ShangLuda Admirable film.

AnhartLinkin This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Jakoba True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

sol- As her inspector nephew investigates the apparent attempted murder of a film star, Miss Marple begins to piece the clues together herself in this Agatha Christie murder mystery. The film was produced by John Brabourne and Richard Goodwin, the team responsible for the 1974 'Murder on the Orient Express' and the 1978 'Death on the Nile', and this is an equally lavish production with an equally star-studded cast in top form. The mystery basics are not quite as strong with no closed environment this time and a plethora of possible culprits, none of whom have strong motives, however 'The Mirror Crack'd' is elevated by a delicious Hollywood satire angle. Cast as a two-time Oscar winning actress taking up her first leading role in years, Elizabeth Taylor has a lot of fun as a character not too far removed from her actual self. Kim Novak also gives it her all as Taylor's longtime rival who struggles to put differences aside when cast in her comeback movie. The banter between them (and dialogue in general) simply sparkles with wit and ever-so-thinly disguised hostility. The film additionally benefits from a clever black-and-white opening as we are treated to a film within the film for which Miss Marple can easily spot the murderer (if only real life was as simple as that). Those keen to see the film for Angela Lansbury's take on Miss Marple may be disappointed as she receives relatively little screen time. For those who simply love a good mystery though, this is a hard film to pass up with a solution just as memorable as 'Murder on the Orient Express' in its intricacy.

l_rawjalaurence Set in 1953, the third in the Brabourne/ Goodwin series of Christie adaptations is set in a chocolate-box English village full of stereotypical characters - the vicar (Charles Lloyd Pack), the mayor (Thick Wilson), the bourgeois lady (Margaret Courtenay), the gossipy homemaker (Maureen Bennett), the Major (Eric Dodson) and Miss Marple (Angela Lansbury). Into this edenic world comes a troupe of American filmmakers producing a historical drama centered around Queen Elizabeth: led by a pair of warring actresses (Elizabeth Taylor, Kim Novak), an egotistical director (Rock Hudson) and a megalomaniac producer (Tony Curtis), they find the English way of life quaint yet ultimately irritating. Guy Hamilton's film gains much of its comic impetus from the clash of cultures, especially when Taylor's Marina Rudd deigns to walk through the village fête, attracting more than her fair share of admirers among the villagers. In the end the pseudo-sophistication of the Americans is outwitted by Miss Marple's ingenuity as she solves the case of an apparently motiveless murder. Compared to the other three adaptations, the plot of THE MIRROR CRACK'D is relatively straightforward; the ending is a little peremptory, suggesting that it might have been tacked on to the film at a later date. Lansbury's Miss Marple directly foreshadows her performance as Jessica Fletcher in the long-running television series MURDER SHE WROTE, her apparently genteel exterior concealing a mind like a steel trap. Edward Fox turns in a nuanced performance as the dogged Inspector Craddock, doggedly pursuing his investigations in spite of the Americans' best attempts to divert him, either through rudeness (as in Hudson's case) or through performance (as in Taylor's case). Eventually, however, even his efforts prove futile as compared to Miss Marple.

keith-moyes-656-481491 This is the third version of this story that I have seen. It is OK, but suffers by comparison with the Joan Hickson and Julia McKenzie TV versions. Like the earlier Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile, it gives Christie the glossy, big budget treatment. That is the problem.The movie suffers from 'all star cast' syndrome.Rather than being written by a screenwriter trying to tell the story effectively, it feels as if the screenplay was negotiated by agents, who were only concerned that their clients had an equal number of 'big' scenes. As a result, we get Edward Fox doing most of the detecting (with Angela Lansbury's Marple just a bit player), Elizabeth Taylor emoting for England, Rock Hudson being pained and sincere, Tony Curtis revelling in his seedy producer act and Kim Novak camping it up as Queen Bitch of the Universe.Clearly, the stars are having fun, but once they have all had their share of screen time there is only enough left to tell half the story. For example, the murderer of Ella Zielinsky remains a profound mystery. Either the explanation was lost in the editing or Elizabeth Taylor vetoed it because it showed Marina in a bad light (killing the woman who had harmed her child is one thing, killing the secretary to save her own skin is another). Similarly, the sub plot about one of Marina Rudd's abandoned step children turning up at the village fête is dropped altogether. These plot elements are missed.Somebody should have reminded the producers that it doesn't matter how many big names you have in a movie, the story is always the star.In fairness, there were enough good moments and good lines in this movie to keep me amused for 104 minutes, but The Mirror Crack'd is one of Christie's best mysteries and it deserved better treatment than this.

