When successful businessman Rex Fortescue is poisoned at his desk it appears to Inspector Neele that he has plenty of suspects to work with. Rex's much younger wife is in line to inherit his fortune. Of his children, Percival felt trapped below him in the business, Lance had a falling out with him and moved to East Africa while his daughter is clearly relieved that her father is dead. Things become more complex when Gladys the maid is also murdered – bringing in the attention of Miss Marple, former employee of Gladys.
I shall leave it for others much better read than I to debate how "faithful" this film is to the source material because, to be blunt, I don't care. If I want something that is accurate and faithful to the book then I shall read the book – not watch an adapted version of the book, what I am looking for from the film is that it works, that it intrigues, that it entertains, that it thrills – really whatever it is trying to do, I hope it does it and that I like it, simple as. I was not so taken by previous ITV Marple films even if some of them did have light entertainment qualities that I appreciated, so I saw the new casting of Marple as a "reboot" of sorts for the series.
In a way this is the case because A Pocket Full of Rye seems more interesting in the mystery and less interested in being camp and gaudy in the way the other films often did. So although we had some flamboyant touches and some "big" names in supporting roles, it never felt daft and these qualities were never overdone to the detriment of the film. So, in theory what it delivers is a solid piece of Sunday night drama. The mystery is not really open to the viewer to solve but it has enough going on in it so I was happy to follow along with Marple and the Inspector as they went about their business. It never gripped me but I was reasonably interested in it throughout and, as a basic approach to these next few films, it does offer me hope that they will be more reliable and sturdy as films.
I cannot say the same for McKenzie though because although she didn't fill me with dread, she didn't give me much to be hopeful about either. Her take on Marple doesn't appear to be fit in anywhere. We've had versions that go the "batty, flamboyant" route, others that are harsher/sharper and others that are a bit colourful and dithery. Again, not looking for brand loyalty, I'm happy to judge each as they come on their own merits but with McKenzie it wasn't clear who she was trying to make her character as she just came over quite ordinary and bland – certainly all I took away from her role as Marple is the comfort that, should she ever be unavailable to finish a film mid-shoot then we can just get Jim Broadbent in drag (and to anyone who says she doesn't look identical to Broadbent clearly is confusing him with someone else). Maybe she was playing it safe though, looking for somewhere middle where she sacrifices making the role her own in favour of not upsetting everyone but she does benefit from a support cast who also do the "solid but not showy" direction. I liked Macfadyen's turn as the Inspector while Graves delivers a good character without ever being camp or ridiculous. Little, Baxendale, the late Wendy Richards, Madeley, Haddock and others all match this as well and I thought the cast were well directed in terms of the tone that the film was aiming for.
So nothing amazing but then it is not awful either. It is a solid murder mystery that holds a tone consistently well and is inoffensive without being bland or dull. I like this approach and will watch the remaining Marple films to see if they hold and build on this, but it must be said that on the basis of this first film, McKenzie's goal is to avoid upsetting anyone's vision of what Miss Marple should be by simply not doing anything in any specific direction.
I shall leave it for others much better read than I to debate how "faithful" this film is to the source material because, to be blunt, I don't care. If I want something that is accurate and faithful to the book then I shall read the book – not watch an adapted version of the book, what I am looking for from the film is that it works, that it intrigues, that it entertains, that it thrills – really whatever it is trying to do, I hope it does it and that I like it, simple as. I was not so taken by previous ITV Marple films even if some of them did have light entertainment qualities that I appreciated, so I saw the new casting of Marple as a "reboot" of sorts for the series.
In a way this is the case because A Pocket Full of Rye seems more interesting in the mystery and less interested in being camp and gaudy in the way the other films often did. So although we had some flamboyant touches and some "big" names in supporting roles, it never felt daft and these qualities were never overdone to the detriment of the film. So, in theory what it delivers is a solid piece of Sunday night drama. The mystery is not really open to the viewer to solve but it has enough going on in it so I was happy to follow along with Marple and the Inspector as they went about their business. It never gripped me but I was reasonably interested in it throughout and, as a basic approach to these next few films, it does offer me hope that they will be more reliable and sturdy as films.
I cannot say the same for McKenzie though because although she didn't fill me with dread, she didn't give me much to be hopeful about either. Her take on Marple doesn't appear to be fit in anywhere. We've had versions that go the "batty, flamboyant" route, others that are harsher/sharper and others that are a bit colourful and dithery. Again, not looking for brand loyalty, I'm happy to judge each as they come on their own merits but with McKenzie it wasn't clear who she was trying to make her character as she just came over quite ordinary and bland – certainly all I took away from her role as Marple is the comfort that, should she ever be unavailable to finish a film mid-shoot then we can just get Jim Broadbent in drag (and to anyone who says she doesn't look identical to Broadbent clearly is confusing him with someone else). Maybe she was playing it safe though, looking for somewhere middle where she sacrifices making the role her own in favour of not upsetting everyone but she does benefit from a support cast who also do the "solid but not showy" direction. I liked Macfadyen's turn as the Inspector while Graves delivers a good character without ever being camp or ridiculous. Little, Baxendale, the late Wendy Richards, Madeley, Haddock and others all match this as well and I thought the cast were well directed in terms of the tone that the film was aiming for.
So nothing amazing but then it is not awful either. It is a solid murder mystery that holds a tone consistently well and is inoffensive without being bland or dull. I like this approach and will watch the remaining Marple films to see if they hold and build on this, but it must be said that on the basis of this first film, McKenzie's goal is to avoid upsetting anyone's vision of what Miss Marple should be by simply not doing anything in any specific direction.