In the West End of London 1953, The Mousetrap, Agatha Christie's latest murder mystery play, celebrates its 100th performance and preparations are in progress for a film adaptation. However, a horrible backstage murder brings the ambitious plans to an unexpected standstill. Now, everyone involved is a suspect. And as experienced Scotland Yard inspector Detective Sergeant Trotter and his enthusiastic assistant Constable Stalker sift through a long list of potential murderers, the question arises. Can the mismatched duo crack the knotty case before the shadowy killer strikes again? See How They Run is a very charming whodunnit that has some great qualities. I enjoyed this film for multiple reasons. One of the best parts of the film is the immersion, as it manages to bring the world of the 1950s to life. From clothing to cars, and even all the references to other films and actors of the times, like, for example, The African Queen (1951). I miss stories like these, especially since they aren't as prominent nowadays as they were then, which gave this film that breath of fresh air yet a hint of familiarity. Alongside its obvious crime and mystery genres, this movie features quite a bit of comedy scattered throughout. I wouldn't say it was the main focus of the story, as it does have one to tell but it does tend to include quite a bit and it is pretty funny. My favourite running joke is the film's self-awareness which comes into play a few times. From mentioning how bad flashbacks are to storytelling only to be used during that scene and saying how it's just as bad as cutting to a black screen saying 3 weeks later which again happens seconds after. Each one is ridiculously funny and my kind of humour. I further love all the other callbacks and call-forwards that hint at scenes later like my favourite being the director's pitch of a new ending for the film becoming the reality for the end of this film just as he described it. So many moments for the eagle-eyed viewers to pick up on. Our leading duo, Inspector Stoppard and Constable Stalker make an amazing team with some superb witty banter and comedic scenes along with some heart-to-heart moments and a growing friendship that develops over time. I love how eager Stalker is and the little mistakes and jumps to conclusions she makes and how Stoppard has to teach and coach her. Although she helps him with his troubles and sticks up for him when he is late which is nice. One of the coolest focal points of the film is having this murder mystery set around a whodunnit stage performance of one of Agatha Christie's plays: The Mousetrap. Its attention to real-life details is very fascinating and very clever. There has never been a movie made of the Mousetrap due to how after the rights of the film had been acquired, an agreement was made that a film couldn’t be made until the show’s run had ended, and six months had passed. Of course, the show kept running and is even ongoing to this day! So this movie did the clever thing by basing it around this premise, therefore, becoming the closest thing to a Mousetrap movie. There are also a lot of great easter eggs, references and nods to the work of Agatha Christie for fans to enjoy with little hints about her other works and herself. The suspects all appear to have a motive and more is revealed over time that makes the culprit all the harder to pinpoint, making for an intriguing mystery. With the director having intruded on an affair to starting fights with writers and actors, he made plenty of enemies and a possible killer. There are quite a few missteps in their searches and some cause a bit of tension for our duo but ultimately they manage to come through in the end. The reveal of the murder is a pretty good one and not one I was expecting which did make for a nice surprise. The whole climax is simply amazing and such fun with hilarious moments from the murderer's hostages. Overall, See How They Run may not be anything grandly special but what it offers is good old-fashioned fun for all whodunnit fans and theatre enthusiasts. It's an entertaining murder mystery to get engrossed in.
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