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Agatha Christie Movies and TV Series: Which are your Favorites?, Which Detective Was Best? |
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 Aug 15 2008, 03:01 PM
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Dominating the world, one poking stick at a time
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Location: Treating Patients at St. Mungo's Who Have Been Zapped With The Wrath Of Litene
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I have to admit that I am a crazy Agatha Christie fan! I absolutely love the books! There have been a lot of movies based on her worldwide best selling novels. So which Agatha Christie based movies are your favorites? Which were a disappointment? Which actors have portrayed the loveable Hercule Poirot so convincingly? How about Jane Marple; which actresses have portrayed her character the best? Have the movies done justice to the ever so popular books?
How about the TV series? Do many of you enjoy watching Agatha Christie inspired TV and series which depict the novels?
And just to add more fun to this thread, MysteryloverAnne has created a wonderful poll on which Agatha Christie Detective was the best! In her own words: Peril at End House....Elephants Can Remember....At Betram's Hotel....The Mysterious Affair at Styles...Partner's In Crime... A Macabre Tea Party 
Who do you think was Christie's greatest detective? 
You may choose more than one option! Many thanks to MysteryloverAnne!!!
Have fun 
This post has been edited by lirene: Aug 25 2008, 01:45 PM
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Aug 18 2008, 03:36 PM
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Teaching Professor Longbottom the language of Typonese
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Location: Planting the Holy Grain with Professor Longbottom
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You'd never ever guess I was a Agatha Christie fan would you? 
Seriously, there has been some good adaptations of the Christie works. The more famous films - Death on the Nile with Peter Ustinov and Murder on the Orient Express with Albert Finney - are good.
But the real "Poirot" for me, is David Suchet, who stars in the ITV dramations, "Poirot". He has Poirot's mannerisms and everything. Hugh Fraser, who plays Arthur Hastings, is also good.
Where do I start with Miss Marple?  Lets start with the worst Miss Marple - again, only my opinion! A few years ago, ITV, in their wisdom, decided to make some new episodes and chose Geraldine McKeown to take the lead, I have never seens McKeown in anything before, but they totally turned Miss Marple upsidedown. For starters, the series was called "Marple" (didn't even give the courtesy of giving her her proper title!  ) and modernised the stories. Not only that, but they made "Marple" appear in different stories which did not originally contain Miss Marple. Thankfully (again, only my opinion!) they have casted a new "Marple" - Julia McKenzie. I really hope that she makes a better job!
But the "real" Miss Marple, for me, is Joan Hickson. In the 1980's and 1990's the BBC made a series of all twelve Miss Marple stories. Joan Hickson "was" Miss Marple. She had the perfect look.
What a wonderful idea for a thread 
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Aug 21 2008, 05:28 PM
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Dominating the world, one poking stick at a time
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Joined: 3:53pm January 4, 2008
Location: Treating Patients at St. Mungo's Who Have Been Zapped With The Wrath Of Litene
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QUOTE(JaneMarple9 @ Aug 18 2008, 03:36 PM)  Seriously, there has been some good adaptations of the Christie works. The more famous films - Death on the Nile with Peter Ustinov and Murder on the Orient Express with Albert Finney - are good. Are you sure you're an Agatha Christie fan  ?? Peter Ustinov was brilliant in Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile. He was eccentric and believable and I really liked him as Poirot. But you are right about Suchet, just a wonderful actor and so true to Poirot's character!
I have to say, though, that one of my all time favorite movie adaptations is Murder on the Orient Express. It was so true to the book, and it really came to life for me. The book and its plot were thrilling, but seeing the actors and actresses, with the beautifully tailored clothes, that really exemplified the era was breathtaking!
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Aug 22 2008, 11:50 AM
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Skiving Snackbox Demonstrator at Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes
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Joined: 12:53pm July 7, 2006
Location: In front of the computer, of course!
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I liked Ustinov - he was my first Poirot - and like your first Bond - he's the one I rate the others against.
Suchet is also really good. He has studdied the character and seems to have made Poirot his own.
But I didn't like Finney. He just wasn't right at all.
I have to say I quite liked the current ITV Miss Marple - with Geraldine McEwan even though its not entirely true to Christie, but my favourite Marple (and my favourite Christie adaptation) is still the BBC's version with Joan Hickson - she's just a perfect small village meddling spinster!
