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Michael Caine, Christopher Reeve, Dyan Cannon, Irene Worth, Henry Jones ... see more see more... , Joe Silver , Tony di Benedetto , Rev. Francis B. Creamer Jr. , Jayne Heller , Stewart Klein , Al Le Breton , Jenny Lumet , Jeffrey Lyons , George Peck , Joel E. Siegel , Perry Rosen

Sidney Lumet provides another of his film adaptations of Broadway successes -- in this case Ira Levin's 1978 clever Broadway murder mystery that starred John Wood in a triumphant turn as down-on-his-l... read more read more...uck playwright Sidney Bruhl. Wood's brittle airiness is replaced in the film version by Michael Caine's smoldering bitterness. Sidney Bruhl is a successful writer of Broadway mystery plays who was at one time considered the Neil Simon of Broadway mystery writers. Unfortunately, Bruhl is now struggling to live up to his own reputation, suffering through a series of four consecutive flops. But then Bruhl comes upon the manuscript of a brilliant suspense drama written by unknown writer Clifford Anderson (Christopher Reeve). Bruhl, desperate for a hit play, invites Clifford to come to see him, telling him that he is interested in collaborating with him on the play. Actually, Bruhl plans to murder Clifford and pass off Clifford's play as his own. What Bruhl doesn't know, however, is that Clifford has some surprise plot points of his own up his sleeve. ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi

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68% liked it

5,142 ratings

Critics

73% liked it

11 critics

PG, 1 hr. 56 min.

Directed by: Sidney Lumet, Sydney Lumet

Release Date: March 19, 1982

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DVD Release Date: July 27, 1999

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Stats: 260 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (260)

  • ajv2688
    September 1, 2011
    ajv2688
    A good thriller, Caine is great in these kinds of movies. I wouldn't have thought of casting Reeve, though, but he's not bad, and played his character well. A few of the plot twists are a little predictable if you watch a lot of thrillers, but the ending is very surprising. Th... read moreis movie is a lot of fun, and I recommend watching it.
  • thefog1331
    September 13, 2009
    thefog1331
    Not as great as I remembered it but I think that's due to the fact this is about crazy plot twists that came back to me while watching it. Still its a well made thriller/comedy with a great (gay) performance from Reeve, a delightfully unhinged Caine and superb direction and camer... read morea work from Lumet...even if it was full screen.
  • FiLmCrAzY
    April 24, 2009
    FiLmCrAzY
    I dont know whether this was good or not it was differnatly different in the way it was written and executed but it was weird and with some jumpy bits so maybe you'll like it maybe not its a bit like marmite!!
  • pier007
    April 7, 2008
    pier007
    This time Michael Caine is the old wisecracker mystery writer. him and Christopher Reeve are very good in their parts. The charm, good humour, amount of red herrings and Sidney Lumet's direction are interesting points as well, but the ending is so weak that makes the film fall ap... read moreart.
  • YosemiteSamFan
    July 10, 2007
    YosemiteSamFan
    Christopher Reeve, Michael Kaine and Dyann Cannon embrace at an isolated country house, for some writing, acting and murder. The plot twists and turns several times throughout, taking us on a wild ride, not knowing quite where things are going to end up. It's brilliant and fun!
  • guitar952
    January 3, 2012
    guitar952
    Deathtrap was fun to say the least. Alongside the silly, but daunting music and Michael Cane's terrific performance, the movie was a roller coaster ride of twists and turns. Plus, the movie mimicked a play's atmosphere, only taking place in one or two rooms the entire time.
  • Dannyrovira
    December 15, 2011
    Dannyrovira
    A diabolically delicious film that is filled with devious plot twists that include deceit, murder and mayhem, it is based on Ira Levin's long-running smash hit Broadway play, it has been brilliantly brought to the screen by veteran director Sidney Lumet. Sir Michael Caine deliver... read mores a superlative star performance as Sidney Bruhi, a has-been thriller playwright who announces to his wife, beautifully played by Dyan Cannon that he intends to murder a young unknown playwright named Clifford Anderson, intriguingly played by the late Christopher Reeve and steal his brilliant new thriller play he had authored and pass the play off as his own. Excellent supporting performances by Irene Worth, Henry Jones, and Joe Silver. But the real acting tour-de-force is between Caine and Reeve who play off each other so perfectly, each of them bring a dynamic tension and dark humor to their scenes together, i personally relish Caine's performance he is so cunning, manipulative and murderously sadistic, watching this old pro work is a real pleasure. The film also benefits from the gorgeous cinematography by Andrzej Bartkowiak and the wonderful production design by Tony Walton. A wickedly witty and delightfully entertaining dark comedy thriller. Highly Recommended.
  • itbegins2005
    January 5, 2008
    itbegins2005
    I have a great appreciation for stage plays. Having participated in some dramatic course every year since junior high, I've become quite familiar with the conventions of the form, from the necessity of blocking and motivated action to the often-stilted, exposition-heavy dialogue ... read morethat has to fill in the blanks of the story (something harder to do on stage than in film, where we can flashback or change location at a moment's notice). What strikes me as funny about this movie, though, is that, even though we do a bit of jump-cutting and the locations are more plentiful than they could be on stage, throughout the picture it feels as if we are watching a stage play. The dialogue is sharp, almost too much so (but then, the lead characters ARE playwrights), and the cuts are long and widely spaced, rarely moving in close (in particular, a scene in the opening is shot practically from an audience's point-of-view, and doesn't cut until the scene change). What's funny is that Deathtrap has been written to have the same self-reflexive nature as, say, Wes Craven's New Nightmare or the Scream trilogy, so the characters start pointing out how perfect the story's events, characters, and setting would fit into the mold of a stage thriller, and how the two characters are essentially plotting the whole story as they go along. Michael Caine is great fun as the elder playwright whose four most recent plays have flopped horribly, and who, after learning of an amateur's brilliant first work, is willing to do anything for a hit... no matter how cold-blooded. He gets to be so deviously clever and has so much fun reveling in his own manipulations that you can't help but like the character, despite the somewhat morally bankrupt nature of his actions. By contrast, the filmmakers really made a great call in the casting of Christopher Reeve as the young novice writer, using his typecast "Superman" image to lull you into instantly liking and believing you know his character, when, in fact, he goes through a number of sudden and jarring transitions that Reeve handles excellently, holding his own opposite Caine almost effortlessly (one wishes after watching that he had received more opportunities to show his true versatility as an actor). Dyan Cannon (as Caine's wife and supportive sugar-momma) really pushed all the wrong buttons with me- probably because of her character's satirical habit of screaming at everything that catches her off-guard- but she mostly functions as a straight-man (or straight-woman) foil for Caine, and in this she does well. More entertaining, however, is the intervention of Irene Worth as a psychic (of all things) who makes disturbingly accurate predictions about the play's events through her thick German accent- she's a fun character that simultaneously adds and lightens up the tension in the film. Unfortunately, to tell you almost anything about the plot would ruin the movie irreparably for anyone who hadn't seen it, as the story winds around so quickly and in such unexpected directions that to let you know any of what happens ahead of time would spoil the intent of the earlier scenes of the film (think "Keyser Soze" or "I see dead people", except throughout almost the whole movie). But what's best about the plot turns are that the foreshadowing is so obvious AFTER they've happened that the film demands either a second viewing or some focused contemplation to fully appreciate it once it's over, something that's always a plus for me (I like movies that make you think, even if it's only about the construction of the movie). The film is incredibly witty, and it has a bit of fun toying with audience expectations, pointing out the conventions of the thrillers that sired it while nonetheless ratcheting up the suspense using those same conventions. All in all, Deathtrap is just a great exercise in twist-filled storytelling, a tale that isn't a mystery but keeps you guessing until the ironic, yet appropriate, end- it's the kind of story that's as much of a blast to play out as it is to watch, and a play that I would love to be a part of someday.
  • moviefan1725
    January 1, 2009
    moviefan1725
    Sidney Lumet's masterful adaptation of Ira Levin's play is not so much of a "whodunit", but more of what I like to call a "who'll do it". It's impossible to describe the movie in any depth without giving away any of it's secrets. Michael Caine plays a washed up playwright who rec... read moreeives a play from an up and coming playwright played by Christopher Reeve. Caine tells his wife (Dyan Cannon) of a scheme he concocts to kill Reeve and pass the play, called Deathtrap, off as his own. That's all that can be said other than the movie contains more twists and surprises than you can imagine. The movie largely takes place on one set, a windmill converted into Caine's home, centered by his study that is loaded with props and weaponry from his various plays. The acting is first rate. Michael Caine is an acting legend, and this is a prime example of his skill. But it's Reeve that really shines here. Of course the world knows him as Superman. His performance as The Man Of Steel is the stuff of Hollywood legend. But the man was a graduate of Juliard, and here he shows the depth he had as an actor, that unfortunately never had the chance to shine through. The two actors go head to head in an intricate and extremely surprising little movie that will have the audience guessing at the outcome all the way to the end.
  • alanjayh
    June 13, 2008
    alanjayh
    entertaining....comes across more as a theater play than a film...the acting of Reeve and Caine works well and draws the viewer into the mystery....

