A Twist of the Knife (1993 TV Movie) User Reviews (6)

Love this one!

[HotToastyRag · 8/10 · 29 April 2022]

What a thriller! This installment of the Diagnosis Murder tv movies is extremely suspenseful, even though you find out who the villain is right away - a bit different than the usual whodunnit formula. Guest star Suzanne Pleshette is just as evil as it gets, and after you see her in this, you'll probably hate her forever. While conducting a surgery, she purposely puts contaminated blood into her patient so he'll die that night. But since she's still a handsome woman, she charms those around her to deflect suspicion. Even Dick Van Dyke is charmed, as he still harbors a decades-old crush on her. Will anyone ever find out she did it?

Mixed in with the very serious subject matter of deliberate malpractice are some very funny jokes. My favorite is when Dick's son, Barry (his son in real life!), gets a mysterious farewell note from the girl he's courting. "It's obvious she went to Cleveland," Dick sums up, citing the slant of her handwriting and type of ink. With a smirk, he adds, "Her mother lives there." There's another gag where Dick accompanies his sidekick, Cynthia Gibb, to an old folk's home to get information, and he pretends to be decrepit. It's so funny because thirty years later, at 96 years old, he's nowhere near approaching old age.

I loved this one, even though the villain is especially awful. If you really loved Suzanne in the 1960s, you might want to skip it. But since I always thought she seemed insincere and untrustworthy, I was totally ready to see her in this role. Can't wait for the next one!

When you turn half hour mystery into a 90 minute tv movie

[professor_of_gamez · 6/10 · 18 October 2023]

If you edited out all the scenes where little or nothing took place, you would have at most a 30 minute tv episode.

This movie was SO slow moving. Decent mystery/storyline, but oh so slow moving.

Thank goodness Suzanne Plushette was in it. Like most guys who grew up in the 70s, I had a major crush on her from The Bob Newhart Show.

Here, she looked every bit of her 55 years, but still good.

Also, a shame that Cynthia Gibb was replaced by the less attractive and more annoying character played by Victoria Rowell in the TV series version.

It was fun to see the future Mrs. Geller from Friends (keep an eye out for her in an early episode of Roseanne as a cosmetic saleswoman).

A great Murder Mystery

[Moonlighting · 9/10 · 9 August 2002]

This movie, one which is part of The Diagnosis Murder series, is a well acted murder mystery. Unlike some episodes of Diagnosis Murder,It doesnt show the viewers who the Murderer is and then show how the Doctors solve the murder, it is writeen so we're just as puzzled as the characters, meaning everyone is always trying to think who it might be. A great movie, I give it 8 out of Ten.

The wrong diagnosis.

[OllieSuave-007 · 5/10 · 30 September 2014]

This is the third TV pilot movie to precede the Diagnosis Murder TV series. Dick Van Dyke reprises his role as Dr. Mark Sloan, who suspects that his old flame, heart surgeon Dr. Rachel Walters (Suzanne Pleshette) has murdered U.S. Senator Cabot (David Richards) for causing a hit-and-run accident years ago that put Walters' daughter into a coma.

For starters, the acting wasn't bad and the plot goes at a fairly quick pace. The music is pretty catchy and there is a nice touch of drama.

However, even though the murderer is not revealed in the beginning like the previous movie, the plot gives the audience the impression of who the perpetrator is, which takes away at least a third of the suspense away from the story. We are asked to sympathized with Walters' character and, for me, Van Dyke's character in trying to solve the crime, while we already have a clue who the murderer is, is pretty annoying. For some reason, Van Dyke is unlike Angela Lansbury's Jessica Fletcher character in Murder, She Wrote or Andy Griffith's character in Matlock. Those characters are memorable, unique and likable. Van Dyke's character appears, in my humble opinion, to be too self-righteous ("look at me, I'm a famed doctor at the hospital and I can solve murders").

There are at least several episodes of the TV series that are enjoyable, but this TV movie and others in the series are sub-par at best. There are better made-for-TV murder mystery movies out there.

Grade C-

Shown At The Wrong Time Of Day

[Theo Robertson · 3/10 · 9 April 2004]

**** MILD SPOILERS ****

I do worry about schedulers at the BBC sometimes because this opens with someone getting stabbed with a massive big knife

And it was broadcast at 1.30 in the afternoon !

The plot follows the crimes committed by a looney heart surgeon who wants to bump off her patients via blood poisoning . Pretty heavy stuff for a TVM especially one shown at dinnertime on a good Friday . I only hope any children watching this aren`t going into hospital in the near future , and being a TVM we have to put up homely banter like " I always thought you had taste - If I had taste I wouldn`t drink your coffee " . Has anyone on the planet actually had a conversation like the one above ? I didn`t think so

I`ve got to contradict what the previous reviewer has said , in TWIST OF THE KNIFE it`s obvious from the start who the murderer is though her motives are not and this being the pilot of DIAGNOSIS MURDER ( I think ) we`re also treated to a tedious plot line of Dr Dick Van Dyke solving the murder mystery . Oh and the murderer is also painted as a victim too , yeah I guess being a white professional female she would be

DIAGNOSIS MURDER fans might enjoy this but I`m more of a QUINCY man myself

JUST MORE DISCRIMATION AGAINST "UNWED" MOTHERS

[lfm-69343 · 23 March 2023]

Adopter script writers in Hollywood do nothing but keep pushing bogus adoption industry lies and mindsets to keep the baby selling profession they love in in business.

One of these lies is that a single mother is UNSELFISH to give her baby and her baby's identity to strangers which is one of Suzanne Pleshette lines in this film. The truth is giving your baby away to strangers and having your baby's entire bloodline identity and family erased IS THE MOST SELFISH THING A MOTHER CAN DO.

These selfish writers also constantly make single mothers look bad (and exalt themselves of course) which is why Pleshette is the second "unwed "mother that is the murderer in this series that I've seen so far.

The truth is these "unwed" mothers were forced to give their babies away from the 50's to even now and adoptees including myself have always wanted to find them and the majority of us resent our adopters.

This show is very bigoted towards single mothers along with other shows like Matlock, Murder She Wrote and Coach and I am absolutely disgusted at how our mothers are lied about and portrayed.

If I could give this film 0 stars I would as that would reflect the true nature of infertile couples and the facilitators that have stolen babies for almost 80 years and sold them to these selfish people against our mother's wills and against ours.

Please don't listen to the insane, backwards dialogue in Twist of the Knife (a twist in the back of mothers and we adoptees) as it is written for loser infertile couples and the adoption agencies they pay $50 grand a baby for after being manipulated and coerced from their mothers, an act that needs to finally END ONCE AND FOR ALL ALONG WITH THE HATRED TOWARDS BOTH OF US.

And if you want to watch a show that is TRUE TO THE BABY SCOOP ERA AND FORCED ADOPTION THEN WATCH THE HANDMAIDEN'S TALE. THERE YOU GO...