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| Poirot and Hastings. I definitely need to start a finger puppet collection. |
The Best Miss Jane Marple.
Miss Jane Marple, Dame Agatha Christie's matronly detective, sleuthed her way through twelve novels and twenty short stories. A new series is in the works, set to premiere in 2020.
Back in April of 2019, the website Britishperioddramas conducted a readers poll asking which actress did the best job of portraying Marple.
I am personally fond of Margaret Rutherford who appeared in four movies in the 1960s and solidified my vision of the character when I was young. I love Angela Lansbury in whatever she's in. I remember an episode of Murder She Wrote where a man about 30 years younger than Jessica Fletcher had a crush on her. I thought the episode was about me.
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| A Miss Marple car decal. Only 37 Norwegian krone. |
5. Angela Lansbury
4. Julia McKenzie
3. Geraldine McEwan
2. Margaret Rutherford
1. Joan Hickson
I have to confess that I haven't seen Joan Hickson's Marple. I suspect that it is very good. This was the period when the BBC was making the definitive Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes. I have a fondness for Helen Hayes, who did not make the list.
The Best Hercule Poirot.
A year earlier the same website ran a poll for the best Hercule Poirot. I am glad their commentary mentioned the too-much fidgeting and too-much foppishness of some portrayals. In my opinion, with all of his ticks and quirks, and with an improbable accent, the Poirot character is a minefield where many great actors have exploded. They leaned into his mustache and never escaped. I've seldom seen a sad side of Poirot, and yet this is an impression I get from reading the books.
Their top five list.
5. Alfred Molina
4. Albert Finney
3. Kenneth Branagh
2. Peter Ustinov.
1. David Suchet.
The top vote-getter had to be David Suchet. He is seared into my mind as Poirot.
In 2015, Vulture magazine produced a list of the top Poirots as determined by critic Kyle Turner.
9. Andrew Sachs
8. Tony Randall
7. Satomi Kotaro
6. Peter Ustinov
5. Alfred Molina
4. Ian Holm (Poirot argues with Agatha Christie for the right to live)
3. Kenneth Branagh
2. Albert Finney.
1. David Suchet.
The Best Christie Film Adaptation.
As a bonus, here is a list from Taste of Cinema curated by film critic Ryan Anderson as to the best Agatha Christie adaptations: my comments added.
9. Ten Little Indians (1965)
How did this get on the list? I remember stiff acting and no tension. Starring, among others, Fabian.
8. The Mirror Crack'd (1980)
Full of crackling wit. Probably my favorite color film adaptation of Christie.
7. Murder at the Gallop (1962)
Another great Margaret Rutherford/Marple film. I kind of like the idea that they took a Poirot novel and fitted it for Marple. I think Marple would be a great choice in The ABC Murders.
6. Evil Under the Sun (1982)
I've seen it. But I can't remember it.
5. And Then There Were None. (1945)
Great wit, great acting, great directing. Should be in the number two spot.
4. Death on the Nile (1978)
I remember knowing whodunnit the moment the murder happened. This movie jaded me as to Christie's plots, at least for a while.
3. Murder, She Said (1960)
Why I love Margaret Rutherford.
2. Murder on the Orient Express (1974)
Very good. I wasn't that crazy about Ingrid Bergman's performance though.
1. Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
All of Billy Wilder's films from this period were perfect.