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Reviews
Marple: Sleeping Murder (2006)
a jumbled mess that bears very faint relation to the original
I was looking forward to the new adaptation of Sleeping Murder for a long time - and rarely have I been so sorely disappointed and affronted by a television programme! It's the utterly inexplicable changes to the book that made this adaptation not only hard to follow but also exasperating for any fans of Agatha Christie. I simply fail to see the point in changing the nationalities of characters, their relation to each other, and even the means of Miss Marple's involvement - which is tenuous and peripheral throughout.
While the more recent adaptations of Poirot seem to be taking on the darker tone of the original books, this version of Marple appears to have an insatiable urge to 'jolly-hockey-stick' up the story to the point where it's an embarrassing parody of the original and a grave injustice to the author's legacy. Given the success of the 1980s adaptation of Sleeping Murder starring the excellent Joan Hickson, it's not surprising that the programme-makers might want to change elements of the story in order to justify the remake - but this just felt like it was cashing in on the names of Agatha Christie and Marple, with no respect for and little understanding of what made the book and the earlier TV programmes so memorable.
Poirot: Death on the Nile (2004)
Vibrant, tense thriller that captures the spirit of Christie
Given the wide variety of Agatha Christie adaptations out there, this has to rate somewhere at the top.
While some adaptations (especially some recent adaptations of Marple) seem determined to show 'what a jolly good wheeze' it is to be producing an Agatha Christie - and then proceed to show no respect for her meticulous characterisations and plot lines, this version of Death on the Nile shows a gratifying amount of respect for the book, while retaining the inherent humour of Christie's writing (largely thanks to a wonderful script by Kevin Elyot). The use of music is great - both adding to the tension and building upon the already immaculate period effect of the lavish costumes and breathtaking settings. And the cast are equally spot on - each a vibrant contribution to the whole but none surpassing David Suchet's wonderful Poirot.
If only they were all like this.