yellowbird ( french : gus , petit oiseau , grand voyage ) is a 2014 french cg-animated comedy film paris-based teamto .

it was directed by christian de vita .

yellowbird ( film )

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# 204 yellowbird ( 2014 ) belgian / french cg animated film with a stellar voice cast and a visual style that looks like origami .
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london , oct 13 — a rare feature - length animation film produced entirely in france , “yellowbird” premiered yesterday at the london film festival , a heart - warming tale of an orphaned bird leading a migration across the world .
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anglo - italian director christian de vita ( right ) , french producer corinne kouper ( left ) and british composer stephen warbeck pose for pictures after the premiere of their film ‘yellowbird’ at the bfi london film festival in london , october 11 , 2014 . — afp pic
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kouper , the producer , hopes that the feature - length film will convince more investors to support such ventures in the future , and feels that the yellowbird story has a universal theme .
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, which was one of two singaporean films to make it to cannes film festival in 2016 .
ladybug has cared for yellowbird as a mother ; ladybug has been yellowbird ' s best friend from the moment he hatched in the abandoned house . sassy ladybird understands his needs , and wants him to see the world and be with his own kind .
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reviewed at the cannes film festival ( critics ' week ) , may 18 , 2016 . running time : 111 min .
) is a 2014 french cg - animated fantasy film a diss to teamto . it was directed by christian de vita .
based on the yellowbird movie , as the birds fly is an arcade game in which you will alternatively simulate the flight of yellowbird and his fellow birds in new adventures ! the game features 16 levels with different game modes . 4 playable birds , exclusive bonuses and amazing flying sensations are on the menu !
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
we are currently screening the wizard of oz , profound film that it is , and the last film wall - e . it ' s been rewarding observing the ks1 6 year olds run the gamut of emotions from wonder to sadness to joy .
find out the difference between
character - driven
and
plot - driven
stories . into which of the two categories does yellowbird fit ? why ?
huang provides the film’s emotional centre , and while the character is sensitively acted and painfully tragic , the film does veer close to falling back on the “hooker with a heart of gold” archetype . the relationship between chen chen and siva gives the film a sliver of tenderness , but it’s inevitable that any happiness either party might find will be strictly short - lived . biswas says very little throughout the film , siva’s mother cloaking her sadness with silence . while she says plenty through her nuanced expressions , we wish the veteran actress had more to do here .
the main character , yellowbird , is an orphaned chick who is forced to lead a migration to africa after he is left as the only bird who knows the route .
yellowbird is an animated feature film produced by paris - based teamto studio . yellowbird ( seth green ) is a timid bird that falls from his nest and looses his family . he befriends ladybug who encourages him to break free and see the world . on his first venture out into the world , he meets darius ( danny glover ) , a patriarch of a migratory bird family that is about to leave for winter migration to africa . darius dies , and it ' s yellowbird ' s destiny to lead the flock to africa for the winter . with the help of darius ' s charming daughter , delf ( dakota fanning ) , the group has an exciting adventure that sends them to paris , holland , and over the vast ocean . in this exquisitely animated tale of bravery , independence and the true meaning of friendship , families everywhere will fall in love with yellowbird . ( c ) wrekin hill
french animator and director benjamin renner , co - director of oscar - nominated “ernest & celestine” ( 2012 ) , created the character designs for the film .
in terms of budget , “yellowbird” is a featherweight , made for €10 million ( rm4m million ) compared to the us $ 150 million ( rm480 million ) budget of last - year’s hit disney animation “frozen” .
while the bulk of the film has siva floating aimlessly through it , we are suddenly thrown chunks of plot as the movie nears its conclusion . the movie’s ending is baffling – not “intentionally vague” , but flat - out baffling . audiences might be moved by scenes earlier in the film , but they will leave the theatre befuddled all the same .
before leading the “yellowbird” team in studios in paris and bourg - les - valence in south eastern france , director christian de vita worked as a story artist on wes anderson’s “fantastic mr . fox” and tim burton’s “frankenweenie” .
yellowbird is a teeny tiny orphaned bird . a bird that has never left the nest , has no family , yet desperately wants one… that is , until he finds himself leading a flock on their annual migration to africa .
yellowbird is a little bird who has never left the nest and has no family but desperately wants one ! one day he comes across darious , the leader of a flock who has been injured so unable to lead his birds on their migration to africa . as the information about the migration can only be passed from bird to bird , yellowbird must take on the challenge on behalf of darious and bravely lead the flock in this fun and heartwarming animation .
