Episode 209 - Deathtrap (1982)

Murder, Manuscripts and Miniature Mayhem This time on Stinking Pause, we're entering the dangerous world of theatre, thrillers and people who really should know better than to keep decorative weapons around the house. Our main review is Deathtrap from 1982, Sidney Lumet's twisty, slippery adaptation of Ira Levin's hugely successful stage play. Michael Caine stars as Sidney Bruhl, a once-celebrated playwright whose career has gone a bit quiet — never a healthy condition in a thriller. Into his life comes Christopher Reeve as Clifford Anderson, a talented young writer with a manuscript that may be just a little too good for everyone's safety. Add Dyan Cannon, a house full of suspicious props, and enough double-crossing to make a theatre critic nervous, and you have a film that knows exactly how to pull the rug, then check whether there's another rug underneath. In the middle of the show, we spend some time with Ira Levin, the master plotter behind Rosemary's Baby, The Stepford Wives, The Boys from Brazil and, of course, Deathtrap. Levin had a wonderful knack for taking ordinary homes, marriages, neighbours and polite conversations, then quietly making them feel deeply unsafe. And then, because we have standards and enjoy lowering them, Celluloid Stinkers takes us back to 1938 for The Terror of Tiny Town, the all-little-people musical western that remains one of Hollywood's strangest "somebody definitely approved this" moments. Thrills, twists, questionable judgement and a western that probably needed a second meeting — what more could you want?   This and all previous episodes are available wherever you download your podcasts and at https://directory.libsyn.com/shows/view/id/stinkingpause   Follow us on Twitter/X: @stinkingpause   #StinkingPause #Deathtrap #IraLevin #MichaelCaine #ChristopherReeve #SidneyLumet #TheTerrorOfTinyTown #CelluloidStinkers #FilmPodcast #CultCinema