Reviews

The first thing I must point out in this film is the musical score. Absolutely stunning. Usually I find the music to be little more than background noise but in this case the music really sets the mood and moves each scene along. Second is the beautiful setting. The blazing heat of the Middle East desert has never looked so good.

As for the story itself, it is obvious that the book has been enhanced. It's been years since I've read this book but Christie's characters tend to be quite one dimensional and for the most part, the actors do enough with the characters to keep us interested.

It is not unusual for a Christie victim to be unlikeable,but the victim here is particularly evil. This comes to us mostly from the lips of other characters as we see little of the lady before she is killed. Tim Curry brings the husband to life in a way that is also not usually found in the pages of Christie's books. For better or worse,Suchet plays Poirot in the manner we have grown used to. I am not a big Poirot fan (as was the case with Christie herself) and I have no problem with Suchet's portrayal.

For the most part, the people who produced the movie present us with a gripping story that is all the better for the cinematography and score. Well worth the watch and more enjoyable than many of the Poirot movies.

This movie is like driving 10 kph and then suddenly slamming into a wall doing 100. There is little sense of development among the lead characters then suddenly there is an emotional encounter. There is no chemistry, no emotion between the lead characters at the start of the show then suddenly they are having a wild sexual encounter. What brought this on? This occurs throughout the movie. When the girl that Ennis has dated a couple of times comes into the café with another man and she stops to talk to Ennis for a moment, she starts to cry. Why? We had very little indication that this was anything more than a casual relationship.

The first time that I felt any emotion for any of the characters came toward the end when Ennis visits Jack's parents. In a very subtle way we understand what they are feeling. This happens again when Ennis visits with his daughter at the end. Too little, too late.

I just can't imagine the wild praise for this movie. The only thing I can think is that people are getting lost in the praise and are afraid to admit they didn't care for a movie that featured a gay relationship.

The long awaited (by series Firefly fans) has arrived and was well worth the wait. If you watched the series, the movie answers a lot of questions. The dilemma for the producers was how to attract new fans, and they have succeeded admirably. The movie begins before the series started and fills both fans and newcomers in on a lot of background information. The plot then weaves in and out of the series stories, updating the viewer while presenting a great adventure. It is exactly where the movie had to go.

The world presented in Serenity is more complex that the usual action/adventure and the characters have a depth unusual for this type of movie. Of special note is the character of River who has been taken to a level beyond that of the TV series. The one negative was the character of Wash who for some reason became nothing more that a background character. The film makers still must be given credit for the complexity of the personalities and their smooth interaction. It is also great to see a balanced number of female characters that are just as important to the action and story without being macho-girls or damsels in distress.

Here's to the success of Serenity and seeing more of these characters in the future.