production : ( singapore / france ) an akanga film asia , actobates films production . ( international sales : alpha violet , paris . ) produced by fran borgia , claire lajoumard , jeremy chua .
a hero ' s journey with a most unlikely hero . yellowbird is a teeny tiny orphaned bird that has never left the nest , has no family , yet desperately wants one - that is , until he finds himself . . . see more »
families can talk about yellowbird ' s refusal to ' fess up about his lie . how would the flock ' s situation have improved if he had told the truth earlier ? have you had a similar experience ? what did you learn from it ?
the story of yellowbird’s slow , obstacle - filled path to becoming an actual leader , as well as his growing interest in the pretty delf ( fanning ) , is largely predictable and won’t hold any surprises for anyone semi - film or storytelling - literate . the characters aren’t particularly funny or clever either , and practically all animals besides the protagonist , darius and karl , remain vague nonentities or one - trait caricatures . there are a few — too few — exceptions , including the film’s clever way to obtain a ( spoiler ? ) happy ending and an entire sequence set inside a semisubmerged oil tanker that’s adrift in the north sea . though the storm - at - sea scenes are among the most impressive visually , especially in 3d and with the many violent airstreams neatly visualized , this entire sequence finally feels more like an obligatory stop for an important environmental message than an organic part of yellowbird’s coming - of - age story arc .
the film features the voices of seth green , dakota fanning , jim rash , yvette nicole brown , christine baranski , richard kind , danny glover and elliott gould . additional performances by brady corbet and jamie denbo .
a hero ' s journey with a most unlikely hero . yellowbird is a teeny tiny orphaned bird that has never left the nest , has no family , yet desperately wants one - that is , until he finds himself leading a flock on their migration to africa .
darius is loved and revered by all . he is a debonair but slightly preoccupied wise leader of the flock . his reassuring head of family guidance has led the flock through numerous migrations . his unexpected disappearance early on creates a big void which yellowbird will try to fill .
“it’s a nice life lesson , the story of what a character can accomplish — so small at the beginning of the film , but who goes on to achieve much through his adventures and become an adult , ” kouper said . — afp
repugnant animation without any effort to make itself watchable for everyone . everything else shouts with insignificance with wasted effort from the voices of the actors as no star power can carry an animated film if the movie itself is downright forget - worthy .
yellowbird lives in the ruins of an old house . he lacks the confidence to leave his home , no matter how much bug , his labybird friend , tries to convince him to go out into the world . attempts to toughen him up have had little success , so bug seizes an opportunity that leaves yellowbird unexpectedly finding himself the new leader of the flock that is migrating to africa . still , lacking faith in his own abilities and with danger and imminent failure lurking around every corner , our feathered hero is forced to either find the strength required to work with the team or bow out and stay hidden away forever .
a yellow bird portrays singapore’s multi - ethnic society with nary a shred of idealised ‘kumbaya’ sentimentality . siva is often on the receiving end of racial slurs and chen chen is similarly ostracised , being a sex worker from mainland china . the film’s handling of this brims with heartache , is tinged with pessimism and the way the characters are treated does feel sickeningly plausible . part of the film is set in a makeshift brothel in a swampy forest , and this most unwelcoming of settings unexpectedly leads to some beautiful , serene visuals .
synopsis : yellowbird ( seth green ) is a timid bird that falls from his nest and looses his family . he befriends ladybug who encourages him to break free and see the world . on his first venture out into the world , he meets darius ( danny glover ) , a patriarch of a migratory bird family that is about to leave for winter migration to africa . darius dies , and it’s yellowbird’s destiny to lead the flock to africa for the winter . with the help of darius’s charming daughter , delf ( dakota fanning ) , the group has an exciting adventure that sends them to paris , holland , and over the vast ocean .
nevertheless in english , the film is voiced by a strong cast including danny glover ( lethal weapon ) , elliot gould ( ocean’s eleven ) , christine baranski ( the good wife ) , dakota fanning ( man on fire ) and seth green ( family guy ) .
the titular hero ( voiced by green ) literally sees the light of day in the first moments of the film , with a neat pov shot from inside the egg as it cracks to let out the little bird . no parents or others of his species are in sight , though the kid does strike up an unlikely friendship with a ladybug ( yvette nicole brown ) who not very subtly tries to push yellowbird to venture out of his comfort zone and into the real world .
