Still Life: A Three Pines Mystery

I was so looking forward to seeing the adaptation of the Inspector Gamache series set in the fictitious town of Three Pines somewhere in Quebec. I have read every book in Louise Penny's series and I have enjoyed Nathaniel Parker's acting in several different works. Somehow, though, the TV-movie of "Still Life" just fell flat. I think maybe a one and a half hour TV movie just wasn't enough to fully develop the characters and some of the acting was just so-so. Whatever it was, it was certainly not up to the caliber of Inspector Morse or Inspector Lewis, however beautiful the cinematography. I would say that if another episode is filmed, I would have to watch it.

If I had never read more of Louise Penney's books than Still Life, it might have been okay. As most of the reviewers have already said, casting was terrible. Not one of the characters (most especially Gamache and Clara) was right for the part, except Susanna Fournier as Agent Nichol. She actually got the part right. Too bad her role was so pathetic. The locale was terrible. The village was too big, the roads too well kept. Three Pines isn't even on a map, and no way would such a large village be as inbred as depicted in the books. My husband and I often joke about roles actors are offered by their agents. Patricia McKenzie's agent must have said "you'll be the only Black in the movie and you'll get to say 3 words, but oh honey, it's a great role". Why even put Myrna in the movie? Nathaniel Parker is about 20 years too young to play Gamache. Also too tall. Kate Hewlett was just very wrong as Clara. My husband kept asking why she was happy so quickly after her best friend was murdered. I could go on, but why torture myself remembering?

I wanted to like this movie, having read all of Louise Penney's atmospheric, intelligent, introspective books featuring Armand Gamache. How disappointing to find that all that has been reduced to soap opera standards. There is in the movie none of the sensitivity, insight, philosophizing that makes the books so compelling. The cast is impossibly good looking, with that plastic, every-hair-in-place, perfect make-up at all times look so common to made-for-TV movies. The characters, instead of being complex and unpredictable, are stilted, their utterances short, too fast, emotionless--a sign of poor direction and/or poor acting. The use of that husky, almost-whisper voice (who talks like that?) also betrays the cookie-cutter approach to this movie. Scenes are very short, pushing the plot ahead in only the barest, least thought-provoking manner. It's a shame to see Penney's deeply thoughtful works reduced to such shallowness. It was peculiar, as well, to see what Penney describes as the surreal, provocative artwork of murder-victim Jane,(thus killing off a main and recurring character in the books) represented as poorly-rendered American Primitive. Have the producers/director no loyalty to the books at all? If Penney is one of the executive producers, as referred to in other reviews, I cannot imagine that she feels the movie faithfully represents her literary work. I doubt, too, that she had much to say about it.

Critics need to remember this movie is based on one novel, not 11! I thought it was a treat to see Penny's characters come to life, even though they didn't exactly meet my expectations. Her Gamache novels are murder mysteries, after all, and while the movie doesn't have the books' atmospheric quality, it does a fine job with the characters and the plot. Looking forward to another!

I think that maybe I might be in the minority here ! Having read all the reviews before me , I did think twice about writing mine, but decided to go ahead , even though I think I might get a lot of thumbs down.

I have not read any of the books, so these characters are new to me.

I really enjoyed the whole film, the plot, the characters , the setting , and the fact that I did not have a clue as to who the murderer was !

Usually , these type of movies are fairly predictable and boring , but I found this one very interesting and mysterious!

The location was absolutely beautiful , maybe that drew me in also .

So, for me it worked , but I can appreciate that fans of this author's work do beg to differ !