Clue is a fun, simplistic board game in which players attempt to solve the murder of Mr. Boddy by discovering who killed him, where they did it, and with what weapon. The Parker Brothers board game was adapted into live-action in the movie, Clue, which was released 40 years ago on December 13, 1985. Part black comedy, part mystery, the film is cleverly written with rapid fire dialogue, well timed dry humor, slapstick gags, and vintage physical comedy.

The movie is set in 1954 at a mansion in New England where Wadsworth the butler (Tim Curry) is hosting a party to reveal a blackmailer. The guests are Colonel Mustard (Martin Mull), Mrs. White (Madeline Kahn), Mrs. Peacock (Eileen Brennan), Mr. Green (Michael McKean), Professor Plum (Christopher Lloyd), and Miss Scarlet (Lesley Ann Warren). Soon after, Wadsworth tells them that the seventh guest Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving) is the one who is blackmailing all of them.

It doesn’t take long for one of the guests to kill Mr. Boddy (twice, as a matter of fact), but the body count doesn’t stop there. The group is soon joined by Yvette the maid (Colleen Camp) for a chaotic night of five more murders, investigation, and accusations. Their weapons are the candlestick, rope, lead pipe, wrench, revolver, and knife from the board game. The movie also duplicated the rooms including the study, library, lounge, billiard room, conservatory, dining room, kitchen, ball room, and the hall.

Like most murder mysteries, Clue had multiple viable suspects who could be the killer, but it differentiated itself from other murder mysteries by filming three different endings. In a genius marketing move, the three endings were randomly shown in theaters. Once audiences learned of the multiple endings, they returned to theaters to see the other versions of the story.

Producer Debra Hill secured the rights to adapt Clue as a movie in the early 1980s. John Landis developed the multiple endings and was initially set to direct, but the deal fell through. Writer Jonathan Lynn was brought aboard to finish the script based on Landis’ story, and was then asked to direct the movie.

While it received mixed reviews upon its release, Clue has become a cult favorite praised for its talented cast and quick wit. The TV show Psych paid homage to the movie with the episode “100 Clues” guest starring Lloyd, Mull, and Warren as murder suspects. Multiple attempts have been made to produce another Clue movie – one involved director Gore Verbinski and another involved Ryan Reynolds – but none have come to fruition.