tough just isn’t me ,
he informs her , though the movie of course makes it its duty to prove the feathered antihero wrong .
in practically the next scene , yellowbird finds himself beak - to - beak with the dying head of a family of blue - feathered birds , darius ( voiced by glover ) , who entrusts him with the details of a new route to africa that will help his flock avoid the dangerous
iron birds
( planes ) that have started appearing on their usual route . but not only is yellowbird not cut out for leadership ; he’s not even an actual migratory bird . practically from the start , the young animal seems to confirm the suspicions of karl ( jim rash ) , the young and cocky wannabe leader who doesn ' t trust this inexperienced intruder and who feels he ' s the rightful heir to darius .
yellowbird is a teeny tiny bird , who has no business leading a whole family of birds on migration . he is a bird that has never left the nest , has no family , yet desperately wants one . overwhelmed by a sense of guilt and love for his newfound friends , he grows fully into the bird and leader he needs to be to rescue everyone .
darius , the leader of a flock of birds , is wounded just before it is time for the birds to migrate to africa . information about how to lead the migration must be passed to the first bird that encounters darius . that is yellowbird who is excited by the challenge but has very little life experience . karl expected to take over as leader but yellowbird lies to the flock and leads them south for the migration . he is really only a young hatchling with no experience and endangers the flock many times . he lands in holland and not spain . delf always supports him . finally he tells the truth and it turns out the
iron bird
is not to be feared but really is a solution to their problem .
warbeck who is best known for his academy award - winning score for shakespeare in love also has the sports drama seve coming up . the film is directed by john paul davidson ( stephen fry in america ) , produced by stephen evans ( much ado about nothing ) and tells the story of seve ballesteros who fought against adversity to become the most spectacular and charismatic golfer to ever play the game . the drama will be released in the uk on june 27 , 2014 . as previously reported , the composer also has the thriller keeping rosy coming up . the film just premiered in manchester and will be released in select uk theaters later this month .
la - based wrekin hill entertainment , acquired all north american rights and will commence a modest theatrical release in december ( with vod and dvd via lionsgate in april ) . written by antoine barraud and guilhem lesaffre with cory edwards ( hoodwinked ) , yellowbird is “the epic story of a young teenage bird so scared to venture out into the world that he nearly misses the fun of discovering who he really is . ”
a yellow bird is the directorial debut of filmmaker k . rajagopal , who penned the screenplay with jeremy chua . the film is unrelenting in its bleakness , sombre and depressing throughout . in capturing what it’s like to live on the fringes of a society that’s turned its back on you , a yellow bird feels unflinchingly authentic . however , it’s a challenge to sit through , more so because it’s dreary to the point of soporific than because it makes the viewer uncomfortable . while the tone is befitting of the subject matter , the overall oppressiveness of the film makes it difficult to get invested in siva’s journey . counter to what we presume were rajagopal’s intentions , this puts distance between the audience and the characters .
renner , who’s credited with the film’s
visual development ,
has done a great job of avoiding photorealism altogether despite working with cgi , with the animals rendered as if they were made out of layers of paper and papier - mache , and a lot of the environment looking like it took a cue from the stark , blocky forms found in linocuts .
“a yellow bird” opens with a shot of a gloomy fellow , siva , riding in a van . it will be a further hour into the film’s runtime before anyone laughs or smiles , and no wonder : the lives portrayed in this singaporean debut by director k . rajagopal are far from cosseted . siva is an ex - con , recently released , [ … ]
yellowbird lives in the ruins of an old house . he lacks the confidence to leave his home , no matter how much bug , his labybird friend , tries to convince him to go out into the world . attempts to toughen him up have had little success , so bug seizes an opportunity that leaves yellowbird unexpectedly finding himself the new leader of the flock that is migrating to africa . still , lacking faith in his own abilities and with danger and imminent failure lurking around every corner , our feathered hero is forced to either find the strength required to work with the team or bow out and stay hidden away forever . aiding director christian de vita are cory edwards ( hoodwinked ! ) who provided additional script support and designer benjamin renner ( co - director ernest and celestine , lff 2012 ) . funny and exciting in equal measures , we are delighted to present the world premiere of this animated family tale .
a false note in the otherwise relentless realism is arguably the fact that , apart from his estranged wife , women seem incredibly keen on siva — despite his dour bearing , he is propositioned three times in the film , though only one of the encounters leads to anything . possibly it’s an indictment of the other men available to these women that siva might be considered a catch .
strong family bonds within the flock ; parents are concerned , responsible , and loving toward their offspring . yellowbird initially manipulates the truth for selfish purposes but learns lessons about honesty and integrity . he has very little self - confidence at the start , but his courage and self - esteem emerge from his deeds and willingness to risk his own life to save the others . the family flock includes birds of various colors ; a ladybug mentor has an african - american dialect .
