Murder She Said (1961)

Typical me catching a movie mid-day on TCM.  The fact that it is a whodunit, specifically Miss Marple, definitely peaked my interest.  Unfortunately Murder She Said is adapted from the original Agatha Christie story 4:50 to Paddington, and I have already seen Joan Hickson's version of the same story.  While this regrettably means I already know the killer I tried my hardest to remain unbiased.

The movie is an adapted script from one of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple stories, as I have above stated.  For those who don't know, Miss Marple is an older woman whose keen eye and experience from crime novels has given her the adept ability to investigate murders.  In this tale, Miss Marple witnesses a strangling on a Train, and when no one believes her she must become a maid at an estate along the railroad tracks to search for clues.

36/50 Eggs

As I noted in earlier posts, whodunits are among some of my favorite movies.  This, although not as good as the Joan Hickson version, was pretty good.  Miss Marple storylines are alwats very good.  They have just enough twists and turns to stay interesting, and make it hard to deduce the ending, however still, if one has the keen wit, possible to figure out the killer before it is actually noted in the film.  This a unique feature that feels quite rewarding, whether you actually got it right or not.  One thing I thought was kinda funny about the film.  Joan Hickson actually plays Mrs. Kidder in the film.  At one point, Miss Marple turns to Mrs. Kidder and says "The younger generation..hmm", seems so ironic that 20 years later she really would be the next Miss Marple.  Now as for the technical issues of the film, I saw hardly any issues.  I was incredibly surprised with the acting ability of the young boy.  The angles shot in the film also were particularly great, the scene when she calls back to her friend in the village with the moose head above her was awesome.  The only thing I didn't like was there was an inconsistency of Marple's level of fear.  Sometimes she would be afraid and sometimes she wouldn't.  I realize this is a minor detail but the director could have done a better job because this aspect of Miss Marple as a no fear old lady is pretty much the basis for her character.  For anyone who can handle watching black and white movies, I strongly suggest it, although since netflix has the Joan Hickson version on instant stream, I'd recommend that one over this one.