Fidelity to text: 4 1/2 blunt objects. It’s a virtually line-for-line reenactment of the play, other than Pippa being nearly suffocated by the murderer. Quality of movie on its own: 4 blunt objects. Funny, frothy, ridiculous, and as light as air. If you can accept the very stagy sets and the odd, often incongruous music, […]

Fidelity to text: 2 1/2 knives Lots of rewriting was needed to turn a nothingburger of a story into something worth watching. Expanded scenes, added characters, and florid settings provide an action story instead of a remembrance of things past. Quality of film on its own: 3 1/2 knives Most of the time, the rewriting […]

Fidelity to text: 1/2 poison bottles There are scraps of plot from They Do It With Mirrors lurking under the waves surrounding the H.M.S. Battledore. But other than Miss Marple, nothing remains of Agatha Christie. Quality of movie on its own: 2 poison bottles Murky, muddy, dragging when it should be sailing along. The movie […]

Fidelity to text: 4 thieves (no murders occur) It’s close, right down to dialog lifted wholesale from the short story. The additions flesh out the story beautifully, add a suspicious housekeeper, and provide much more interesting settings to stage chase scenes than Poirot’s flat. Quality of movie on its own: 4 1/2 thieves One of […]

Fidelity to text: 1 garrote. The film is based on a Hercule Poirot novel, Mrs. McGinty’s Dead. Miss Marple takes over, Poirot’s gone, Ariadne Oliver is gone, everyone else is gone, and virtually all of the plot other than the two-sentence synopsis is gone. Quality of movie on its own: 4 garrotes. Nonetheless, it works […]

Fidelity to text: 3 guns The obvious change is removing Freddie Rice’s worthless husband and adding Miss Lemon. Inspector Japp and Hastings get their roles beefed up too. The concealed change is removing the evidence that Poirot used to solve the crime. Quality of movie on its own: 3 guns It’s gorgeous, fast-paced, beautifully acted, […]

Fidelity to text: 1 cat Yes, cats. A cat serves as the first murder weapon followed by a hatpin in this extremely loose interpretation of After the Funeral, a Hercule Poirot novel. What’s that you shrieked? Margaret Rutherford is portraying Miss Marple in a Poirot novel!? Yes, and that’s just the beginning of the changes. […]

Fidelity to text: 3 1/2 guns Benedict Farley and his business got the most changes, but they enhance the story. The murder is more plausible as well; no stuffed cats are involved. The police inspector transforms into Japp, and Hastings and Miss Lemon are added. And of course, the scriptwriter provided the now obligatory chase […]