal amount of them. I usually fill a whole page worth of notes when watching any Reel 13 film, Classic or Indie. I think there are three reasons why DIAL M FOR MURDER didn't motivate me to put pen to paper as much: 1) It's a film I've seen a million times, including recently enough at the 2006 Bryant Park Summer Film Festival, 2) it's a good film – very solid and well made (do you expect anything less from Hitch?) and therefore, I was left with very little to complain about and 3) it's a pretty simple film. It's based on a stage play and Hitchcock doesn't try to make it anymore ambitious than that. Almost all the action takes place in the Milland/Kelly living room and the majority of the film is discussion. The built-in tension, plus Hitchcock's adept camerawork and pacing help to prevent the talkiness of the script from ever getting overly dull.
With all that said, the simplicity of DIAL M FOR MURDER (and Hitchcock would probably agree with me) prevents it from being a great movie. In all likelihood, it was a small project that he could work on while he prepared some of his other triumphs of the 50's like REAR WINDOW (1957), VERTIGO (1958), NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959). It's not emotionally complex like VERTIGO or an epic cross-country adventure like NORTH BY NORTHWEST. It's not even a whodunit, since we know the perp from the outset. It's more of a howdunit and that is and always has been its appeal. Despite its lack of ambition, DIAL M FOR MURDER achieves its goals and as a result, provides for a pleasant and interesting 105 minutes of entertainment.