misctidsandbits I always want to see any production of Agatha Christie, and usually enjoy it overall. Her stories are that good. To me, the classic interpretation so far is the BBC television series with Joan Hickson as Ms. Marple and David Suchet as Poirot. They were so authentic and true to the books, while being very well done. The 80's and 90's seemed to yield the best of the crop. But, I even enjoy Margaret Rutherford's series, though they are so loosely adapted. This decade's offerings give the heartburn, even the newer ones with Suchet. They have taken the stories much farther afield than I can swallow, stellar production and casting notwithstanding.But here's Rock and Liz together again - in Agatha Christie. This is one of the more glamorous of the Marple stories, and there is plenty of glamor here. My goodness, the superbly correct butler was the wonderful Charles Gray. All these people together - Kim Novak, in an over-the-top Lola Brewster. Everyone loves the vitriolic exchanges between the two actresses in the story, which they knew would be the case. That's why they indulged in much license with that aspect. Edward Fox is interesting in his reaction to Marina (Lizzie) in the interview, calling her on her pulling out a scene from one of her movies when his questioning got too close. Then, she immediately switches back to near serendipity. Side note - realized how small a figure Fox is, while next to the very full sized Rock Hudson. And with Angela Lansbury, again appearing quite diminutive in contrast. Tony Curtis as the producer follows the more outrageous type. This really was quite a mix of British and American actors. It was interesting seeing a number of the local characters showing up later in the BBC series in different roles.Of course, Miss Marple with the Lansbury talent brought to it. Miss Marple seems to be the hardest to define. She is varied from the first book treatment, and some in the BBC series as well. It seems hard to land on a persona for her. Personally, I prefer what Joan Hickson did with her, overall presenting a balance of the proper old lady of older times who has developed a depth of understanding of human nature and genuine caring for people. She is an atypical old lady, with her perky persistence when she's really onto something. Unfortunately, most have taken that aspect and run with it, ignoring her foundational substance. The newer ones especially seem to make her out to be a liberated know-it-all. With that, she has become a very vapid, shallow character. The treatment here has her starting out as the know-it-all at the local movie night, but she becomes more biddable as it goes along. She demonstrates the life experience correlations, which are so pivotal in her sound assessments. Geraldine Chaplin is the secretary, holding herself very tightly, with all sorts of complications going on beneath her surface. The Heather Babcock character was effective, that being an important one. They really had the vicar fuddled up in this. And the location and sets – quite wonderful, but other versions are too. There's a lot of the old world charm still intact in the British isles. They cleverly carried out the story with overall accuracy, adding and subtracting with an eye to please modern viewers and the run time of the film. It seemed to work. Everyone, including myself, note the variances, but forgive them. You usually find that British productions of Christie and anything really, have a way of stereotyping Americans rather unflatteringly. It's funny that in this American production, they made it even worse. But, it's about film personalities, and I guess they are fair game. A line from another Christie movie comes to mind. Ms. Marple is having tea with a crony, who mentions a recent trip to America where she asked for muffins and got tea cakes with raisins. Ms. Marple responds, "Americans have a lot to answer for." That one's funny; some others, not so much. If this film has piqued your interest, you might find the book enjoyable. You'll not be disappointed, I think, with its wider scope and development. Also, if you have opportunity and are enough of a fan of Christie, you probably have seen the BBC Marple series. If not, I think you would really love it. Personally, I consider the BBC Marple/Poirot stories to be the defining version, just as the 1995 Pride and Prejudice film version is to all the others. Hey, this film has the usual Hollywood treatment, but it's actually a jolly good show and all that.