While I was watching this version of Appointment With Death, I asked myself two questions. One was which version did I prefer, the Peter Ustinov version or this? This is the easier to answer of the two, although it is more unfaithful to the book, in terms of visuals, music and acting I do prefer this. The Peter Ustinov version was good on its own merits, but I did think it was the weakest of the Poirot films that Ustinov did, lacking the grandeur of Death On the Nile and Evil Under The Sun. The second question I asked myself was did I prefer the book or the adaptation? For me, the book. The book isn't Agatha Christie's best overall, I much preferred Death On the Nile, Murder in Mesopotamia, Sleeping Murder, And Then There Were None and Murder of Roger Ackroyd, but it was beautifully crafted and does keep you guessing to the last minute. The adaptation looks stunning, has lovely music and is well acted, but the underdeveloped plot changes and the many deviations from the book undermine it. It isn't as good an adaptation as Five Little Pigs or Sad Cypress, but I do think it is an improvement on Cards On the Table, that started off so well, but let down considerably by the last thirty minutes. I also preferred it over the adaptation of Murder of Roger Ackroyd, that was a real disappointment.
It is unfair to say that this has no redeeming qualities, it has its flaws, but I personally really liked it. Visually, Appointment With Death looks absolutely stunning, with dazzling photography and breathtaking landscapes, making it one of the more visually beautiful "recent" Poirots. The opening scene was superb by the way, and the ending with Poirot and Jinny was quite moving. The costumes were lovely too, and the script while bearing little resemblance to the book is not so bad. The music was absolutely wonderful, very dramatic and very often enhanced the drama. And it was lovely to hear the poignant Dido and Anneas lament When I am Laid in Earth, which along with Lensky's aria from Eugene Onegin, Ach ich fuhl from Magic Flute, Phillip's Lament from Don Carlo and Che Glenida Manina from La Boheme is one of the heart-rending arias in opera history. The acting is very fine, with David Suchet impeccable as always as Poirot, and Zoe Boyle was just stunning as Jinny. Elizabeth McGovern turns in a decent performance as Celia Westholme, though she could have done with more screen time. John Hannah and Paul Freeman have both given better performances, but here they were rock-solid in their roles. But for me, the biggest surprise was Tim Curry as Lord Boynton. It is true, his character does not exist in the book, but instead of the "pantomime" additional character, I liked the character of Lord Boynton. I am also a fan of Tim Curry's, though I will admit I was worried when I saw him cast. If you see his biography and the roles he has played in the 30+ years he has been acting- a transsexual scientist, a fastidious butler, a satanic personification of evil, a killer clown, a hotel concierge, an ambitious pirate cook/captain plus countless voice overs- you would find him an unlikely choice for the role. Still, while he has been better, he was surprisingly good, and I really enjoyed his performance.
However, there were things that didn't work as well. My main gripe was the character of Mrs Boynton,one of the main merits of the book, and although Cheryl Campbell played her with real demeanour, she was underused and not the truly monstrous character she is in the book, in the book she is a real gorgon, if you forgive the expression. Though to be fair, the 1988 version didn't get it right either. Because of this, the killer's motive wasn't as strong as it was in the book. Another major problem was the character of the polish nun. Sorry guys, I found the character completely unnecessary, and the story around her was weak and badly underdeveloped. She and Nanny Taylor are the only characters I would deem "pantomime". Plus, you mayn't agree with me here, but it is my humble opinion, that Beth Goddard did struggle with the accent. Compared to the character in the book, I did feel that Christian McKay was too young for Jefferson Cope. Usually I don't mind changes to books, I am a lot less forgiving when the changes are underdeveloped, sadly that was the case here. Characters like Nadine and Lennox were left out, and others added in. The subplots about the child abuse and the slave trade could have been really intriguing, if only they were given more explanation. Though to be fair, Appointment with Death isn't the first Poirot adaptation to take liberties with the book. In Cat Among the Pigeons, one of the victims was killed with a javelin, in the book she was shot, and the character of Mrs Vansittart was left out entirely. In Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Parker is killed off, not in the book. In Cards on the Table, they made Rhoda a murderess, and Dr Roberts a homosexual, neither are in the book. Another reviewer said that Poirot is starting to behave like Marple. I am not sure whether I agree entirely with the statement. Of course Appointment with Death takes extreme liberties with the book, but Sleeping Murder and Nemesis(the Geraldine McEwan versions) in particular were poorly adapted, and on the most part, both were disappointing.
