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IMDbPro

Les chandelles noires

Original title: A Murder of Quality
  • TV Movie
  • 1991
  • 1h 30m
IMDb RATING
6.3/10
1K
YOUR RATING
Denholm Elliott in Les chandelles noires (1991)
Mystery

Taken from the book by John le Carré, George Smiley rallies to the aid of his former intelligence colleague, Ailsa Brimley, to investigate a mysterious letter from a junior master's wife at ... Read allTaken from the book by John le Carré, George Smiley rallies to the aid of his former intelligence colleague, Ailsa Brimley, to investigate a mysterious letter from a junior master's wife at Carne School, a boy's school. When Smiley goes to Carne to investigate, he finds the junio... Read allTaken from the book by John le Carré, George Smiley rallies to the aid of his former intelligence colleague, Ailsa Brimley, to investigate a mysterious letter from a junior master's wife at Carne School, a boy's school. When Smiley goes to Carne to investigate, he finds the junior master's wife brutualy murdered, with her husband as one of the suspects. Smiley begins ... Read all

  • Director
    • Gavin Millar
  • Writer
    • John le Carré
  • Stars
    • Denholm Elliott
    • Joss Ackland
    • Glenda Jackson
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.3/10
    1K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Gavin Millar
    • Writer
      • John le Carré
    • Stars
      • Denholm Elliott
      • Joss Ackland
      • Glenda Jackson
    • 17User reviews
    • 6Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Photos49

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    Top cast29

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    Denholm Elliott
    Denholm Elliott
    • George Smiley
    Joss Ackland
    Joss Ackland
    • Terence Fielding
    Glenda Jackson
    Glenda Jackson
    • Ailsa Brimley
    Billie Whitelaw
    Billie Whitelaw
    • Mad Janie
    David Threlfall
    David Threlfall
    • Stanley Rode
    Ronald Pickup
    Ronald Pickup
    • Felix D'Arcy
    Matthew Scurfield
    Matthew Scurfield
    • Inspector Rigby
    Christian Bale
    Christian Bale
    • Tim Perkins
    Diane Fletcher
    Diane Fletcher
    • Shane Hecht
    Fiona Walker
    Fiona Walker
    • Dorothy D'Arcy
    Nick Reding
    Nick Reding
    • Sergeant Mellor
    Michael Cochrane
    Michael Cochrane
    • Charles Hecht
    Charles Pemberton
    • Sergeant Ted Mundy
    William Armstrong
    William Armstrong
    • The Reverend Fergus
    Moray Watson
    Moray Watson
    • Major Harriman
    Helen Lindsay
    Helen Lindsay
    • Mrs. Harlowe
    Samantha Womack
    Samantha Womack
    • Alice Lawry
    • (as Samantha Janus)
    John Grillo
    John Grillo
    • The Pathologist
    • Director
      • Gavin Millar
    • Writer
      • John le Carré
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews17

    6.31K
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    Featured reviews

    7Rodrigo_Amaro

    Reasonable film with former spy Smiley as detective

    A surprise to John Le Carré's readers and to viewers who already know about his works adapted into films, "A Murder of Quality" is a less challengeable enterprise for the great agent George Smiley, this time investigating a mysterious murder close to a respected school in England's countryside. Smiley and his ability to find clues here are more approachable to someone like Hercule Poirot than to someone who had difficult missions when of his time in the Circus solving global problems during the Cold War.

    This TV adaptation goes according the original work, a small film based on a small book with effective and similar result. Both are good but they suffer from the greatness of seeing Smiley doing more important jobs going around the world working for the British intelligence. Plot is well elaborated but sometimes we lose interest in it, its lack of having a good pace to keep the story going. Plus, it looks like something already shown before time and time again, but it might work better for those who never watched careful and brilliant investigative flicks before. This isn't sinking into obscurity because people are rediscovering it due to very young Christian Bale's minor yet important role in it, people get curious to see some of his early projects.

    Casting's good work is what makes of "A Murder of Quality" a very decent film. Playing the great George Smiley is Denholm Elliott, who brings a jolly quality to the role of the eternally enigmatic, contrived and serious character whose delivery of lines goes without affection, enthusiasm or surprise. Not the best portrayal of Smiley (Gary Oldman nailed it in every possible aspect in "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy") but it's a good one anyway, very amusing and playful. And there's place for a remarkable performance of Glenda Jackson, playing George's best friend and helper with the case, and the efficient presences of David Threlfall and Joss Ackland.

