Murder, She Wrote: A Story to Die For

May. 18,2000      NR
Rating:
7.1
Trailer Synopsis Cast

Jessica Fletcher, lecturing at a writers' conference, finds herself called on to solve the killing of a guest speaker, an arrogant Russian author who'd written a nonfiction, tell-all book about his tenure as head of the KGB.

Angela Lansbury as  Jessica Fletcher
Richard Crenna as  Warren Pierce
Robert Mailhouse as  Agent Mason Phillips
Kathryn Morris as  Patricia Williams
Steven Culp as  William Batsby
Duncan Regehr as  Yuri Malenkovich
Alan Fudge as  Mack Rolands
Jay Acovone as  Lt. Det. Bob Mankowski
Dan Martin as  Agent Paul Neeley
Scott Burkholder as  Man with Bag

You May Also Like

Shaun of the Dead
Prime Video
Shaun of the Dead
Shaun lives a supremely uneventful life, which revolves around his girlfriend, his mother, and, above all, his local pub. This gentle routine is threatened when the dead return to life and make strenuous attempts to snack on ordinary Londoners.
Shaun of the Dead 2004
Murder, She Wrote: South by Southwest
Murder, She Wrote: South by Southwest
Jessica Fletcher searches for a woman who witnessed the murder of a man trying to expose a serious flaw in a top-secret government satellite code.
Murder, She Wrote: South by Southwest 1997
Murder 101
Murder 101
When a local successful executive is murdered in an explosion at his mansion, suspicions point to an attractive female investigative reporter who was close to the man and working undercover on a story about corporate scandal. Brought in by the police to help solve the crime, Dr. Maxwell has a mind that outwits the apparent. He throws himself into a world of corporate schemes to uncover a long list of hard-nosed men and women with big-money motives for murder.
Murder 101 2006
Alice
Prime Video
Alice
Alice Tate, mother of two, with a marriage of 16 years, finds herself falling for the handsome sax player, Joe. Stricken with a backache, she consults herbalist Dr. Yang, who realizes that her problems are not related to her back, but in her mind and heart. Dr. Yang's magical herbs give Alice wondrous powers, taking her out of well-established rut.
Alice 1990
Psycho
Paramount+
Psycho
When larcenous real estate clerk Marion Crane goes on the lam with a wad of cash and hopes of starting a new life, she ends up at the notorious Bates Motel, where manager Norman Bates cares for his housebound mother.
Psycho 1960
Cannonball Run II
Starz
Cannonball Run II
When a wealthy sheikh puts up $1 million in prize money for a cross-country car race, there is one person crazy enough to hit the road hard with wheels spinning fast. Legendary driver J.J. McClure enters the competition along with his friend Victor and together they set off across the American landscape in a madcap action-adventure destined to test their wits and automobile skills.
Cannonball Run II 1984
Hell Night
Prime Video
Hell Night
As an initiation rite into Alpha Sigma Rho fraternity, four pledges must spend a night in Garth Manor, twelve years to the day after the previous resident murdered his entire family.
Hell Night 1981
The Man Who Knew Too Much
Prime Video
The Man Who Knew Too Much
While vacationing in St. Moritz, a British couple receive a clue to an imminent assassination attempt, only to learn that their daughter has been kidnapped to keep them quiet.
The Man Who Knew Too Much 1935
Two Evil Eyes
AMC+
Two Evil Eyes
A duo of Edgar Allan Poe adaptations about a greedy wife's attempt to embezzle her dying husband's fortune, and a sleazy reporter's adoption of a strange black cat.
Two Evil Eyes 1991
The Lady Vanishes
Prime Video
The Lady Vanishes
On a train headed for England a group of travelers is delayed by an avalanche. Holed up in a hotel in a fictional European country, young Iris befriends elderly Miss Froy. When the train resumes, Iris suffers a bout of unconsciousness and wakes to find the old woman has disappeared. The other passengers ominously deny Miss Froy ever existed, so Iris begins to investigate with another traveler and, as the pair sleuth, romantic sparks fly.
The Lady Vanishes 1938

Reviews

Karry
2000/05/18

Best movie of this year hands down!

... more
Hottoceame
2000/05/19

The Age of Commercialism

... more
Siflutter
2000/05/20

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

... more
Francene Odetta
2000/05/21

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

... more
bkoganbing
2000/05/22

This full length Murder She Wrote TV film has Jessica Fletcher at a writer's conference organized by Richard Crenna and while JB Fletcher is a noted celebrity the big fish at the conference is former KGB agent Duncan Regehr who has written one successful novel. Now Regehr is promising a tell all expose of his years at the KGB. As you can imagine a lot of people wouldn't want to see that in print.So Regehr is murdered and at the more leisurely pace that a feature film offers Angela Lansbury solves it. Regehr is the type that will leave few mourning for him. Still murder is murder. There is a final scene with Lansbury giving a speech and she's asked about the ethics of getting involved with so many real life murder cases. Her speech ought to be required viewing for all, it's that good.

... more
Goingbegging
2000/05/23

I gave up reading the Agatha Christies after I learned to spot the murderer, usually about a third of the way in, when he (or frequently she) was placed at the centre of an over-theatrical scene in front of a fairly large audience.Although Angela Lansbury and her colleagues have always been at pains to distance themselves from Agatha Christie, the same principle is applied in this story, set in a conference of budding authors, who are each given their turn on the stage. And sure enough, the killer does manage to give away an important clue during his own well-received talk.In her position as the famous crime-novelist, Jessica has been invited to preside over the conference, and gets a close-up view of a colourful mix of characters, some of them connected with the ex-head of the KGB, also at the conference, who has just been offered a fortune for his memoirs, exposing the secrets of the Soviet Union. When the inevitable murder takes place, Jessica warns more than one character - significantly - that too much willingness to help the police may be aimed at deflecting attention, and can point to the killer. When it comes to the final unmasking, there is another Christie touch, when it turns out that the murderer is not a thug or a psychopath, but a decent and responsible person, driven to extremes by circumstances with which one can sympathise.Regular fans of Murder She Wrote will recognise a particular in-joke, when one character laments "Jessica Fletcher's here. There's been a murder. What are the odds?" A few years from now, viewers may need a few title-frames to explain the historical context, but when the film was released in 2000, the ending of the Cold War was recent enough to make a strong basis for the story.

... more
edwagreen
2000/05/24

A very good Murder, She Wrote yarn. At a convention of noted persons in all walks of life, a murder occurs and as the victim was once the head of the KGB, it is suspected that he was done in to silence him about a book he was about to have published.We have all sorts of interesting characters and therefore suspects in this story. J.B.Fletcher devotes her time to philosophizing, especially once the killer is revealed. This is a real dilemma. Was the killing really justified? Right and wrong are discussed here in a new light.Make sure you see Daniel Dae Kim here in a role as an assistant to one of the participants. His role is interesting.

... more
forsythe60
2000/05/25

Following in the footsteps of the TV show, this TV movie did not disappoint. The characters, most especially J.B. Fletcher were well thought out and the acting was good. It was nice to see the return of one of the greatest television shows of all time, and it came back with a story symbolizing what made Murder, She Wrote so good. The people involved didn't see a TV movie with a bigger budget as an opportunity to create more action and special effects, the true reasons for Murder, She Wrotes popularity: the characters and stories (involvement of the viewer in solving the crime) remained in the fore-ground. It truly was a story, an event, a show to die for. (In the literal sense, of course.)

... more