MovieChat Forums > Dial M for Murder (1954) Discussion > Key observarions

Key observarions

posted 8 years ago by jackmronner
7 replies | jump to latest

The subject has been talked to death (I am guilty in this regard), but I just thought of something that undermines my criticism of this plot point. Specifically, the central device of the plot centered on Swann being instructed to put the key back under the carpet AFTER the murder as he left. I thought this was silly, as most people would typically replace it after having opened the door; this was especially preferable in that he would be more likely to have forgotten to do it after the adrenalizing act of murder. His departure from Tony's plan led to the mistaken switching of the Swann's key into her purse by Tony.

A possible justification for replacing it after her murder would be that the door had to be "double locked", i.e. it employed a dead-bolt only, not a spring-loaded, beveled tongue. Thus, he would have to re-engage the dead bolt upon leaving.

I still find this unpersuasive, inasmuch as Swann would have realized that he'd need to keep the key to re-lock the door as he left, having realized the nature of the lock upon entry and so would not have put it under the carpet.

They could have eliminated the weakness of the key replacement complication by simply having Tony point out that the lock was of the dead bolt type, thus justifying his instruction about placing it back under the carpet as he left.

[–] yurenchu 8 years ago

::sigh::

Tony and Swann just had a (slightly) different understanding (or mental visualisation) of what the plan entailed. Since we, the audience, follow Tony and since the movie director didn't show us Swann placing the key back under the stair carpet when he entered the apartment, our minds are guided along Tony's reasoning when he looks for and finds a key on Swann's dead body.

Tony had not explicitly forbidden Swann to place the key immediately back under the stair carpet. Tony had merely instructed Swann to open the door with the key under the stair carpet, and to lock the door again with the key and to place the key back under the carpet when he leaves. Swann deviated slightly from (Tony's understanding of) the instructions, by keeping the key under the stair carpet while he was inside the apartment. Presumably he did that because he's an experienced criminal (unlike Tony) and so he knows it's better (or maybe it just comes naturally to him) to not unnecessarily hold on to the key, in case something goes wrong and he would have to abandon the remainder of the plan in a rush anyway. This reason applies, regardless of what Swann realized about the nature of the lock.

Swann's work approach *might* make him prone to forget to re-lock the door with the key when he leaves the apartment, but if everything went according to plan there would be no need to rush, and hence Swann would reckon that he wouldn't forget to fully lock the door again upon leaving.

Maybe it's different now in the US, but I think every audience member in the movie theatre understood that the lock indeed involved a dead-bolt action. People have the same type of lock on their front doors, and if that wasn't henough, the movie showed explicitly how many turns Margot needed to open the door (from the inside) when she opened the door for someone who was standing outside - it was obviously not just a spring-loaded latch. Having Tony point out that it was of the deadbolt type would really sound like patronizing exposition, as if Swann and/or the audience were complete idiots.

______
Keiko Matsui & Carl Anderson - "A Drop of Water"
http://youtu.be/kPUENUUuqSk

[–] jackmronner 8 years ago

Can't claim to remember the number of turns it took, but Swann's having ignored Tony's instructions and placed the key immediately back seems to militate in favor of a spring-loaded lock. Had it been a dead-bolt, which he would have noted upon entering, he would naturally like to leave as quickly as possible, so why add another step of retrieving the key and risk exposure? Also, remember that this was an interior door to the flat, not the building's front door; so perhaps a dead-bolt was considered belt and suspenders (braces to you?) given that only residents or authorized personnel could access the interior doors.

My grandparents' front door in their 1920's era house in London did not required the double turn to lock it, you just closed it on leaving, so I don't know that it was as ubiquitous as you think. Certainly most doors would have the capability of being dead-bolted, especially from the interior when one might want an added level of security while present in the bouse.

What's your take on "you're innocent because you didn't know the key was under the carpet" question? Don't see the logic there, since the hidden key was only part of Tony's plot, and unnecessary if Margot had planned on killing Swann.

[–] yurenchu 8 years ago

Can't claim to remember the number of turns it took,

Two half turns.

but Swann's having ignored Tony's instructions and placed the key immediately back seems to militate in favor of a spring-loaded lock.