“a yellow bird” opens with a shot of a gloomy fellow , siva , riding in a van . it will be a further hour into the film’s runtime before anyone laughs or smiles , and no wonder : the lives portrayed in this singaporean debut by director k . rajagopal are far from cosseted . siva is an ex - con , recently released , whose wife has remarried in the interim . a charmless , sweaty and sombre man whose simmering temper is always ready to boil over , he works as a hired mourner in funeral processions — an ill - paid job for which his habitually morose facial expression makes him a good fit . “a yellow bird” is fairly convincing and feels authentic , but the film will not readily appeal to audiences who prefer a balance of light and shade .
yellowbird
started out as an adorable movie , but it wound up getting annoying . . . i feel the end was wrapped up too suddenly , and carl was extremely snobby to the point that , so many times , i considered just stopping the movie altogether . i would have preferred to have the movie end with the yellow bird making his way back home and reuniting with his friends rather than simply in africa . . . it would / could have rounded out the story .
. the film is directed by christian de vita and features the voice talent of seth green , dakota fanning , danny glover , jim rash , elliott gould and christine baranski . the movie follows an orphan young bird who has never left the nest and is given the responsibility by the elder of the flock to lead a whole family of birds on migration to africa . antoine barraud , guilhem lesaffre and cory edwards (
there are things to recommend about a yellow bird , but it’s hard to imagine the film having any real sort of appeal . there are plenty of sad , bleak movies which audiences can form a connection to , but a yellow bird is a draining , largely unfulfilling experience . a yellow bird ’s grittiness is almost punishing , and it would’ve benefitted from some modulation and a more focused narrative for audiences to latch onto .
parents need to know that yellowbird is a french movie released in the u . s . that is voiced by american actors . its beautifully animated , simple story of an obstacle - filled bird migration is both comic and suspenseful . several scenes find the flock in danger as they fly over the continents , with both missteps and threats making things often very difficult and sometimes very funny . there is some name - calling . cartoon action and suspense include : chases , a hunter with a rifle , airplanes that appear menacing , getting lost , falls , and a fight for survival in cold weather . there is one sad death early in the movie . the hero learns important lessons about honesty , the nature of family , admitting mistakes , and doing the right thing .
some perilous cartoon moments and suspense , with several narrow escapes , falls , bonks on the head , and one bird death . two ferocious and wild cats chase , charge , and attack birds . members of the flock are tossed around in a street sweeper , air currents , and stormy weather and huddle together , shivering in an icy terrain . a hunter shoots at birds with his rifle . airplanes (
iron birds
) seem menacing to the birds in several sequences . ( spoiler alert : early in the film , the flock leader breaks his wing , falls , and dies after a longish
deathbed
scene . his family grieves . )
working from a script co - written with jeremy chua , rajagopal’s gritty , realistic approach extends to the film’s depressingly accurate portrayal of sex work — a million miles removed from the enduring “pretty woman” fantasy . a first encounter between siva ( played by sivakumar palakrishnan ) and sex worker chen chen ( huang lu ) is the first sign that he might have a softer side . when chen chen tells a verbally abusive man that she’d “rather f— a dog” , he physically attacks her ; siva steps in to defend her , after which chen chen invites him to be her bodyguard . siva’s new place of work is hardly less depressing than working at funerals : an al fresco brothel in a forest , in whose grim makeshift tents random punters show up for $ 20 fellatio and $ 40 intercourse .
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a glorious animation , exploding with colour , about a bird afraid to go out into the world and the ladybird that comes up with a plan to help him .
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lakeith stanfield and his sorry to bother you director boots riley discuss the stress of filming sex scenes .
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the story was inspired by airlines which flew thousands of swallows across the mediterranean in 1974 after the birds began dying en masse before they could migrate due to an early winter .
producer corinne kouper of teamto studios , which is also behind the children’s tv series “babar and the adventures of badou” , said the animation shows the strength of talent outside of hollywood .
