Design for Murder
It's the last night of term at an Oxbridge college, and lonely undergraduate Bentley is packing his bags. His evening is interrupted by Grierson, a bully who Bentley has known since his unhappy school…
Design for Murder
It's the last night of term at an Oxbridge college, and lonely undergraduate Bentley is packing his bags. His evening is interrupted by Grierson, a bully who Bentley has known since his unhappy schooldays. Grierson's drunken cronies force their way into Bentley's room and smash it up. The next morning a somewhat contrite and very overhung Grierson calls to make a graceless apology. Bentley appears to accept this and offers to put his amateur chemist skills to use on curing Grierson's hangover. In fact he gives Grierson a poison that causes his muscles to seize up. With Grieron helpless but conscious, Bentley is able to outline his plans to him. He will avenge himself of the physical and mental cruelty Grierson has visited on him at school and university by entombing Grierson in a trunk, taking him to his cottage in the country and burying him alive. Arriving at the cottage, Bentley is disconcerted to find it still occupied by his tenants, who he had supposed to have left. They are the matronly ex-nurse Ursula and her niece and nephew, Eve and Hughey, both rather Wodehousian characters. However, they are just leaving which will allow Bentley to carry out his nefarious plans. Unfortunately, an accident causes them to return, and with no car and Eve injured, they clearly need to spend the night. Ursula is both alarmed by and sympathetic to Bentley, whose nerves are very much on edge and who loses his temper at the drop of a hat, particularly with the clumsy Hughey. It is also clear to them that the cause of his state of near-hysteria is connected to the trunk in the living room. Ursula suggests to Bentley that a good stiff drink is what he needs to settle his nerves and persuades him to visit the pub for this purpose. In his absence, Hughey and Ursula open the trunk and free Grierson from his imprisonment before Hughey sets off to raise the alarm. Bentley returns to the cottage and senses that Ursula suspects him. However, she tries to understand what has driven him to crime. Despite her sympathetic attitude, he realises she has guessed his intentions and that he will have to murder her to protect himself. As he is about to do so, Grierson reappears, along with Hughey and Grierson's drunken cronies, who have come to apologise for smashing up Bentley's room. Bentley breaks down and is comforted by Ursula, who understands how the cruelty he was subjected to has caused his criminal behaviour, telling the assembled company "He's going to be alright."
Design for Murder
Drama,Mystery,Thriller
Film Details
It's the last night of term at an Oxbridge college, and lonely undergraduate Bentley is packing his bags. His evening is interrupted by Grierson, a bully who Bentley has known since his unhappy schooldays. Grierson's drunken cronies force their way into Bentley's room and smash it up.
The next morning a somewhat contrite and very overhung Grierson calls to make a graceless apology. Bentley appears to accept this and offers to put his amateur chemist skills to use on curing Grierson's hangover. In fact he gives Grierson a poison that causes his muscles to seize up.
With Grieron helpless but conscious, Bentley is able to outline his plans to him. He will avenge himself of the physical and mental cruelty Grierson has visited on him at school and university by entombing Grierson in a trunk, taking him to his cottage in the country and burying him alive. Arriving at the cottage, Bentley is disconcerted to find it still occupied by his tenants, who he had supposed to have left.
They are the matronly ex-nurse Ursula and her niece and nephew, Eve and Hughey, both rather Wodehousian characters. However, they are just leaving which will allow Bentley to carry out his nefarious plans. Unfortunately, an accident causes them to return, and with no car and Eve injured, they clearly need to spend the night.
Ursula is both alarmed by and sympathetic to Bentley, whose nerves are very much on edge and who loses his temper at the drop of a hat, particularly with the clumsy Hughey. It is also clear to them that the cause of his state of near-hysteria is connected to the trunk in the living room. Ursula suggests to Bentley that a good stiff drink is what he needs to settle his nerves and persuades him to visit the pub for this purpose.
In his absence, Hughey and Ursula open the trunk and free Grierson from his imprisonment before Hughey sets off to raise the alarm. Bentley returns to the cottage and senses that Ursula suspects him. However, she tries to understand what has driven him to crime.
Despite her sympathetic attitude, he realises she has guessed his intentions and that he will have to murder her to protect himself. As he is about to do so, Grierson reappears, along with Hughey and Grierson's drunken cronies, who have come to apologise for smashing up Bentley's room. Bentley breaks down and is comforted by Ursula, who understands how the cruelty he was subjected to has caused his criminal behaviour, telling the assembled company "He's going to be alright.".