Who Done It: The Clue Documentary

I remember going to the theater with my closest friends to watch Clue. We all agreed that it was a a good movie but we wanted more. We thought it could have been better. The cast was superb.

But, this documentary ...while it does give interesting information about the making of the movie, it was presented in such a boring manner that I quickly find myself falling asleep. The interviews were at times very long and lacking in depth and substance.

Although this documentary was made in 2022, the quality is so low it looks and sounds like it is from the 80's. I understand it might be the director's first project, and yeah...it shows.

I got up to grab a snack and hit pause. When I noticed it wasn't even halfway through, I decided to cut my losses and switch to something else.

Cool retrospective on a movie that's nearly 40 years old. I used to watch the movie on VHS a lot as a kid so this documentary has some cool info on this comedy gem (I'd taped it off the telly with Louis Malle's Crackers on the same 3 hour tape way back in the late eighties). Most of the cast and crew get to reminse and offer some geek trivia. I'll admit the movie is flawed from the fact that you can't guess the killer as there were 3 endings. But as a comedy it works. This documentary digs deep into the production and is a cool addition for fans of the movie. Definitely a passion project and that comes through in the feature. Lots of clips and cool film connections from the cast and crew. A nice companion to the movie.

I'm such a huge Clue fan, I really did love most of the interviews with people directly involved with the film. I wish there had been a couple more interviews like that with cast/crew members vs. Convention clips. Overall it needed a tighter edit, even with the existing interviews.

The second half really started to wander, and I think that is where the film struggles with its identity. Some of it is very much a documentary, but other parts are more of a vlog or compilation of the cult impact. It should have focused on being one thing. I think it would have been wonderful to have short clips of fans quoting their favorite lines or saying what so inspired them running underneath the closing credits. But too much time was dedicated to interviewing content creators I've never heard of, soundtrack companies, or the filmmaker reading from the Clue storybook at the end which was unnecessary. It felt like filler.

So I'll give it a decent rating for the interview content it did provide, but it needed more focus and better editing to be the kind of documentary I wanted for Clue.

I love Clue!! Like recite the lines, kinda fan but this? Not great. Who cares about how a record label started that puts out a Clue soundtrack? The director did a terrible job of editing the people being interviewed. Didn't dig deep into the movie like they could.

And spent way too much time on these satellite projects and theatrical productions, merch selling and you tube people.

Considering they had interviews with Leslie Anne Warren and Mike McKean I really feel like they could have dove in a lot deeper. I really had high hopes but clearly this is a first time documentarian and it shows.

So disappointing.

This is a well-made and comprehensive look at the cult classic Clue: The Movie (1985) which has been my favorite movie since I was a kid. And they talk about that, calling Clue a "babysitter movie" and how one actor showed it to his own kids on VHS, along with showcasing the younger adults who have elevated Clue from a box office bomb that generated a post-theater following to a real cult film.

It's a good doc but not great, probably because this documentary didn't get made until 2022 since several participants ranging from actors to producers have long since passed away. This production probably should have been made around 2005 and yet there's the longer view and additional information in retrospect that supports the main interviews.