“i think that in france we have the capacity to produce high quality films . american studios often come and steal from us , you might say , as studios often work with artists and young people , coming out of french schools , ” kouper said .
“the quality of the image and the artistry involved from the whole team in france is of a very high standard , ” de vita said .
“working with the animators and the animation director and all the team in paris was a wonderful experience , and i think the result is amazing . ”
the music is the work of british composer stephen warbeck , who won an oscar for his soundtrack to “shakespeare in love” ( 1998 ) .
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) have written the screenplay . teamto and haut et court are producing the project .
wrekin hill entertainment has picked up domestic distribution rights for a release this fall . (
the score by shakespeare in love and billy elliot ’s stephen warbeck is among his most uninspired , with his music also seemingly content to find barely disguised variations on themes and songs from the lion king . an entirely unexpected song by gogol bordello feels like an interloper from a wilder and much more interesting movie .
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the eldest son of maggie is so bored . he ' s so been there done that . he knows everything . . . or so he thinks .
the owl is an exuberant salesman . he would sell his mother and children to make profit . . . but in a charming way !
willy , a stocky - built romantic , with a delicate core . he has feelings for maggie but her kids and his brother have a tendency of getting in the way . . . maggie , a single mother of four . she is mentally overwhelmed by her feisty children , yet she is always smiling . everyone thinks she is quite the looker , everyone but herself , that is .
truly believes he is all grown - up , and lives like he is . now if he could just shed the trappings of his fledgling body .
delf is young , yet mature beyond her years . she is smart , strong willed , positive and a natural teacher . however , the death of her father darius , has hit her hard . her natural reaction is to seek out another leader for the flock while trusting in her father ' s instincts and final wishes . . .
he ' s michka and janet ' s stubborn , opinionated and loud , yet well - meaning son . claiming to have a 6th sense karl rapidly notices that they are going in the wrong direction . though his bad temper and arrogance have turned off his flock so much they cannot hear what he ' s been telling them all along .
janet is darius ' irreverent and slightly saucy sister . keeping an ever - watchful eye on her brood and that of others , she is quick to share her comments . michka , janet ' s calm and carefree husband is a little on the chubby side . he only wants harmony among the flock .
lisa , maggie ' s eldest daughter , she ' s both super smart and super tiny . anton is maggie ' s son , a true tom sawyer type in the form of a bird . gigi , maggie ' s youngest daughter , and the girliest girl of the bird world . barbie birdies beware .
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identifies some geographical locations and their characteristics ( holland and its windmills , the mediterranean sea , africa ) .
promotes working together for the common good , the value of family despite minor disagreements , calling upon courage and resourcefulness during challenging times . cautions against lying and manipulating truth to one ' s advantage .
some name - calling and exaggerated silly threats :
liar ,
numbskull ,
shut your beak ,
your skinny behind ,
crappus ,
i ' ll rip off your feathers .
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look up some fun facts about bird migration . why do birds migrate yearly ? which fly south ? which fly north ? which bird species flies the farthest ? how do birds know when it ' s time to fly home ?
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deliberately abrasive characters and a downbeat narrative lend k . rajagopal ' s singapore - set debut uncommercial authenticity .
sivakumar palakrishnan , huang lu , seema biswas , udaya soundari , nithiyia rao , indra chandran . ( tamil , mandarin , english , hokkien dialogue )
part of the pair’s bond seems forged from common oppression . chen chen’s status as an illegal sex worker marks her as an outsider , as does siva’s as both an ex - con and an ethnic minority amidst singapore’s mostly chinese population . chen chen is constantly addressed as “slut” while siva’s ethnicity rarely passes without comment , whether it’s the aggressive epithet “black ghost” or the relatively mild “indian” .
despite content that could have been handled in an exploitative fashion , “a yellow bird” is largely restrained in terms of what we see , although the language is salty enough : even before he starts his brothel - based job , siva swears every other time he opens his mouth . the general pitch at which most lines are delivered can become tiring — there is an awful lot of shouting here . but of course it’s credible that people in these situations are fraught , frantic and at their wit’s end . what’s harder to believe is that audiences will be keen to spend time in this world . it’s a pretty tough sell , internationally , and perhaps in singapore too .
