User Reviews

Argyll is one of the most despicable literary characters in my memory. As this show progresses we are made aware of secrets that have as their foundation an utter sickness. In this final episode we come to realize that the young member of this family, all of them adopted, have suffered horribly. First of all, the mother is a beast, full of self importance and vindictiveness. Her husband, however, goes beyond the level disgusting. There is manipulation, disdain, power, and more, including a marvelous conclusion.

Another Fantastic Binge worthy Prime BBC adaptation of Agatha Christie. What I love about her novels/movies/tv is that I CAN ABSOLUTELY NOT figure out the "Who Done It?". I usually can figure out who the bad guy/girl is but AGAIN was surprised by the end of this one! SUPERB! WHAT A SATISFYING END! All of the Actors were perfect in their parts. Anna Chancellor as The Mother made Joan Crawford look like a nice woman. I already loved Bill Nighy in anything he's done and was brilliant as the Father. I read that there were some reshoots and there was trouble with continuity because of Season but I did NOT see it. Didn't even cross my mind. Too engulfed in this GREAT Thriller/Mystery. We watched it over 2 nights. I didn't realize that it was only 3 episodes until the 3rd Episode was on and I went to look up one character on IMDB. I'll be looking for more of these for sure. PRIME has done it again!

With Philip Durrant dead the atmosphere is tense in the Argyll household. With the aid of flashbacks, we find that Rachel Argyll could be horrid to her adopted children and incensed that two of them were closer than they should be.

Arthur Calgary has certainly placed himself in danger and several people wonder if Leo's aloofness is just a mask.

Sarah Phelps has taken liberties with the ending and the actual culprit from the Agatha Christie book. This is not an issue for me as I have never read the book but I guess some purists would be incensed.

This serial had some wonderful production values, some very nicely staged art direction, maybe the best since the early Poirot days of David Suchet. Easily to overlook when most viewers were looking out for the joints for the cast change and re-filming.

A nice, enjoyable adaptation by the BBC which was a lot better than 'Witness to the Prosecution.'

Am a huge Agatha Christie fan. Have been since the age of 11 after reading 'And Then There Were None', one of my favourites to this day, and watching the Joan Hickson and David Suchet adaptations of 'A Murder is Announced' and 'Sad Cypress'. 'Ordeal By Innocence' may not be one of her very best, but it is expertly and splendidly crafted with an unexpected and very clever ending. One can see why she herself apparently thought highly of it.

Certainly there are worse Agatha Christie adaptations around, she is adapted frequently (one of the most adapted authors) but not everything adapting her books has done it justice. There are many outstanding ones but a fair share of bad ones. 'Ordeal By Innocence' was sadly one of the disappointment and considering what it had going for it it shouldn't have been. Sarah Phelps' Agatha Christie adaptations have been a mixed bag, with the wonderful 'And Then There Were None' being by far the best. 'Ordeal By Innocence', has yet to be well adapted. Judging it by which one's best and worst (a hard choice), at a guess the ITV adaptation for best and the 1984 film worst.

That it, all three parts, is a poor adaptation of the book is not where my disappointment with 'Ordeal By Innocence' lay, not completely at least. It for me had far more issues on its own terms, which for me has always been a fairer way to judge as there are films and television that are not particularly good adaptations but are good and more actually as standalones. The first part of the three episodes is definitely the best though it's still heavily flawed. Despite being the highest rating here as of now, for me this third and final part fared the least. It was the episode where the pacing was especially a problem and it also had the worst asset of the entire adaptation in it.

There are good things. The best thing again is the production values. Gorgeously shot, sometimes imaginatively edited, sumptuously costumed, atmospherically lit and evocative in period detail with well chosen locations, visually it is exceptional.

Parts of the story early on do intrigue and there is enough to keep one guessing with nothing being too obvious.

Acting is uneven, with only a few standouts. Bill Nighy does underplay with dignity and is sometimes affecting, he is the character that one feels most for in the source material so this was an ideal way to approach him. It may come over as phoning it in to some but that is only when comparing it to the rest of the acting, which was quite broad, someone had to take things seriously as ought and Nighy does that. Morven Christie, looking luminous, and Luke Treadaway, quietly understated, also do very well.

On the other hand, the rest of the cast are still either too broad or bland. Instead of feeling much empathy for the characters and what they go through which one is meant to considering that in the book there is more emphasis on the family ordeal, one is irritated by that most of them do not come over as real people and more stale archetypes.

Unfortunately, the mystery fails to engage. Tonally, it is little more than overblown melodrama too often and there is a lack of tension and suspense. Whereas the second part especially felt padded, over-stretched and dull, this final episode suffers from the opposite. To me it was rushed and tries to cram in too many things in a short space of time with things happening far too quickly that they are underdeveloped.

Like the previous two parts, the dialogue is soap-operatic and reminiscent of hammy camp, also not doing a particularly good job fitting the period (much of it takes one out of it). The music again is too brash and intrusive. Anything included to seemingly bring more grit or appeal to a wider audience instead comes over as mean-spirited and out of kilter as well as unnecessary. The worst aspect was the ending, people were understandably incensed at how it missed the point and frustrated with the changes. To me though, even on its own terms it felt contrived and absurd.

In conclusion, disappointing ending to a disappointing adaptation. 4/10 Bethany Cox

Why do writers think they can take one of the better novels of one of the best novelists of all time and change the characterizations and think they are making it better? Skip this and reread the novel - you will be better off.

Lingering shots make me sleep. Characters introduced without foundation. Bill Nighy good as always. Otherwise, boring beyond belief.