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Poirot - Agatha Christie's Poirot - Set 5
RRP: £24.99
Our Price: £13.96 (subject to change)
Poirot's 2 hour specials
Review date: 2008-05-05 Rating: 8 out of 10
This box collection contains;
The murder of Roger Ackroyd
Lord Edgeware dies
Murder in Mesopotamia
Evil under the sun
Five little pigs
The hollow
Sad Cypress
Death on the Nile
These were originally broadcast between 2000 and 2004.
Some are better than others, however they are all beautifully shot and well acted.
Suchet still shines as Poirot, and is a joy to watch.
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Reviews
First four are better than the second four
Review date: 2007-12-30 Rating: 6 out of 10
Five Little Pigs is horrid ! Purists objected that the series took liberties with the novels & short stories prior to 2003 but look how this novel was made into an adaption that was even more depressing than the book . There is a problem today with TV as producers feel the need to shock people in order to boost the ratings - showing an innocent woman being hanged at the start is repugnant & I fear for the decency of anyone who likes watching that . Children can hardly watch sordid things & so they are excluded from seeing it which is unfair . Had they written in Hastings to do half the investigating then it would have been less ghastly - his reaction to the death of an innocent wife would have been poignant . The Hollow was made far too dull & predictable and the ending was less interesting than in the novel . The investigating officer was a cheap parody of Philip Jackson as Japp - surely the real thing would have been better ? Making the identity of the murderer so obvious at the start as with Death On The Nile rather kills ones interest . Sir Peter Ustinov's version was better as it was 50% longer and so more of the substance of the book was conveyed making it more interesting . As per usual with Poirot since 2003 they use simulated sex & cast so called celebrities in the roles ( rather than people who would be best at playing them ). If Hastings had replaced Colonel Race then it would have been more bearable as Hugh Fraser is a fine actor and his personal chemistry with David Suchet was a winner . After all Hastings was not in Murder In Messompotania the novel - but he was a fine addition to the TV show and could have been so in Death On The Novel . In Sad Cypress seeing Japp proved wrong over who the murderer was would have been classic as Poirot triumphed again .David Suchet looks bored & Poirot is relegated to being a marginal figure in a tiresome romantic TV movie with a dull & talentless group of ' stars ' .The police inspectors in the shows since 2003 are bland wall flowers with no ideas of their own and so are pretty feeble compared with Chief Inspector Japp as brilliantly played by Philip Jackson .Poirot is a vain character & seeing him taken down a peg or two was a comic way to allay the obvious darkness of people being murdered & then caught and hanged . Some of Agatha Christie's books were not good enough to be televised without having Japp , Hastings or Miss Lemon shoehorned into the proceedings as she made some super characters but did not make enough use of them . That is why Evil Under The Sun worked brilliantly . Lord Edware Dies was far more true to the period than the Sir Peter Ustinov version & Murder In Messomptania included Hastings while conveying the substance of the book very well indeed . The Murder Of Roger Ackroyd was not rubbish unlike much of the misguided criticism thrown at it . It was very well cast and it was as true to the book as a TV version can be . Liberties are always taken so that the TV show is not too long & that it will conform to what the viewers like . But The Murder Of Roger Ackroyd was very clever indeed & seeing Poirot and Japp solve it jointly for old times sake is a joy to behold . Lord Edgware Dies proves how well Philip Jackson & Hugh Fraser played Japp & Hastings as you can compare how they are played in the TV show with how they are written in the original novel . It is a stunning TV show that captures the period very well - it is not light & fluffy ( unlike Thirteen At Dinner with Ustinov which is a tongue in cheek parody ) but not too dreary ( unlike the rubbish Five Little Pigs which should appeal to manic depressives ) . Pauline Moran is a fine actress who played the part of Miss Lemon in a way that is true to how she is in the books . Seeing her in Lord Edgware Dies & Evil Under The Sun hardly harmed the ratings . David Suchet is still brilliant as Poirot but this set of DVD's is a sign post of decline as it moves from being a superb series to utter nonsense . Time to recall Pauline Moran , Philip Jackson & Hugh Fraser !