    A good dramatic suspense but never effervescent as Carré's stories tend to be. 7/10
    8petsteph1

    Well Crafted Mystery

    I saw this recently and remembered how good English TV drama can be. Denholm Elliot's Smiley is so good that I didn't even feel urged to compare it with Alec Guinness'. They both took the character on so well that in each case it was a very complete performance. They both captured the deceptively calm and inoffensive persona - and the sharp biting anger that seems to come from nowhere. The story is good, the mood and supporting cast are all tops. Some of the answers to the mystery can be picked up early on but who cares? The entire production is so well crafted that it's a pleasure just watching it all roll out scene by scene.
    7SimonJack

    Good British mystery by John le Carre

    This 1991 British production (Thames TV) for the A&E channel is based on mystery writer John le Carre's second novel. Le Carre wrote the screenplay for "A Murder of Quality," so the necessary changes for filming were made by the book's author himself. It's interesting that this is the only story with le Carre's character, George Smiley, that is set outside the field of espionage.

    A number of British actors have played George Smiley in movies made on le Carre's books. They all are very good. Denholm Elliott has the role in this film. He plays a more reserved, humble character than usual. Glenda Jackson is excellent as his friend from espionage days, Alisa Brimley. Joss Ackland is very good as Terence Fielding, a school headmaster. And, Matthew Scurfield is very good as Inspector Rigby. The rest of the supporting cast all are quite good.

    While this story has the usual red herring or two, it wasn't difficult for me to guess early on who the culprit was. The film even seemed to make it easy with one scene in particular. While I haven't read many mystery novels of the past few decades, I do enjoy the movies based on works by mystery writers. Besides le Carre, John Grisham and others are still writing today. But no one, in my estimation, will ever top Agatha Christie as a crime and mystery writer. Her super sleuth, Hercule Poirot, remains the most beguiling of all crime solvers, in my book. Since the early 1960s, I have read and/or watched the films on all of Christie's works that have been printed or put on film. Only once was I able to guess correctly early on who the culprit was.

    Still, one can't have caviar, clams casino, lobster, and crepes Suzette all the time. Those are all the more enjoyable on special occasions, after many more meals of good but wholesome everyday meals. So, a movie based on a le Carre novel is enjoyable and satisfying at any time. Most movie buffs should enjoy "A Murder of Quality."
    bonney

    The best - why can't Americans do productions like this?

    A murder of an instructors' wife (at a seemingly second rate public school in England) brings out George Smiley. The plot gives the director the chance to bring out the best and the worst of the British class system. All delivered in quick, almost incomprehensible-to-American-ears, English. Very intellectual - very elegant. And Denholm Elliott (as Smiley) was such a superb actor, you wonder how he could live with himself!
    10arthursranch

    Alec who?

    My favorite DVD bar none. Denholm Elliott's Smiley was a brilliant interpretation in the shadow of Alec Guinness, not a surprise if one remembers his role in Woody Allen's "September." Glenda Jackson and Diane Fletcher might have been given more screen time. Christian Bale was smartly cast.

    I've watched the DVD perhaps 30 times, more than either Tinker Tailor 1979 or Smiley's People 1982 (but they are several hours longer, I'd have to reload the DVD player for these, and each have gotten 10 or more viewings). To digress, Bernard Hepton's part in Smiley"'s People is scary good. To digress again, Cyril Cusack's "Control" in Spy Who Came in from the Cold" is chilling (though the style of the film is badly dated).

    Is this program a mystery at all? I think "A Murder of Quality" is mostly a commentary by Le Carre on the sins and pretensions and hypocrisy of the decayed British Empire of the 1950's. To me, the mystery is much in the background - it provides a great format. In contrast, Tinker-Tailor and Smiley's People use the complex mystery to illuminate the hypocrisies of the East and West, but are strong core mysteries.

    When I first viewed "A Murder of Quality" I was slightly put off by the structure, particularly the quick scene changes. I now think it was clever and possibly the reason I view the story over and over. I'm not sure who might get my credit/praise. Perhaps it's J Le Carre himself since he has screen writing credit.

    On my DVD, Diane Fletcher's photo appears for Glenda Jackson in her (Glenda's) biography. There is no Diane Fletcher biography.

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      Alec Guinness was asked to play George Smiley for a third time but he passed. Anthony Hopkins, who had previously starred in John le Carré's Le miroir aux espions (1970), was offered the role and read a script, but withdrew from the project when script changes were made that he didn't like. Denholm Elliott was approached with just three days until production was to start. Elliott turned it down initially as he was living in Spain and returning to the UK would mean he would be landed with a bigger tax bill. He then agreed to play the role when he was offered twice the fee.
    • Quotes

      Terence Fielding: We are all common middle class boys with upper class pretensions and third class degrees.

    • Connections
      Referenced in An Evening with George Smiley (2017)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 10, 1991 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • John Le Carre's a Murder of Quality
    • Filming locations
      • Sherborne, Dorset, England, UK
    • Production companies
      • Portobello Pictures
      • Thames Television
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 30m(90 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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