Agatha Christie's Marple: Series 2 (2006)

If You Find Hickson a Dreadful Bore Try This Series

With all due respect to the legion of fans who swear by Ms Hickson playing Miss Marple I can only say - what a boring world you must inhabit! Indeed, some of the carping against this newest series, when it isn't bewailing the lack of the beloved Miss Hickson - which is for anyone with an ounce of blood in their veins the equivalent of preferring Herbert Marshall to Claude Rains - goes on and on to the point where you have to wonder - just what's behind it all?

If Hickson strikes you as the bore I find her to be you may very well like this latest production. Just for starters, the sets are vastly more colorful, with a sensational eye for and love of colors utterly lacking in previous version's washed out 'authentic' fiftes look with its wallflower star and unromantic surroundings. The actors in the newest take are many of them quite good, and many of them are also quite beautiful - perhaps this flood of loveliness also annoys the naysayers. If the scripts are not top-drawer, neither are they the consistent disaster claimed. In fact a couple are pretty much peas out of the same pod as the previous version - while the much-hated updating of the sex angles seems hardly impermissable when taken in the context of an age long since jaded by Noel Coward, Cole Porter, and now discovering post-war urbanism's intrusions into rural life. The editing on the new series is absolutely top-drawer, light years ahead of the previous dragging version, with an extraordinary attention to details, which can be gleaned in a glance, or appreciated later at your leisure. For a British production the photographer is glamorous and consistenly praiseworthy. Finally, the overall production values are from another planet.

If you actually can stand Ms Hickson's dyspeptic Marple - I can't abide her - then you can continue to lament and knock this newest go round. Perhaps for a truly authentic 'look' fans of the former can turn your television all the way to a grey scale and watch the immortal Hickson in black and white, too?



June 19, 2008

Excellent Marple

I have been a masterpiece / mystery theater fan for years, and find the Miss Marple series with Geraldine McEwan to be top notch. Excellent actors, sumptious costumes, and beautiful settings make for extremely entertaining viewing. Geraldine McEwan is marvelous, and is much better than Joan Hicks ever was! A perfectly lovely voice accompanies the very intelligent eyes! May 12, 2008

Miss Marple Cute as a Button

There are some negative reviews for this series but I definitely enjoyed it. Geraldine McEwan is adorable, reminding me of Helen Hayes. The stories have been adapted but the production values are excellent. There are name stars such as Timothy Dalton, Anthony Andrews, James D'Arcy and even Ken Russell! I like McEwan's interpretation of Marple and who could resist that tinkle in her eyes. January 12, 2008

More stylish entertainment

These new Miss Marples are great. This set is just as good as the first series, in particular "Sleeping Murder," which was my favorite of the lot. Stylish, fun mysteries which manage to be involving and entertaining at the same time. I would highly recommend this set, as well as the rest of the series. January 4, 2008

Very Good

They have made changes to Agatha Christie's books for this particular Miss Marple series. But I don't think the changes take away from the great quality of mystery storytelling involved in this complex character and the complex stories.

I think they did a good job of combining Miss Marple and Tommy & Tuppence in "By the Pricking of My Thumbs". I guess they could have made a separate movie or even done a separate series for the Tommy and Tuppence stories. But, truly, there weren't as many Marples or Tommy and Tuppence stories as there were Hercule Poirots. So for a successful and long-running series, they probably need to combine some of her stories. Agatha Christie herself even used plots more than once. Black Coffee and Affair at Styles had similarities. Plymoth Express and Blue Train are nearly the same story. I think having different versions and changing the stories up still pay tribute to the remarkable author and the characters she created. Also, some of the Miss Marples were short stories, not full books, as were some of the Hercule Poirots. So they probably needed to add details to their screenplays to make these movie-length features.

This set is really wonderful. By the Pricking of My Thumbs includes kidnapping, witches, fairytale, post-war, and many other factors. The moving finger is complex, well-acted, and suspenseful. The Sittaford Mystery has an Egyptian theme and about a hundred red herrings. The Sleeping Murder is my favorite and begins with haunting visions of the past, followed by a psychological thriller.

I received this box set for Christmas and have already watched each Marple twice. Regardless of any changes to the original stories, I think they are very entertaining. And Geraldine McEwan is absolutely adorable.

Also a good set:Agatha Christie's Marple Series 3 January 2, 2008

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