"Deathtrap" is a cat-and-mouse game where the roles of the cat and the mouse are constantly reversed. It's a multilayered script (it's a movie about a play being written based on the movie we are seeing!), with witty dialogue ("You wanna know how good this play is? It's so good that not even a gifted director can hurt it!") and some mind-blowing twists for first-time viewers, while Sidney Lumet's inventive direction prevents any claustrophobia from setting in. Michael Caine gives one of his finest - and funniest - performances; his phone call for an ambulance is a classic. Christopher Reeve is also terrific, playing both to and against type. Dyan Cannon is a bit too hysterical, but she has one great scene where her dark side starts coming out. The movie only falters a little in the penultimate sequence, which is unnecessarily murky; other than that, it is even better than I remembered from my previous viewings. ***1/2 out of 4.
Review of Deathtrap
