User Reviews

At first glimpse this adaption looked good with some atmospheric set and costume design combined with some excellent cinematography. Unfortunately these are about the only redeeming features in this mess.

The writer has included so many modern-isms it is a wonder they bothered to keep it as a period piece at all. Perhaps Mr MacRae simply couldn't be bothered to do any research into the period and just imagined he was writing an episode of British soap opera Eastenders? The real sign of laziness however is adding an old Nazi war criminal, the softest and most obvious of targets it seems as it won't offend anyone. Also putting in Louis Armstrong and yet another lesbian subplot for no apparent reason was hardly a masterstroke. If he wanted to change the story that much he could have made a completely original title instead of this clumsy rehash of the book (as was done with some success in the Margaret Rutherford films). This would probably have made the whole production a lot more enjoyable.

It was a big mistake to add in so many new characters as it becomes impossible to really care about any of them. Geraldine McEwan is even more ditsy and irritating than usual and is nearly superfluous when most of the detective work is done by Martine McCutcheon playing her customary and increasingly tiresome cockney sparrow routine as a hotel maid.It is surprising that these liberties were allowed to be taken with the plot and characters after hearing how much pressure was put on David Suchet's performance by Christie's descendants, when filming Poirot.

The background music is almost deafening and makes hearing the dialogue a real chore, especially in the first few scenes. How anyone with half a brain could fail to spot this in post-production I really don't know. It is a common failing in modern television to try and jazz everything up with a loud soundtrack.

Perhaps this series could be seen as lightweight Sunday evening entertainment and they are certainly nothing more. It is typical of the PC, dumbed-down television that we get in the UK. Purists will undoubtedly prefer the 1987 Hickson version, infinitely preferable to this nonsense.

Once again, an entry in the new Marple series seems to have become the target of immediate dismissal because it doesn't follow the original text to the letter. Well, going by the (apparently faithful) Joan Hickson version, the changes fall into 3 different categories: 1) New characters and subplots are added. These are admittedly unnecessary, but they do add welcome intrigue to the film, and they do fit in with the general theme of Bertram's Hotel being a place simultaneously respectable and corrupt. 2) The basic murder plot has kept the essentials (killer and motive) but has slightly altered the method, and has also added one more murder; these changes do not only allow the police investigation to begin much sooner, but also effectively mislead the audience (and the police) about the killer's target - in short, they are improvements. 3) A love story has been added between the young Inspector investigating the case and an intelligent hotel maid; this love story is utterly charming, and the maid, essentially a younger version of Miss Marple herself (she is even called Jane), is a wonderful character; in fact, "At Bertram's Hotel" is notable for its strong female characters, including the lady adventurer Bess Sedgwick, a woman not just ahead of her time, but possibly of our time as well! Polly Walker is a little too subdued in the role, but she does have one GREAT scene when she confronts her crooked lawyer. In addition to all that, sumptuous production and truly terrific music make this one of the most fun to watch entries in the series so far; although 90% of it is set inside the hotel, it never feels claustrophobic thanks to a camera that follows the characters around instead of just observing them. And it even has an upbeat ending that is guaranteed to leave you smiling. *** out of 4.

I have been gorging myself on Miss Marple recently. I bought box sets of the complete Joan Hickson and Geraldine McEwen series and went through them all in about 3 months.

I love the Hickson series, but I have a lot of time for this one too.

I appreciate why people regard Hickson as the definitive Miss Marple. She may or may not be what Christie had in mind, but she made the part her own in the same way that Basil Rathbone did Sherlock Holmes. The shows themselves were fairly faithful adaptations of the books. Because they were essentially historical pieces and were given good production values they have barely dated in the twenty or thirty years since they were made.

This raises the question of whether it was it worth doing the Marple stories again so soon after Hickson's triumph.

If this series had simply given us another actress trying to replicate Hickson's performance while solving the same mysteries then the answer would have been a decisive 'no'. But it doesn't. There are three main differences.

Firstly, look and feel of the shows is quite different. They are structured much more like movies and less like TV dramatizations of novels. The scenes are shorter, the dialogue more pared down, they are stronger visually and they have a more pronounced overall dramatic arc. This is not necessarily a better way to approach the books it is merely an alternative way.

Secondly, Geraldine McEwen's Marple is a new character. Basically, Miss Marple was a prototype Columbo. Hickson's Marple seems so innocent and so vague that people underestimate her shrewdness and are lured into mistakes and unintended revelations: McEwen's Marple is more pixie-like and more eccentric and she achieves the same effect by seeming so dotty. It may not be Christie's Marple (or Joan Hickson's), but for me it works in its own way.

Thirdly, and most importantly, the stories are often altered substantially. This may strike Christie enthusiasts as sacrilege, but the truth is that she churned out books at a frantic rate for much of her long career, so it is not surprising that many of them have obvious flaws and would have benefited from extensive re-writes. None more so than 'At Bertram's Hotel', which is an impossible farrago of nonsense.

The merit of this series is that the screenwriters were given the freedom to tidy up some of the obvious weaknesses in the novels. Nearly all the changes they made were improvements. Sometimes they were quite minor, as in 'Murder at the Vicarage'. In others they were more substantial. In 'The Body in the Library' the identity of one of the killers is changed. with the result that Christie's killer becomes a more interesting and more moving character and the solution of the mystery is more unexpected and at the same time more poignant.

In a couple of cases, such as 'Nemesis', the stories are barely recognisable, but this is not necessarily a criticism. Books are not always better than the dramas based on them. This 'Nemesis' is significantly more ingenious than Christie's version.