4 OK episodes, 4 great episodes.
Review date: 2007-07-03 Rating: 8 out of 10
The first four episodes are just OK. "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd" is a truly terrible adaptation of a classic detective story, which deserves a much better treatment than this. The personality of almost every major character in "Lord Edgware Dies" has been changed for no apparent dramatic reason, leaving the story a little soggier than it should be. "Murder in Mesopotamia" is a decent adaptation of a comparatively weak Poirot story, but the failure to address a major plot point early on - the estimated time of death of a murder victim - has a serious negative impact on any viewer's enjoyment of the yarn. Also, a major character is dropped from the story halfway through. As this person has not necessarily been cleared of the murder, it's a strange decision by the dramatist, Clive Exton. "Evil Under the Sun" shoehorns Miss Lemon, Inspector Japp and Hastings into the tale, which is not necessarily a bad thing, although personally I think the story would have benefitted from a bit more character development of the suspects, even if it meant leaving out the secondary investigators. Also, Anthony Horowitz seemed to find it necessary to borrow the opening scene from the Peter Ustinov version, instead of looking to the original book for inspiration. Still, it competently covers all bases.
The second lot of 4 episodes are much better. They benefit from a new writing team and much classier production values, and also from dropping Hastings, Miss Lemon and Inspector Japp from the stories, as Agatha Christie herself did. It gives the other characters - including Poirot - much more room to breathe, and means that the more complex plots can unfold without the dated jokey asides (which were necessary to flesh out the short stories, but not the novels). "Five Little Pigs" is stunning, and even improves on one of the character's motivation for murder without descending into melodrama. "Sad Cypress" takes a really simple plot and wrong-foots the viewer nicely. "Death on the Nile" manages to condense a highly complex plot with many colourful characters into a cohesive narrative whole without feeling forced. "The Hollow" is another simple story that is very neatly done, and while it sacrifices a couple of minor possible suspects for the sake of one other major character's development, it is still very attractively rounded off. 3/5 for the first four, 5/5 for the second four.
Probably the best set of Poirot films
Review date: 2007-05-28 Rating: 10 out of 10
This is probably the best set of Poirot films for many reasons.
Firstly, value for money. The RRP is £25 for all collections. Set 6 has 4 full length films for this price; Set 5 has 8 full length films for the same price.
But there is not a lack of quality as a result. Some of my favourite Poirot films are featured in this collection. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is not the most enjoyable of films to watch, but the plot is nevertheless gripping. Lord Edgware Dies does not disappoint and Evil Under The Sun is one of my favourites. Some of these feature Hastings, Japp and Miss Lemon which I think really adds to the film, adding some humour from time to time.
The second set of 4, in my opinion, is not as good. It doesn't feature the traditional characters, only Poirot, which makes the films worse. I think that this is where the films in general start to go downhill, as characters drop out. Contrary to that, Death on the Nile is an absolute classic and is my favourite Poirot to date. The music fits in perfectly and it is great to watch. The atmosphere is created splendidly and there is the gripping plot, mixed in with some humour. Colonel Race appears in that film to make it even better. If there is one Poirot you should watch, it is Death on the Nile - Poirot at his best. The other 3 films in 'Series 9' are good, but not as good as the rest.
Overall, it is definitely worth the purchase, as all films are worth watching and it is great value for money.
Only Three Stars because 4 Episodes are not in anamorphic 16:9
Review date: 2006-12-12 Rating: 6 out of 10
The murder of Roger Ackroyd
Lord Edgeware dies
Murder in Mesopotamia
Evil under the sun
were all produced in 16:9 anamorphic and are shown on ITV1/ITV3 in that format. even the hungarian DVDs are anamorphic!
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
David Suchet
Recording label: ITV DVD
Manufacturer: ITV DVD
EAN: 5037115200136
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 4
Format: PAL,
Release date: 2005-11-21
Audience rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 773 minutes
Language: English (Original Language)