Did you ever see the 'Partners in Crime' series?
It stared James Warwick and Francesca Annis as Tommy and Tuppence and was very good (although it is horribly dated now).
I'd recommend it to you if you ever get the chance to watch any of it.
This post has been edited by coppertopchopperhopper: Aug 23 2008, 11:44 AM
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Aug 22 2008, 01:57 PM
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Shopping for a New Firebolt
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Location: Sunny Phoenix, Arizona("It's a Dry Heat!")
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What a great thread.
I, too, have my favorite Poirot and Marple series.
I agree with JaneMarple9(how appropriate in this thread!).For me, David Suchet is the Poirot. Nothing against Ustinov, who brought his own brand of charm to the role, but Suchet just captured more of the book Poirot that Christie captured.
I also very much prefer Joan Hickson as Miss Marple. As a side note of interest, she played in another screen version of a Marple story, one of the older black and whites, as the cook. Can't remember the screen title--but it was based on the story, "What Mrs. McGillicudy Saw." That version starred a woman whom Agatha Christie loathed in the role of MM, so I will just refer to this actress as She Who Must Not Be Named, but as a hint, her initials are M.R.
The films in which this actress appeared were produced more in a comic vein--probably why AC disliked them so much.
I think Helen Hayes also played Miss Marple in a film--nothing against HH, she was a brilliant actess, but it was just not "on".
Sorry--almost forgot to add that I disliked the most recent(to my knowledge) version of Miss Marple starring Geraldine McEwan. She was too young, and too foxy looking to be Miss Marple, in mho. The thing that Agatha Christie made so clear in her books was that MM looked like a harmless old Granny--someone who would not arouse the suspicion of a murderer. JaneMarple9 has already covered most of the ground in re the shortcomings of this production, but I will just say again that I agree with what she said about the way the plot lines were handled--what a mishmash. Booooo!
Like the previous poster,Copper---, I did get to watch the Partners in Crime production which featured the husband/wife detective team of Tommy and Tuppence. It was excellent.
This post has been edited by Fricka: Aug 22 2008, 02:06 PM
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"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
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Aug 23 2008, 06:48 PM
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In Charge of Invisible Books of Invisibility
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Wow, how did I miss this thread? I need to catch up!
I agree with almost everyone that Joan Hickson made the perfect Miss Marple- so easy to overlook, so easy to say more than you meant to to her but quite bulldoggish in her persuit of wrongdoing. Of course anyone would be better than Margaret Rutherford. UGH! What horrible casting!
I haven't heard about this new one with Julia Mckenzie, but I'll watch anything with Matthew Macfadyen in it.  Someone will have to watch for it coming to PBS here in the States.
I like either Suchet or Ustinov as Poirot. They both brought different but believable personalities to the screen as the Belgian Detective.
QUOTE(coppertopchopperhopper @ Aug 22 2008, 10:50 AM) Did you ever see the 'Partners in Crime' series? It stared James Warwick and Francesca Annis as Tommy and Tuppence and was very good (although it is horribly dated now). I'd recommend it to you if you ever get the chance to watch any of it.
Yes, I have seen it and loved it! In fact, my first pets I got of my very own (two cats), I named Tommy and Tuppence. I always had to explain her name to my friends who were not anglophiles. Even those who knew what 'tuppence' was, didn't get the reference. *Sigh* (My dog is named Sherlock...so you can assume I like a lot of mysteries....Oh look, it is right there in my name!  )
Does anyone remember The Mirror Crack'd with Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson and Angela Lansbury as Miss Marple? Was that before or after she got her show Murder She Wrote?
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Aug 24 2008, 02:49 PM
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Skiving Snackbox Demonstrator at Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes
Posts: 2,675
Joined: 12:53pm July 7, 2006
Location: In front of the computer, of course!
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Angela Landsbury? Larks!
Now there was a dreadful casting!
That film is so awful its hilarious - Rock is bumbling, Taylor is OTT and Landsbury is as English as a New York Bagel!
I love it - and Murder She wrote !
Have you guys checked out the offical Christie website? HERE
It reminds me a bit of another famous female British author's pinboard style website 
This post has been edited by coppertopchopperhopper: Aug 24 2008, 02:52 PM
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