'At Bertram's Hotel', is perhaps the most extreme case. When I watched the Hickson version I immediately felt it was the weakest in the series: a shapeless, meandering mish-mash of improbable characters and farcical plot devices. The story told here is still far from being great and has farcical elements of its own. Nonetheless, the characters are better drawn and the various sub-plots are more intriguing. It is still a farrago, but it is a somewhat better one.

This 'At Bertram's Hotel' may not be a silk purse, but at least it is no longer a sow's ear.

That is the justification for this whole series.

This was my very Marplish commentary,viewing this awful movie after the excellent TOWARDS ZERO.And the changes were no good at all.The very bad directing spoiled the only acceptable idea of the screenwriter,the very good locked room murder.The rest was a very confusing Irish Stew of stolen jewels,stolen paintings,Nazis,polio,mad hatters and twin,driving even Charles Kay and Peter Davison to their worst and embarrassing interpretations after two long and highly distinguished careers.Polly Walker and Emily Beecham were simply non existing:Tom McRae simply forgot to build up their characters,being too interested to invent newfangled and outlandish red herrings.So the story is the more shallow one after the big Sittaford mistake.McCutcheon almost solved the case instead of Marple,a very bad move because she was obnoxiously pesky and know-it-all.Simply she had not the acting skill for playing Supersleuth instead of McEwan.Mangan was better let to his Cappuccino Years.I adore the McEwan series,but I adore it for their better episodes,as Announced or Paddington or Finger and Zero.Sometimes they can be surprisingly faithful and refreshing.But,no,Marple.Not always changes are for good.The unholy coupling of maids and cockney coppers can bear very tainted fruits.So,Kevin Elyot confirmed himself in this season the best writer of the whole series,Geraldine McEwan was swiftly pushed away from the limelights,and the lurking shadow of Julia McKenzie was ominously present behind Bertram's new wings.A pleasant and ,alas, highly advisable return to normality after this turmoil,I must meekly confess......

Okay, not to put too fine a point on it, but this production of Bertram's Hotel is sadly disappointing, mostly because I actually thought I was getting Agatha Christie's Miss Marple. This one is loud, garish and obnoxious.

Just a few of the silly changes they made (from Agatha Christie's actual book):

1. Miss Marple: Changed from an elderly, knitting spinster still in possession of a keen mind: to a twinkle eyed, elfish, shadow, happy to let the maid take the lead

2. Bess Sedgewick: Changed from a selfish and vivacious adventurer who gave up her daughter to the care of others; to a depressed, tired looking devoted mom.

3. Canon Pennyfather: Changed from a sweet, forgetful cleric to something sinister (can't say or it will become a spoiler)

Many other characters were left out because they were no longer important since the plot was changed.

So many cartoonish characters have been added to further something that the British may have considered to be ....a plot. I just thought the Black American jazz singer and guy who looked like a medieval French clown (the "Hat" man) to be absolutely ridiculous. Their roles were just thrown in.

By the time this circus of new and changed characters were finished running through their incomprehensible lines, I just sat there totally confused.

The only mystery here is why they would kill off Agatha Christie's brilliant Miss Marple. These new adaptations are terrible.

This is the finale of Geraldine McEwan who played Miss Marple throughout seasons 1 to 3. I found At Bertram's Hotel rather complex, especially with twins and lookalikes galore. I wish the characters had name tags or something. Anyway, I'm relieved the murderer was caught finally through many twists and turns from one twin to another and the lookalikes.

If you've seen the third series so far chronologically, you may have been pleased with the way TOWARDS ZERO was left virtually untouched plot-wise, but you may feel disgusted at how many liberties were taken to alter the original story of NEMESIS. However, this episode stands out as being both moderately altered and possibly the most atmospheric episodes this series has seen so far. When I say moderately altered, it is obviously changed somewhat from the original novel (the Britten twins, Amelia Walker, Mutti etc. do not appear as they do here, for example). However, that doesn't mean that it goes to the extremities that NEMESIS faced, with a complete redesign of the book. AT BERTRAM'S HOTEL stays comparatively close to the novel while spicing it up a bit to keep viewers attentive and observant while many clues that are seen, but are left ignored, are brought together in the end. This episode is changed from a typical whodunit to a spectacle seen by viewers that has many cryptic hints twinkling in the background of several "unimportant" scenes. Unlike many of the other mysteries, where viewers have to struggle with the burden of remembering countless clues and must wait to be proved right or wrong at the end, this adventure provides enough visual hints to solve the murder on the spot and see just how clever you really are. Of course Miss Marple pieces it all together at the end, but her solution may come as a shock as to how easy the truth had been laid out. Newcomer to the series Tom McRae creates a worthy screenplay that shines, along with the superb direction, setting, and costumes. I guarantee you that this episode will not leave a bad aftertaste as did NEMESIS or other episodes in previous seasons.

This was truly terrible. What were they thinking of? The dreadful clichéd chirpy cockney maid who suddenly becomes the sleuth while Miss Marple stands watching, some absurd Nazi sub-plot completely changing the Canon Pennyfarther character entirely, never mind the pointless inclusion of Louis Armstrong - Why? A lacklustre cast that gave every impression of wanting to be back home as soon as possible. Polly Walker just updated her role from Rome and I suppose Peter Davison fancied playing the bad guy for a change.

I suppose that I can't help comparing these to the the definitive portrayal of Miss Marple by Joan Hickson. If you get the chance to see these versions, treat yourself.

One more thing. In postwar Britain couples did not go around declaring their intention of living together. Not unless they wanted to be totally ostracised. Sloppy writing