Murder Party

1961 1h 19m DE

🤯

9.0

MASTERPIECE

★9.0TMDB · 3

CrimeDramaMystery

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Klaus murders women. After killing another girl, Klaus is spotted by his friend Kersten as he leaves his latest victim's house. Kersten gives him a ride and Klaus begins to plot the man's death. He's a witness, after all. Nobody else can say Klaus was there except Kersten. They decide to head to a party. Klaus' unhappy wife is there. So are a bunch of other people. Killing Kersten will be difficult. Then they all play a game called... Murder Party!

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Magali Noël
Eva Troger
Harry Meyen
Klaus Troger
Götz George
Kersten
Robert Graf
Dr. Horn
Hanne Wieder
Journalistin Cornelia
Wolfgang Reichmann
Dr. Rosen
Anita Höfer
Babsy Lenz
Georges Rivière
Dahlberg

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Helmut Ashley
Writers: Thomas Keck, Helmut Ashley
Languages: German
Countries: Germany, France

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 79-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

65 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Germany, France.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Helmut Ashley, shot by Sven Nykvist. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Walter Boos shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Magali Noël and Harry Meyen and Götz George carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0055212 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 3 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Helmut Ashley directs. Sven Nykvist behind the camera. Walter Boos cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Germany, France. Dialogue in German.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 79-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
265 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3International production across 2 countries: Germany, France.
4Directed by Helmut Ashley, shot by Sven Nykvist. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Walter Boos shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Magali Noël and Harry Meyen and Götz George carry the top of the cast.
7IMDB entry: tt0055212 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 3 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Sven Nykvist
Editing: Walter Boos
Production design: Rolf Zehetbauer
Costume design: Ilse Dubois
Runtime: 79 min · 1h 19m
Status: Released
Original language: DE
IMDB: Murder Party (1961)

Also by

Helmut Ashley

Community reviews

What people are saying

mikemars7112024-12-28
★ 10/10
Leave it to Helmut Ashley to spin the krimi on its head again! After his comedic take on the genre with THE BLACK SHEEP, he's back with MURDER PARTY (released October 19, 1961). This one was so Hitchcockian, so noir, so thrilling. We don't wonder who the killer is—we know. After all, the film starts with a creepy extended POV sequence from the killer's perspective. We get some flatly affected, narrated thoughts from him too. Then he steps outside and the camera pulls away and we truly meet him. From here the tension keeps on building, much like Hitchcock's ROPE, and our killer ends up at a dinner party. Absolutely loved this movie! Could certainly see it being influential on Mario Bava....

Production companies