No, it just means that he's going to pick up the key from under the stair carpet again in order to lock the door when he leaves, and then place it under the stair carpet again.

Had it been a dead-bolt, which he would have noted upon entering, he would naturally like to leave as quickly as possible, so why add another step of retrieving the key and risk exposure?

That extra step isn't time-consuming or risk-increasing, the stairs are right there across the door. It's either retrieving the key from the stairs or retrieving the key from his pockets. It makes no difference as to how quickly he can get away. Unless something goes amiss and he has to flee immediately, in which case he'd want to abandon the remainder of the plan at once and make a run for it, without (having to worry about) a key on his body.

Also, remember that this was an interior door to the flat, not the building's front door; so perhaps a dead-bolt was considered belt and suspenders (braces to you?) given that only residents or authorized personnel could access the interior doors.

This is a moot point, it was a dead-bolt lock. And it's the front door of their apartment, of course it has a dead-bolt lock. (At least it's the common thing, as far as I am aware. I've never encountered an apartment door within a building that didn't have a dead-bolt lock.)

My grandparents' front door in their 1920's era house in London did not required the double turn to lock it, you just closed it on leaving,

My front door doesn't really "require" it either, but if you want to be certain to secure your house from burglars who know how to bypass a latch with the well-known "creditcard method", you'd better engage the dead-bolt. Especially at night. Or especially if you're a "vulnerable wealthy woman" alone in your apartment at night in a city with a considerable crime rate (which was the scenario in the movie).

so I don't know that it was as ubiquitous as you think. Certainly most doors would have the capability of being dead-bolted, especially from the interior when one might want an added level of security while present in the house.

And so did Margot. Hence she'd have the door dead-bolted for the night before she'd go to sleep while her husband is away. Hence Tony required Swann to dead-bolt the door again when he leaves, in order to not leave any trace that the murderer had simply come through the (front) door. (Tony hadn't counted on the fibers of the doormat at the building's entrance that would stick on Swann's shoes, which of course wouldn't have been a problem if everything went according to plan and Swann had gotten away.)

What's your take on "you're innocent because you didn't know the key was under the carpet" question? Don't see the logic there, since the hidden key was only part of Tony's plot, and unnecessary if Margot had planned on killing Swann.

We've already discussed that in another thread.

It doesn't matter if the key under the carpet might or might-not be necessary if Margot had planned on killing Swann; who knows what kind of (smart or stupid) plan a female (wanna-be) criminal would have concocted in her situation. Nobody can say for certain that Margot's (hypothetical) plan would *not* have involved a key under the stair carpet. Fact is that the key under the carpet was there, and that Tony and Margot had told the police detective that the only two keys were in Tony's pocket and in Margot's handbag. Fact is also that the key must be "the key" (ha!) to the riddle of how Swann got into the apartment (since Swann's own latch-key somehow ended up in Margot's handbag). If Margot knew about the key under the stair carpet but hadn't told the police, then something is suspicious about her. In that case she would have to explain how she realized that the key in her handbag is actually Swann's. If she didn't know about the key (her key) under the stair carpet (which also explains why she didn't know that the key in her handbag is actually Swann's), but someone else did, then it lends credence to the story that Margot had told all along: that she was innocent.

______
Keiko Matsui & Carl Anderson - "A Drop of Water"
http://youtu.be/kPUENUUuqSk

[–] cbee43 8 years ago

The Inspector was so cool, especially at the end when he was combing his mustache...I love him in all the movies he plays in.

[–] steely3000 8 years ago

I was under the impression (and I may be alone) in that when Swann was leaving (because he didn't hear the phone ring, and so thought the plan was off), he put the key under the stair carpet before he closed the door upon leaving. Then the phone rang and he went back in. The inspector assumed Swann opened the door and then put the key back under the carpet before going in, but I think Swann opened the door, had the key, but then decided to leave so he put the key back under the carpet before he left. I guess it doesn't matter.

[–] jackmronner 8 years ago

I think what you are recalling is when he is behind the curtains and then goes back when the phone rings?

[–] sagaylo 8 years ago

Swan never fully left the apartment. He was about to leave and had even opened the door, but at that moment, the phone rang, so he had no opportunity to go to the staircase, he only had enough time to get back behind the curtains.