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maki124
Reviews
Marple: By the Pricking of My Thumbs (2006)
ONLY watch if you've never read the books
If you have read the book By The Pricking Of My Thumbs, you will not be happy with this very loosely based adaptation.
It's not just that they changed some of the plot, which they certainly have. They have changed the characters of both Tommy and Tuppence Beresford in fundamental ways. A lot of reviews have already mentioned the turning of Tuppence into a bored, frustrated and alcoholic hausfrau, but they've done a similar disservice to Tommy. The Tommy Beresford of the books and of the '80s series was, while frequently alarmed at Tuppence's forthrightness and fearlessness, was always supportive of her and very proud of her too. In this adaptation, he's been turned into a disapproving, snobbish and judgmental bore who would drive any woman to the bottle.
Injecting Miss Marple in a Tommy and Tuppence story is not nearly as bothersome as the hatchet job done to their characters. I guess they felt they had to 'dumb down' Tuppence to make Miss Marple the only smart female? In the book, it's Tuppence that solves the case through her tenaciousness and intuition. The older Tuppence is as bright and inquisitive and positive as she was in her younger days, not the sad sod of a woman she is in this movie.
All in all, if you liked this hatchet job at all, go and read the book. It's miles better. And do seek out the '80s series with a bright and beautiful Francesca Annis as Tuppence. The only reason I don't give it lower than 3 stars is that the cinematography was okay, and Miss Marple did not bother me too much.
Poirot: Cards on the Table (2006)
Why do the producers think they can improve on a classic?
This adaptation of another Agatha Christie Poirot novel has all the right elements that we have come to expect from this series: gorgeous sets, great guest stars, and of course the definitive Poirot, David Suchet, as always impeccable. But oh no no no no no! The producers have totally altered the storyline, adding so many jarring and gratuitous elements, that it's ridiculous.
They've similarly bastardized the Miss Marple story lines with the recent Marple series staring Geraldine McEwan as Miss Marple, but thankfully the definitive Miss Marple has already been established (the series starring Joan Hickson). Therefore people can take or leave the McEwan versions. But David Suchet is the SAME definitive Poirot that starred in the marvelous, mostly faithful to the original, Poirot films/episodes that came out in the '80s-early '90s. As such, fans of the series want faithful adaptations, not cynical sexed-up revisionist crap that do not work in any way to improve upon the original.
Cards On The Table is by far the worst David Suchet-lead Poirot film so far. I sincerely hope that the other, new episodes coming up don't stray so far from the original story lines, but I fear the worst.
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
The less you know....
Memoirs of a Geisha is a beautifully filmed movie, there is no doubt about that. And the acting is generally excellent, at least in terms of how it portrays the characters as they are scripted.
However, so many details small and large are just _wrong_ that it just bothers me too much to be able to enjoy it fully. A small detail that typifies the kind of lack of sensitivity of sorts is one scene (no this does not spoil anything) where Mameha rings a bell that hangs at the door of the house where Sayuri lives, on a snowy winter day. The bell she's ringing is a fuurin, or wind chime - that is only left hanging outside of houses in Japan in the summer! People in traditional Japanese homes didn't have doorbells - they just opened the door and announced themselves. (You may think this is such a trivial detail, but I would equate this to a movie made about America where a Christmas wreath is hanging on the door in July and no one thinks anything of it.) And don't even get me started on the totally wrong hairstyles given to the maiko and geisha, which is vaguely pan-Asian/Chinese/kung-fu-ish, and nothing like real thing. I think this rather cavalier attitude towards the culture they are trying to portray really comes out in the attitudes and the portrayals of people and situations too.
So, I suppose that the less you know about Japanese culture and the world of the geisha and maiko in Kyoto (which is what "Miyako" is), then I suppose the more you will enjoy this. I honestly think this movie could have been so much better...as it is, it's just another Hollywood version of "exotic Japan".