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Critic Reviews

Pablo Villaca
May 10, 2011
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena

Apesar do desfecho decepcionante, sobrevive graças às boas reviravoltas, à direção intrigante de Lumet e às formidáveis atuações de Caine e Reeve.

Sarah Chauncey
June 8, 2004
Sarah Chauncey, Reel.com

Witty thriller, particularly of interest to writers

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
February 4, 2004
Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice

Deathtrap is a literate, swiftly paced and engrossing screen adaptation of Ira Levin's Broadway smash. Full Review

Scott Weinberg
July 26, 2002
Scott Weinberg, eFilmCritic.com

Offbeat parlor mystery that still holds up pretty well.

Dennis Schwartz
January 1, 2000
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

What eventually shines through, is how clever and manipulative the script is. Full Review

Roger Ebert
October 23, 2004
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Click to read the article Full Review

Christopher Null
January 22, 2004
Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com

Click to read the article Full Review

Carol Cling
December 5, 2003
Carol Cling, Las Vegas Review-Journal

No review available.

Mark Palermo
January 30, 2003
Mark Palermo, Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

No review available.

Jeffrey Westhoff
August 9, 2002
Jeffrey Westhoff, Northwest Herald (Crystal Lake, IL)

No review available.

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Deathtrap Trivia

  • In what 1982 movie did Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve kiss?   Answer »
  • What was the first film Michael Caine and Christopher Reeves acted together?  Answer »
  • What do the films Children of the Damned, Deathtrap, Somewhere in Time, Noises Off and Superman II have in common?  Answer »
  • Michael Caine movie quotes- guess which film this comes from: "I have a name and a reputation! Somewhat tattered, perhaps. But still good for dinner invitations and summer seminars."  Answer »
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