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Hallowe'en Party & Orient Exp.

wolfbridge 08 Oct 09 at 8:12 p.m. GMT

dunno if that has been posted here -

filming for "Hallowe'en Party" starts this Month, Orient Express in November

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McGinty 11 Oct 09 at 8:45 a.m. GMT

That's great news - where did you read this ? Is there any news on cast lists yet ?

shanty_sleuth 11 Oct 09 at 5:49 p.m. GMT

David Suchet confirms the information in this audio interview:

http://www.haventoday.org/havenplayer.php?file=davidsuchet.xml&id=2045

Puffinjill 11 Oct 09 at 6:45 p.m. GMT

Thanks for the news!! Murder on the Orient Express will be a tricky one, I imagine, as it's so well known and there is already a credible film (if you can cope with Ustinov's Poirot). I will look forward to Hallowe'en Party as it's a book I very fond of. Lets hope they get it right!!

Katherine 11 Oct 09 at 7:23 p.m. GMT

It was actually Albert Finney who played Poirot in the original "Orient Express" movie and who - whisper it quietly - I think is far truer to the Poirot in the books than David Suchet.

Christie's Poirot was an egotist, whereas I find David Suchet too avuncular and just too "nice".

And the orginal MOTOE is such an amazing film, they're really going to have to pull out all the stops to do something even half as entertaining. (Plus they presumably won't be able to afford the same level of star names.)

I'm interested in Hallowe'en Party, as it's a pretty dreary novel with lots of padding and lots of plot holes. So I imagine it will be reworked quite a bit to try and improve it.

Puffinjill 12 Oct 09 at 8:07 a.m. GMT

Yes, you are right and I'm an idiot!!! I was getting my films mixed up - I kept thinking last night that something I had said on here was wrong and now I know what it was!!!! Call myself a fan?!

Anyway, yes, it was a great film with a fantastic ensemble cast and will be hard to beat. At least they can't fiddle around with the plot too much as it's already well known. As for Hallowe'en Party, I can imagine those who adapt it will give themselves a freer hand. I just hope they stay fairly faithful to the novel as I'm very fond of it.

But, as you can see, I know nothing as my brain has collapsed.

go_leafs_nation 12 Oct 09 at 7:08 p.m. GMT

Here I am, finding myself disagreeing once more. I loved the original Murder on the Orient Express, if only for its all-star cast, which was extremely impressive. They all turned in great performances (although Finney was too comic, and they got his mustache completely wrong!). However, MOTOE is far from a great film. They tried to be fair to the cast, and provide everyone with a good chunk of screen time. By the middle, the movie loses steam and starts to drag on a bit. It could've quite easily been trimmed, but then, we would've lost some star power, something which was probably inconceivable back then. Should we ever see another all-star version, sacrifices must be made, and not everyone CAN get equal amounts of screen time. That's just life.

Puffinjill 12 Oct 09 at 7:14 p.m. GMT

I agree about Finney. Every time I think of a film version of Poirot, I immediatley think of Ustinov as his portrail (far from my idea of Poirot) sticks in the brain as he was more overbearing. Finney did turn in more of a pantomime performance, which gets lost surrounded by a stellar cast. Do you know, it's years since I saw any of these films so I'm trying to do this from my (not very reliable) memory. I must try to see some of them again.

Until then, you lovely people will have to nudge we back on the right track!

McGinty 13 Oct 09 at 8:27 a.m. GMT

Personally I loved Albert Finney as Poirot. I didn't find him 'pantomimey'(is that a word ??LOL), I found him scary almost, and I couldn't see anything wrong with his moustache, even though Christie herself said it wasn't 'grand' enough. I watched David Suchet's Death on the Nile again last night and even though the cast wasn't as starry as the movie (an impossible task) I still find it equally as good. Hopepully the Orient Express can be just as fascinating and the scriptwriters don't feel the urge to alter the plot in any way just because most people watching it will already know the ending to the story. Hallowe'en Party on the other hand probably does need some tweaking and tidying up, just so long as they don't change the overall outline of the plot. I've always been fond of this book, I think it was either the second or third Christie I ever read on publication, and it was one of those that got me gripped on Agatha for life.

Puffinjill you made me smile discussing your memory ! I find it best sometimes to just let it slide - the older I get I realise some things are just not worth remembering !

Tommy_A_Jones 13 Oct 09 at 4:21 p.m. GMT

I didn't find Albert Finney's performance Pantomimey but I didn't find him scary either, I thought he was the way he played Poirot he was there to do a favour for a friend and was doing it in as Professional and Bussiness-like as Possible considering he had such a dislike for the Victim, I tink Ustinov's Portreayals were Pantomimey but in my view Incredibly enjoyable but I like Dead Man's Folly, Evil Under The Sun and Appointment With Death more than Thirteen At Dinner but that might be because I don't like Lord Edgware Dies, I haven't seen Murder In Three-Acts in its intirety, I remember seeing a Charley Chan Film where PU played the Title role and remember thinking he was better suited to play him.

go_leafs_nation 13 Oct 09 at 5:06 p.m. GMT

If singing "Animal Crackers in My Soup" is not unlike a pantomime, what is? His idiotic way of walking got on my nerves at times. Finney's Poirot was silly, not businesslike (although he did have his businesslike moments, such as when Hildegarde Schmidt got her bag).

I really liked Ustinov, though, who had his silly moments (like dressing up in Appointment With Death), but was serious overall. I think it's rather unfair to his portrayal that the picture of him as Poirot at the top has a grainy, sepia-like tone to it. It adds to make him look even more physically unlike Poirot.

Puffinjill 13 Oct 09 at 7:20 p.m. GMT

Good tip, McGinty, perhaps I should! Now, if only I could remember why.....

Tommy_A_Jones 14 Oct 09 at 4:53 p.m. GMT

go_leafs, I don't remember "Animal Crackers In My Soup", I thought wheen he was about to go for a swim in Evil Under The Sun and and when he was dancing with Angela Landesbury he looked Humorous both times. 

go_leafs_nation 14 Oct 09 at 5:33 p.m. GMT

Like I said, Ustinov had his silly moments, too, but generally was rather serious. But Finney burst into the song at one point during MOTOE, right before finding a clue in his own luggage.

McGinty 15 Oct 09 at 8:11 a.m. GMT

Peter Ustinov was terrific as Poirot - different, but terrific. His was certainly the more light hearted performance. To describe Albert Finney as 'bursting into song' is stretching it a bit. He did quote from 'Animal Crackers in My Soup' but he wasn't slapping his thigh at the time ,pantomime style. He was referring to the red herrings being thrown his way by the passengers of the Calais Coach, at least that was my interpretation of it. I agree with Katherine, Finney was Poirot to me, but I also enjoy watching Ustinov and David Suchet too.

To get back to the subject of the original post, I'm looking forward to Suchet's MOTOE, and I'm curious as to the cast list. Listening to the radio interview it's good to hear that they have already filmed The Clocks and Three Act Tragedy. I hope we don't have to wait an age to see them on the screen. Puzzles me why ITV STILL haven't broadcast Appointment With Death.

McGinty 15 Oct 09 at 8:31 a.m. GMT

Also it was curious listening to David Suchet's radio interview (Thanks to Shanty Sleuth for that) that he says he will be the first actor to play Poirot in MOTOE since Albert Finney. Perhaps it isn't only us fans of Christie that have erased Alfred Molina's excursion in the role from their minds ? !

go_leafs_nation 16 Oct 09 at 5:08 p.m. GMT

As far as I'm concerned, Molina's version never happened. Whether by accident or by design, I applaud David Suchet for omitting any mention of it.