If you're on the fence about watching this film, the opening scene and lively theme music are a definite hook. There's no way you can pass on the antics of a pair of septuagenerian civilians who go door to door requesting donations for The Reformed Criminals Assistance League. Slightly later I got the biggest kick when Miss Marple (Margaret Rutherford) took leave of Inspector Craddock (Charles Tingwell) with that great flourish of her cape, in the tradition of famed costumed heroes like Batman and Superman. Just a neat touch.
Aside from the actual solving of the mystery, the most impressive thing about the principals was how Miss M and assistant Stringer (Stringer Davis) got through all those athletically challenging scenes. Doing the twist at the dance party was one thing, but have you ever seen a seventy year old woman climbing up on a makeshift tangle of boxes atop a truck to spy through a third story window? It didn't appear they were using stunt doubles. And say, how did she stay on that bicycle?
Mixing equal part elements of mystery and humor, the story itself presents a fair number of murder suspects and it's share of red herrings. Robert Morley is a delight, and wonderfully balances comic timing with a stiff upper lip. It took me a while to finger Miss Milchrest (Flora Robson) as the murderer, my only clue being that she wasn't a family member that might have cashed in on the Enderby death. Nice twist there as well.
But for a real mystery, consider these - all that business about the plaster cast matching the boot stirrup mark really didn't have anything to do with solving the crime. So how did it show up in the first place at the Enderby house? As for the valuable painting at the center of the intrigue, when first introduced it appeared that the picture wasn't very large. However when Stringer sets off for London to have it appraised, it looked like it grew to twice the size. Hmm.
Aside from the actual solving of the mystery, the most impressive thing about the principals was how Miss M and assistant Stringer (Stringer Davis) got through all those athletically challenging scenes. Doing the twist at the dance party was one thing, but have you ever seen a seventy year old woman climbing up on a makeshift tangle of boxes atop a truck to spy through a third story window? It didn't appear they were using stunt doubles. And say, how did she stay on that bicycle?
Mixing equal part elements of mystery and humor, the story itself presents a fair number of murder suspects and it's share of red herrings. Robert Morley is a delight, and wonderfully balances comic timing with a stiff upper lip. It took me a while to finger Miss Milchrest (Flora Robson) as the murderer, my only clue being that she wasn't a family member that might have cashed in on the Enderby death. Nice twist there as well.
But for a real mystery, consider these - all that business about the plaster cast matching the boot stirrup mark really didn't have anything to do with solving the crime. So how did it show up in the first place at the Enderby house? As for the valuable painting at the center of the intrigue, when first introduced it appeared that the picture wasn't very large. However when Stringer sets off for London to have it appraised, it looked like it grew to twice the size. Hmm.