In 1985, Tim Curry had his third-most-famous star turn, this time as Wadsworth, the butler to Mr. Boddy. Curry's Wadsworth served as our eyes and ears, our narrator of sorts, to the events which go down at a mysterious New England mansion on a rainy night in 1954. But Wadsworth may or may not be a reliable narrator based on the various endings which you could've seen to solve Clue at the theater! Thankfully, you receive all three endings here and can choose the one you like.

Gathered together by mysterious invitation, six strangers bearing the names of the characters in the Parker Brothers (now Hasbro) game show up and start experience murders all around them, as Boddy, the cook, the maid, the cop, the stranded traveler, and a singing telegram all die. It's not that they all die, but who killed them? And watching again, nearly thirty years later, it's great to see the comic relief set to this "mystery dinner" with the work of Curry, Christopher Lloyd, Eileen Brennan, Lesley Ann Warren, Madeline Kahn, and others hamming it up.

Before the 2013 release of the remake (but of course), you should check this one out. It will stretch you to see motive and effect, the results of the way people have treated others (and themselves) over time. There's definitely a "crime and punishment" backdrop to all of this that gets lost in the humor and the subterfuge, but these characters aren't innocent, regardless of what you first think. It's just that their comeuppance sometimes takes awhile, a little bit like life.

It's a delightfully black comedy full of double innuendo and unexpected surprises. The mystery is good, the hijinks are funny. The actors are over-the-top and amazing. Is it comedy? Is it mystery? Yes to both! It's a shame that it will be remade but for now, it remains a favorite well worth revisiting every few years to determine the most fitting ending.