Evangeline Lilly and Josh Holloway, courtesy ABC
First up, I want to wave a quick good-bye to ABC’s series Lost. Not a family-safe show, by any means, because of the frequent violence, it was still very well-written. And it all ends tonight (5/23) at 9 p.m.
If you haven’t been following it – I didn’t because I can’t watch everything and liked a couple other shows better that year – there is a recap special starting at 7 p.m. Two hours should cover it.
I have to say, it was an excellent show, very thought-provoking, with lots of religious symbolism. I guess we’re going to finally find out if the island is Purgatory or Hell or what.
MYSTERY! AGATHA CHRISTIE’S MISS MARPLE, SERIES V
Friendly Rating: Middle elementary and up.
Safety Rating: Lots of smoking and one naughty word.
Quality Rating: Utterly delightful.
The Mirror Crack’d From Side to Side is the first of several Mystery! installments, premiering tonight (5/23) on PBS, check your local listings for times.
Being quite the fan of murder mystery, I cut my adult teeth on Agatha Christie, Rex Stout and Dorothy Sayers. And while Sayers’ Lord Peter Whimsy eventually became a life-long fave, I do have a soft spot in my heart for Christie’s Miss Marple, ably portrayed in this series by Julia McKenzie.
While Miss Marple was based on the iconic village busybody, Christie used that very annoying trait of nosiness to make the aging spinster sleuth plausible. And there have been plenty of films and TV shows featuring Miss Marple – this is just the most recent incarnation.
Based on the book The Mirror Crack’d, which takes place in the 1950s, glamorous American film star Marina Gregg takes up residence in St. Mary Mead (which like Jessica Fletcher’s Cabot Cove boasted a murder rate to beat Detroit). When villager and fan Heather Badcock dies of poisoning during Marina’s big party, at first, everyone is shocked and worried that someone is out to get Marina. Until Miss Marple ferrets out the truth.
The book is one of Christie’s better ones, and has a very clever ending, one of the things that makes Christie so much fun to read. This film is an excellent adaptation and wonderful fun.
However, because it’s set in the 1950s, everybody smokes – as they did back then. And there is one naughty word, spoken in the context of repeating a threat. Christie did not use that word in the original.
In fact, there are a couple other liberties taken with the text (which I read a way long time ago). Still, the film is a good adaptation and moves quite nicely.
The trick will be getting your kids to watch it. But if you model respect for period pieces and enjoying watching older people rather than young, young, young all the time, your kids will follow your lead. Consider it a broadening experience.
