Having not seen this adaptation for a very long time I was surprised to find that I enjoyed it more than I expected to. I do however have a problem with updating Poirot to the eighties - he just doesn't fit, as a character into these surroundings. It works slightly better in 'Dead Man's Folly' because the 'English country house' atmosphere is relatively timeless but in LA and Mexico the eighties intrude too much and both Poirot and Hastings seem out of place. Ustinov is entertaining as always but I continue to have problems with Jonathan Cecil as Hastings who is even more of a gormless oaf in this movie than in his previous two appearances - I wish he would put that useless notepad away! The supporting cast are all OK though no-one is particularly outstanding. To be fair though, even in the book these are not the most interesting group of Christie suspects. I thought Tony Curtis made quite a good job of Charles Cartwright but again this was not an exceptional performance. It was sensible to change (slightly) the motive for the murders - the principal motive from the book would not have been very compelling in the liberated eighties! This movie is a pleasant enough way to spend a couple of hours but I suspect that David Suchet and his team will make a better job of it when they come to make it.
Review of Murder in Three Acts