In conclusion, lovely to watch, lovely music and it is well acted, like all the Poirots. It does disappoint as an adaptation, I think it was trying to cram too much in one mystery, so there were parts where areas of development would have been appreciated. But essentially, while not faithful, this is mighty fine musically and visually 7.5/10 Bethany Cox
It is unfair to say that this has no redeeming qualities, it has its flaws, but I personally really liked it. Visually, Appointment With Death looks absolutely stunning, with dazzling photography and breathtaking landscapes, making it one of the more visually beautiful "recent" Poirots. The opening scene was superb by the way, and the ending with Poirot and Jinny was quite moving. The costumes were lovely too, and the script while bearing little resemblance to the book is not so bad. The music was absolutely wonderful, very dramatic and very often enhanced the drama. And it was lovely to hear the poignant Dido and Anneas lament When I am Laid in Earth, which along with Lensky's aria from Eugene Onegin, Ach ich fuhl from Magic Flute, Phillip's Lament from Don Carlo and Che Glenida Manina from La Boheme is one of the heart-rending arias in opera history. The acting is very fine, with David Suchet impeccable as always as Poirot, and Zoe Boyle was just stunning as Jinny. Elizabeth McGovern turns in a decent performance as Celia Westholme, though she could have done with more screen time. John Hannah and Paul Freeman have both given better performances, but here they were rock-solid in their roles. But for me, the biggest surprise was Tim Curry as Lord Boynton. It is true, his character does not exist in the book, but instead of the "pantomime" additional character, I liked the character of Lord Boynton. I am also a fan of Tim Curry's, though I will admit I was worried when I saw him cast. If you see his biography and the roles he has played in the 30+ years he has been acting- a transsexual scientist, a fastidious butler, a satanic personification of evil, a killer clown, a hotel concierge, an ambitious pirate cook/captain plus countless voice overs- you would find him an unlikely choice for the role. Still, while he has been better, he was surprisingly good, and I really enjoyed his performance.
However, there were things that didn't work as well. My main gripe was the character of Mrs Boynton,one of the main merits of the book, and although Cheryl Campbell played her with real demeanour, she was underused and not the truly monstrous character she is in the book, in the book she is a real gorgon, if you forgive the expression. Though to be fair, the 1988 version didn't get it right either. Because of this, the killer's motive wasn't as strong as it was in the book. Another major problem was the character of the polish nun. Sorry guys, I found the character completely unnecessary, and the story around her was weak and badly underdeveloped. She and Nanny Taylor are the only characters I would deem "pantomime". Plus, you mayn't agree with me here, but it is my humble opinion, that Beth Goddard did struggle with the accent. Compared to the character in the book, I did feel that Christian McKay was too young for Jefferson Cope. Usually I don't mind changes to books, I am a lot less forgiving when the changes are underdeveloped, sadly that was the case here. Characters like Nadine and Lennox were left out, and others added in. The subplots about the child abuse and the slave trade could have been really intriguing, if only they were given more explanation. Though to be fair, Appointment with Death isn't the first Poirot adaptation to take liberties with the book. In Cat Among the Pigeons, one of the victims was killed with a javelin, in the book she was shot, and the character of Mrs Vansittart was left out entirely. In Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Parker is killed off, not in the book. In Cards on the Table, they made Rhoda a murderess, and Dr Roberts a homosexual, neither are in the book. Another reviewer said that Poirot is starting to behave like Marple. I am not sure whether I agree entirely with the statement. Of course Appointment with Death takes extreme liberties with the book, but Sleeping Murder and Nemesis(the Geraldine McEwan versions) in particular were poorly adapted, and on the most part, both were disappointing.
In conclusion, lovely to watch, lovely music and it is well acted, like all the Poirots. It does disappoint as an adaptation, I think it was trying to cram too much in one mystery, so there were parts where areas of development would have been appreciated. But essentially, while not faithful, this is mighty fine musically and visually 7.5/10 Bethany Cox