This adaptation of a story by Agatha Christie opens with the murder of wealthy heiress Rachel Argyll; her adopted son Jack is arrested for the killing but protests his innocence. Later, while on remand in prison, he is killed in a fight with another prisoner. Eighteen months pass and Rachel's widower, Leo, is preparing to marry the woman who was once his secretary. Then a strange man comes to the door stating that he can provide an alibi for Jack. Nobody is pleased to see him though as if Jack didn't kill his mother it is almost certain that somebody else living in the house did; her husband, his new fiancée or one of the other four adopted children.
I know this miniseries got glowing reviews in the press but I'd only say it was decent enough; the main problem being that just about every character is fairly unpleasant so I found it hard to care which of them actually did it. The cast did an impressive enough job; I believed in the characters even if I didn't much like them. The production values can't be faulted; it looked great with the right feel for the 1950s setting. I haven't read the book so can't really criticise the changes however I discussed it with somebody who knows the book well and she was far from impressed with changes that were far from minor... I read that Sarah Phelps, the creator of this series, doesn't care what 'purists' think but if she doesn't want criticism for that then it shouldn't be advertised as 'Agatha Christie's Trial by Innocence'. Overall I'd say this isn't one of the better recent Christie adaptations but it is still entertaining enough if you aren't familiar with the original story or don't mind the deviations.
I know this miniseries got glowing reviews in the press but I'd only say it was decent enough; the main problem being that just about every character is fairly unpleasant so I found it hard to care which of them actually did it. The cast did an impressive enough job; I believed in the characters even if I didn't much like them. The production values can't be faulted; it looked great with the right feel for the 1950s setting. I haven't read the book so can't really criticise the changes however I discussed it with somebody who knows the book well and she was far from impressed with changes that were far from minor... I read that Sarah Phelps, the creator of this series, doesn't care what 'purists' think but if she doesn't want criticism for that then it shouldn't be advertised as 'Agatha Christie's Trial by Innocence'. Overall I'd say this isn't one of the better recent Christie adaptations but it is still entertaining enough if you aren't familiar with the original story or don't mind the deviations.