Tied for the best movie I have ever seen

From my favorite movies..

Better Late Then Never

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

Fred MacMurray (Pete) arrives at a backwater town to carry out some market research and find out what happened to his predecessor. He is pointed in the direction of the Fleagle family and he basically never leaves their premises. The Fleagles are a murderous bunch who are after some hidden money.The film is a comedy with plenty of slapstick. It's OK as entertainment but that's all, I'm afraid. There are some genuinely funny laugh-out-loud scenes. Two to watch out for are the Lazy-Susan episode where 7 people sit down to dinner and keep spinning the table around to avoid the plate of poison food. It's funny throughout and ends with a surprise. The second stand-out scene occurs when escaped convict Barbara Pepper (Bonnie) confronts MacMurray and mistakes him for one of her thick cousins. She quizzes him as to where the money is hidden whilst MacMurray is sitting on the real cousin who is inside the chest but whose legs are dangling over the edge making it look like they belong to MacMurray. This scene is hilarious as MacMurray tries to control the legs and throws in a bit of improvisation. I love how MacMurray keeps turning to bash the cousin on the head inside the trunk. MacMurray is good as always taking everything in his stride. Unfortunately, outside of these scenes, the film drags and certain episodes just aren't funny. You end up willing the film to finish and the final chase just drags on.

I was not having any high expectations seeing this movie, but I did initially understand the very high rating it had. I had a very good time watching the first 45 minutes.Unfortunately as with many comedies they do not know when to stop. So the movie does go on at least 20 minutes too long. If you do enjoy seeing people chase each other around in an old house for half an hour then it will not loose momentum for you and most likely still be hell of a kick. But for me personally I just sat and waited to see what the end would be for a quite long time.Too bad really as good actors and fair story. It just outstays it welcome in my opinion. Also quite good ending. I just wish it had been there much earlier. For me that was the difference between a gem and something not worth spending your time on.

I absolutely fell in love with this movie when I saw it. This is a first rate work of entertainment and everyone involved deserves credit for it's craft and simple integrity. The casting is just brilliant, each member perfect for the part. The plot, the dialog, the gags, the pace and the setting together with this great cast makes this movie fun, a little spooky, with a great atmosphere of a ramshackle house way up in the woods. This is a perfect fall and Halloween movie for the whole family. I can't wait to get my own copy. I had a wonderful time watching with my own family and I became a Peter Whitney fanatic for life. I wish this movie was shown on TV more often. It is a sweet and funny piece, a little wistful, a little sly and it deserves an audience.

I just saw this movie at the LaSalle Bank Cinema, a theater in Chicago where, each Saturday, a film noir movie is shown. This week's movie was Murder, He Said starring Fred Mac Murray. The audience (over 300 people) laughed out loud and were accompanied by a lady (near the front of the theater) who would react with a scream or a warning to Mac Murray whenever trouble would arrive. To say that a film over 60 years old would receive such reactions from a contemporary crowd would testify to the holding power and entertaining qualities of these old films. Mac Murray's comedic timing for the pratfall, wise crack and sarcasm was impeccable. I understand that this movie may have been intended as a vehicle for Bob Hope but Mac Murray did well. Marjorie Main with her whip, Peter Whitney as "the twins", and the beautiful Helen Walker as the heroine/love interest, were superb. Yes, I would recommend seeing this film but, as with many films, its best seen with a crowd with whom you can share in their reactions.