“For future reference, Clifford, that Styrofoam log hurts.”
Why it's great
A note for next time, right after a killing; for future reference makes the horror absurd.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
For future reference, the office closes at five.
00:00 / 03:04
00:00 / 03:04
The Fake Murder Kills Myra, Explained
Deathtrap · 1982
Chapter 18 of 30 · 3'04"
The staging works too well. Clifford's fake death triggers Myra's fatal heart attack, and the two accomplices immediately pivot to managing the story: "I've been telling people for days that Myra was a bit under the weather." Grief never gets a turn; the cover-up is the whole conversation.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:13–0:34
The Fake Murder Worked - She's Dead
21s - 0:34–0:58
Building the Cover Story
24s - 1:09–1:22
❝ Monologue · 4 lines Sidney's regret
He traces the killing back to a failed play, and the excuse gets colder with every line.
14s - 2:26–2:47
Burning the Manuscript - Farewell, Deathtrap
22s
The Fake Murder Kills Myra, explained
What happens
At the Bruhls' home, the fake murder of Clifford has gone perfectly - except that Myra, watching it, suffered a fatal heart attack. Left alone, Sidney and Clifford discuss what to tell the ambulance, the police and the neighbors, while the body upstairs and the psychic's visit hang over everything.
What's really going on
Here the film drops the pretense in front of the audience: the murder the two men staged was never real, and now it has become one. What's chilling is how quickly they turn practical. "I didn't want to kill her," one of them insists, and the other answers with a dry legal joke, "This is not exactly what they call involuntary homicide." They plan to wait before calling the ambulance, so no one can work miracles of resuscitation. They talk about Myra's death the way producers talk about a bad opening night. The emotion that survives is annoyance - about a flop, about being hit too hard with a prop log - which is exactly the point: these men are more upset about a failed play than about the woman who just died.
Key lines & what they mean
- “For future reference, Clifford, that Styrofoam log hurts.”
- A joke after the 'murder': the foam prop hit hard enough to hurt, and the speaker files it away as advice for next time.
- “Would that you were the genuine article.”
- Said to the manuscript Deathtrap as it burns: 'I wish you were the real thing.' A bitter farewell to the play that never sold.
- “I've been telling people for days that Myra was a bit under the weather.”
- The death was prepared in advance: they had already told neighbors Myra was unwell, so the heart attack would look natural.
- “Still, I'll say I was getting rid of manuscripts as the grim reaper struck.”
- Even while burning papers, he keeps a cover story ready - he'll claim he was clearing manuscripts when death arrived.
Theme
- Deception — The staged murder was a lie that turns real, and the two men keep spinning it into a workable alibi.
- Betrayal — Sidney's own wife dies from the trick he arranged, and he treats it as a scheduling problem rather than a loss.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level2/6
A1–C2 is the CEFR scale. Cards above the level you pick fade, and playback will not auto-pause on them.
Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“Would that you were the genuine article.”
Why it's great
An elegant wish that the fake script were real; it carries longing and regret in few words.
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literary
Use it yourself
Would that this old watch were the genuine article.
“I've been telling people for days that Myra was a bit under the weather.”
Why it's great
A soft excuse about feeling unwell quietly builds the alibi long before anyone asks.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
I've been telling people for days that I might move away.
“Still, I'll say I was getting rid of manuscripts as the grim reaper struck.”
Why it's great
A tidy excuse dresses up a killing as housekeeping, with death oddly poetic.
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Informal
Use it yourself
I'll say I was stuck in traffic when the meeting started.
Monologue
One character carrying the scene — shadow the whole passage❝ Sidney's regret
If only that goddamned lousy production had worked... Even halfway... I'd have a movie sale. There would have been enough. We could have just taken off.
He traces the killing back to a failed play, and the excuse gets colder with every line.
Up next · 19lay an eggThe scene: Porter Milgrim Meets the SecretaryTakeaways
What you walk away with- A mild excuse like feeling unwell can hide a plan.
- The genuine article mocks both a fake script and real skill.
- For future reference can turn a killing into a memo.
- Their calm after the murder is the scariest part.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhy does Myra die?
The staged attack was meant to fool her, but the shock triggers the heart condition she's had all along. She dies believing she is watching her husband commit murder.
Were Sidney and Clifford working together all along?
Yes. The 'murder' was staged, and they've rehearsed it before, down to the details of the motel room. Their talk afterward is a business debrief, not a fight.
Why do they wait before calling the ambulance?
So no one has a chance to revive her. As one of them puts it, they don't want anyone 'working miracles of resuscitation.' The delay is the point.
What does "Would that you were the genuine article" mean?
It means 'I wish you were real.' Said to the manuscript as it burns, it's a wistful goodbye to a play that could have saved them.
Does Helga Ten Dorp suspect what really happened?
She only offers her psychic reading: pain, and something frightening in the house. The men brush it off, but her words match the death that has just taken place, so audiences are left to wonder.