Line #16 Film/PleaseMurderMe


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/please_murder_me.jpg]]
2
3	''Please Murder Me!'' is a 1956 American FilmNoir directed by Peter Godfrey and starring Creator/AngelaLansbury, Creator/RaymondBurr and Dick Foran.
4
5	A lawyer wins an acquittal for his client, a woman accused of murder. After the verdict, he finds out that she indeed did commit the murder and manipulated him to win her acquittal. Guilt-ridden, and knowing that she can't be tried again for the murder, he devises a plan to bring her to justice.
6
7	----
8	!!Tropes:
9
10	* AlliterativeName: Protagonist Craig Carlson.
11	* CaughtOnTape: [[spoiler:After dictating his message to district attorney Ray Willis, he leaves the tape recorder running in his desk drawer. Myra's EngineeredPublicConfession and subsequent murder of him is recorded on it. Although Myra tries to pass of his death as suicide, Willis winds the tape recorder and--thinking it might contain Craig's suicide note--rewinds it and plays it; ensuring Myra's capture.]]
12	* DeadManWriting: Opens with defense lawyer Craig Carlson buying a pistol at a pawn shop and depositing it in his office desk drawer with a file folder. He dictates a message into a tape recorder for district attorney Ray Willis, revealing that he expects to be murdered within an hour, and he [[HowWeGotHere begins to tell his story in extended flashbacks]].
13	* DisconnectedByDeath: [[spoiler:Craig]] has just telephoned Carl when Myra shoots him dead. Carl does not realise what has happened and is still saying "Hello? Hello?" when Myra replaces the receiver in the cradle.
14	* EngineeredPublicConfession: [[spoiler:Craig lures Myra to his office and gets her to admit her entire scheme by threatening to tell Carl about it. When he picks up the phone to call Carl, she shoots him dead. she stages the scene to look like a suicide as is about to leave when district attorney Ray Willis walks in. while examining the scene, Willis discovers a running tape recorder in Craig's desk drawer, and Myra realises her confession and Craig's murder have been CaughtOnTape.]]
15	* ExactTimeToFailure: Opens with defense lawyer Craig Carlson buying a pistol at a pawn shop and depositing it in his office desk drawer with a file folder. He dictates a message into a tape recorder for district attorney Ray Willis, revealing that he expects to be murdered in 55 minutes.
16	* FemmeFatale: Myra. She married Joe for his money, then manipulates Joe's best friend Craig into falling in love with her, before murdering Joe and claiming it was self-defence, and relying on Craig's legal expertise to get her off the murder charge.
17	* HairTriggerTemper: Craig paints Joe Leeds as having one, as a justification for Myra shooting him in self-defense.
18	* HowWeGotHere: Opens with defense lawyer Craig Carlson buying a pistol at a pawn shop and depositing it in his office desk drawer with a file folder. [[DeadManWriting He dictates a message into a tape recorder for district attorney Ray Willis]], revealing that he expects to be murdered within an hour, and he begins to tell his story in extended flashbacks.
19	* NeverSuicide: After shooting [[spoiler:Craig Carlson]], Myra attempts to make it look like a suicide. what she didn't know was that [[spoiler: EngineeredPublicconfession had been CaughtOnTape]].
20	* PrettyInMink: FemmeFatale Myra Leeds wears a black fur coat in several scenes, including to her final, fatal appointment in Craig's office.
21	* SilenceIsGolden: The opening sequence of Craig Carlson walking along the street, buying the gun, catching a cab, loading the gun, entering his office, and putting the file and the gun in his office desk drawer is done with dialogue. It ends with Craig picking up the microphone and starting to dictate his recording to the district attorney.
22	-->''[[DeadManWriting To Ray Willis, district attorney. Dear Ray, in exactly 55 minutes I will be dead. Murdered.]]''
23	* ThanatosGambit: Myra Leeds shoots her husband to death during an argument. Lawyer Craig Carlson, who's in love with her, gets her acquitted on a self-defense justification. He later learns that she's in love with yet another man [[spoiler: and that the killing was premeditated. Carlson forces her hand into killing him as well so that she won't get off scot free.]]
24

Context Film / PleaseMurderMe