The Mirror Crack'd
Jane Marple solves the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim.
-
- Cast:
- Angela Lansbury , Geraldine Chaplin , Tony Curtis , Edward Fox , Kim Novak , Elizabeth Taylor , Rock Hudson
Similar titles
Reviews
I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much
A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."
The acting in this movie is really good.
One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.
A Miss Marple mystery with an all-star cast—what could go wrong? A lot, actually, and I'm not just talking about the murder.The story isn't the best whodunit out there, but it's the acting that's the real problem. I don't know what kind of direction Guy Hamilton gave his cast, but everyone overacted like they were in a bad dinner theater performance. It's just sad to see Elizabeth Taylor, Rock Hudson, Tony Curtis, Kim Novak, Geraldine Chaplin, and Angela Lansbury giving horrible performances. If this was the first movie someone saw of them, they'd probably hate them. Liz's and Kim's performances are particularly over-the-top; they play fading movie stars who hate each other, and it's just heartbreaking to watch.The only bonus is if you look at the full cast list on IMDb, you'll see Pierce Brosnan listed as "Actor playing 'Jamie' (uncredited)". But don't watch the entire movie hoping to spot him. I'm sure he'd give you the same advice.
This isn't the best film adaptation of an Agatha Christie mystery or even in the top five. Those would probably be Murder on the Orient Express, Evil Under the Sun, Witness for the Prosecution, the Judith Anderson version of And Then There Were None and Murder, She Said with Margaret Rutherford but this does have some pleasures to be found within.Chief among those pleasure is the cast. Guy Hamilton, who followed this up with Evil Under the Sun, managed to corral a great deal of high quality talent. Angela Lansbury makes an okay Miss Marple but her obvious makeup detracts from her being completely believable in the part. Geraldine Chaplin is also fine as Taylor's assistant although her part doesn't offer much depth. Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson team well giving off that old time movie star glamour, this was Rock's second to last theatrical feature and the last time he looked really well on the screen, but it's not their story that really sets off sparks on screen. The real scene stealer who walks off with every second she's on view is Kim Novak in an absolute gem of a comic performance. She looks sensational and the barbed dialog she and Liz share is worth the price of admission itself. The only real drawback is that the story is an obvious ripoff of Gene Tierney's personal tragedy and from that angle, since it sticks so close to the details, it is in rather bad taste. However the story was widely known so could have been considered in the public domain.Overall a well made, pleasant entertainment.
Usually, when a movie made in Britain cast characters from America they usually select fellow Brits for the parts even though their American accent is pretty bad and stereotypic. In this case, however, actual Americans or longtime transplants made their way into the respective roles. As a result, things turn out rather bad just from the drag factor of the Hollywood trained actors' performances. Lacking, as they do, the stage training typical of their British counterparts, they merely bring down the whole performance to their own tediously pedantic level. Lansbury's Marple, seems less the cerebral type and more a throwback to the music hall tradition. Too many years of Sweeny Todd, perhaps. More likely, just plain bad direction from a hack hired by a producer without a clue.
A film production(and we get several smart jokes about the reality of movie-making... well, one or two of them try too hard) comes to small town, with two famous lead actresses(who hate each other), one of whom is trying to rebuild her career after a nervous breakdown, the other one a diva who provokes her incessantly. Suddenly, there is a murder, and Miss Marple(one of the only locals who isn't fawning over the stars... who are actual names, Kim Novak, Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson!) must solve this clever, well-written mystery(and the conclusion and twist are really great, very surprising without being impossible to put together if one is remarkably perceptive, the hints are there... among the red herrings!), with some help from her cousin who works for Scotland Yard. Lansbury is quite charming, and the humor and human aspect tends to work. I have not read the Agatha Christie novel and can draw no comparisons. Dialog is sharp. The acting is good. Characters are reasonably fleshed out and certainly credible. The DVD comes with a theatrical trailer and a photo gallery. There is a little strong language and sensuality in this. I recommend this to any fan of crime stories. 7/10