Miss Marple: Le train de 16 h 50

I am not in the habit of writing reviews but the reviewer who took exception to Jill Meager provoked me to rebut his comment. She was the "Highlight" of this episode and the reason I viewed it several times. Being extremely attractive, charming and projecting intelligence are clearly reasons enough for any red-blooded male to crawl on all "fours" for Her.

I confess that I only started watching this series just recently even though I was aware of it for many years. This was partly out of prejudice on my part. I wrongly assumed it would be something very staid; people making exits and entrances between long patches of dialogue.

I was "all wet." This is one of the most memorable Series I have seen.

John Fedinatz, New York, NY

A great rendition of a classic tale. Naturally, the Margaret Rutherford version is fabulous in its own way, but this version offers viewers colorful landscapes and colorful characterizations to go along with the totally old-fashioned old-school formality of the characters. Much of the acting is subtle and unforced, as is typical of British productions, with Inspector Slack a real study in irony, a decent man masked in a facade of tough-guy impoliteness and impatience. The story unwinds in a dignified manner, never boring and never rushed. As a bonus, the somewhat intricate plotting gets explicated in a way that even I could follow and understand (Inspector Morse offers a contrasting technique, almost always baffling, while Midsomer Murders at least wraps its illogic in humorous tongue-in-cheek mischief). Overall, a superb production for fans of mystery and rich atmospheric production.

Whilst traveling by train to visit her friend Jane Marple, Elspeth McGillicuddy wakes from her slumber and witnesses a man strangling a woman on a passing train. With no other witnesses and no trace of a body, the police don't believe her story, so Miss Marple engages Lucy Eyelesbarrow to help uncover the mystery.

It's a very faithful, beautifully made version; production values are incredibly high. The music is lovely and melodic; it's never invasive, and it helps generate atmosphere.

Some totally iconic scenes too; the whole sequence of Lucy discovering the body is one of the most memorable bits of TV from my childhood. It's beautifully filmed, and the music is superb; it adds to the tension. The set and props are wonderful.

Beautifully acted with some wonderful performances, my favorite being Joanna David's; she is superb as Emma, making her downtrodden and meek but wonderfully believable. Maurice Denham is wonderful as always, and Jean Boht's cameo as Madame Jolie is delightful. Jill Meager puts in a great performance, be it it's a little surprising how she has men falling at her feet, she's so prim and proper. (Is that Bertram's Hotel I spy for their first meeting?)

The ending is nicely staged and suitably dramatic. It seemed at the time like she was always using Somerset House.

It's an excellent production, a little doddery in parts, but very faithful to the book. Hickson is excellent as always but somewhat takes a back seat in this one, she's very much an observer.

This one makes for perfect Sunday teatime viewing.

8/10.

4:50 From Paddington Station was also the first Agatha Christie Miss Marple story to be adapted for Margaret Rutherford in Murder She Said. Comparing the two is six of one, half a dozen of the other.

For the big screen the characters of the woman who saw the strangling on a passing train and the woman who Miss Marple sends in as a housekeeper to scout out the terrain are eliminated. Rutherford's character serves as both and one of the biggest strengths of the film is Rutherford doing her own scouting and sleuthing and her scenes with ailing family patriarch James Robertson Justice are a hoot and a half.

Joan Hickson's Jane Marple is a milder sort, but still a woman who doesn't miss much. This version is faithful to the Christie story and has a friend of Miss Marple see the strangling of a woman and her being thrown out the window of a train going the other way. But no body turns up near the tracks. At that point Hickson goes into action and determines that the body was most likely thrown off near the Crackenthorpe estate. At that point she sends in Jill Meager as an operative so to speak.

The Crackenthorpes are wealthy British family, new money, they got rich manufacturing breakfast cereal. And they've got an ailing patriarch with one of those crazy wills that provide a host of relatives as suspects.

I will say this, the same perpetrator in the Margaret Rutherford movie does the deed again in 4:50 From Paddington Station. And nearly gets away with it, but for an unexpected witness.

A little slow, but more is explained and the murder itself doesn't seem quite as contrived as the Rutherford film.

Many actresses in the twilight of their careers have taken on the role of Miss Marple, including Margaret Rutherford, Helen Hayes and the seemingly immortal Angela Landsbury. However, I believe the one actress whose claim to being closest to Christie's original vision was Joan Hickson. Joan Hickson in the 1980's literally was Miss Marple, not unlike Vivian Leigh who was Scarlett O'Hara. These two actresses were nearly born to play these roles, and whenever I read a Marple mystery, I imagine the likes of Hickson. Marple was probably Christie's most interesting creation, simmultaneously polite and sweet yet irritating and needling. She was always helping out on cases where Scotland Yard felt it was none of her business, which makes her quite an enigma. The little old spinster with the mind of an Einstein, Marple is the female equivalent of Sherlock Holmes.

These BBC productions are still some of the best adaptations of the Miss Marple cases written by Agatha Christie. Some viewers have criticized them for being rather plodding and slow. Ever read a Christie novel? These books were written deliberately in a rather slow and detailed manner because they were meant as literary puzzles. Christie's novels were not so much about insight into the human condition, such as in the work of P.D. James. Rather, Christie's books were specifically designed to offer the reader all the facts of the case, and the reader could try to solve the puzzle before the solution is revealed at the end.

"4:50 from Paddington" involves a friend of Miss Marple, Mrs McGillicuddy, who is traveling on a train from Paddington. At one point, her train passes another going the other direction. For a split second, she sees a murder being committed on the other train before it disappears. McGillicuddy just happens to be on her way to Miss Marple's hometown, St. Mary Mead. Mrs McGillicuddy visits Miss Marple and describes what she saw. While there have been no reports of any murder, Miss Marple believes her, begins to investigate, and pieces together the case.

One of the best Joan Hickson performances, and one of the better Miss Marple mysteries in general. If you've not seen Hickson as Marple, you have yet to see Miss Jane Marple in the flesh. I also have to give honorable mention to the sweet music which opens and closes these Marple mysteries. The oboe melody seems to be a perfect musical portrayal of one of the most memorable characters in the Mystery genre.