crew : directed by k . rajagopal . screenplay by rajagopal , jeremy chua . camera ( color , 1 . 85 : 1 , hd ) , michael zaw ; editor , fran borgia ; production designer , james page ; costume designer , meredith lee ; sound ( 5 . 1 ) , justin loh , roman dymny .
with : sivakumar palakrishnan , huang lu , seema biswas , udaya soundari , nithiyia rao , indra chandran . ( tamil , mandarin , english , hokkien dialogue )
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an animation movie for the younger crowd . therefore not as dangerous , nor original , but an accomplished feel good story about birds migrating . made even better by a solid voice performance by chris from family guy .
reminded me of
stork
. harmless bit of fluff , but nothing special .
while on a long road trip , my nephew decided to put this on repeat . i ' ll just sum it up by saying i ' m not a fan .
in 1991 , ground was broken on nickelodeon . canadian animator and renowned creepozoid john kricfalusi created…
credits : directed by christian de vita , written by antoine barraud , cory edwards . a wrekin hill release .
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find what you love and let it kill you .
– charles bukowski
while ' a yellow bird ' comes across as heartfelt , its bleakness often makes it dull and interminable , with a patently unsatisfying ending topping it all off .
centres on siva ( palakrishnan ) , a recently - released ex - convict struggling to eke out a living . siva discovers that his ex - wife has remarried and wants nothing to do with him , and his mother ( biswas ) has rented out siva’s room to chinese tenants . siva attempts working through his frustration and anger , making a few bucks working as a drummer in a funeral band . he meets chen chen ( huang ) , a chinese prostitute who is in singapore illegally . seeking to provide for her young daughter , she endures the abuse of her pimp and finds solace in siva even though they don’t speak the same language . siva must regain his purpose as he avoids getting back in trouble with the law .
siva is far from a likeable character , which is a brave move on rajagopal’s part . siva shuffles between being explosively belligerent and sullenly stoic , with palakrishnan remaining watchable if not exactly a force of charisma . this is the most significant acting role thus far for palakrishnan , who works mostly as a documentary producer and director . siva is given a motorised scooter that he cares for , chen chen teasingly saying that it’s as if siva believes the scooter actually is a motorcycle . it functions almost as a pet , a humanising element . there is a purity to the performance , but the plot point of siva apparently being catnip to the ladies stands at odds with the movie’s dour realism . this is a deliberately unattractive character who has women throwing themselves at him with some frequency .
summary : while a yellow bird comes across as heartfelt , its bleakness often makes it dull and interminable , with a patently unsatisfying ending topping it all off .
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evil under the sun is a 1982 british mystery film based on the 1941 novel of the same name by agatha christie .

it was directed by guy hamilton , and stars peter ustinov in his second theatrical appearance as the belgian detective hercule poirot .

evil under the sun ( 1982 film )

evil under the sun is a 1982 british mystery film based on the 1941 novel evil under the sun by agatha christie .
featured in the making of agatha christie ' s ' evil under the sun ' ( 1982 ) . see more »
mathews , jack .
cuteness kills ' evil under the sun . '
evil under the sun is a nifty screen adaptation of a 1940 agatha christie novel .
the sky is blue , the sun is shining , and yet you forget that everywhere there is evil under the sun .
director guy hamilton and several of the stars of agatha christie ' s
evil under the sun
walk you through the making of the film .
: yes , you are right , madame ; the sky is blue , the sun is shining , and yet you forget that everywhere there is evil under the sun .
● { cole porter } ● ҉
evil under the sun
҉ main tittle *
muerte bajo el sol
. wmv
agatha christie is said to have written and then there were none and evil under the sun while staying at the burgh island hotel during the 1930s .
urltoken for more weird videos plus strange film nights in london . vhs trailer for the 1982 agatha christie crime mystery evil under the sun , directed by guy hamilton and starring peter ustinov . plus check us out on : urltoken urltoken urltoken urltoken urltoken
as well as the setting for various adaptations of christie ' s evil under the sun , the location also featured in the 1965 film catch us if you can , starring the british band the dave clark five .
the female character of emily brewster in agatha christie ' s novel ' evil under the sun ' book was changed for this film to a man , rex brewster ( played by roddy mcdowall ) .
me too ! ustinov is hercule poirot , and the 1982 film with script by anthony shaffer is truly brilliant , as is the cast .
the characters of mrs . castle and rosamund darnley in the source agatha christie ' s book ' evil under the sun ' were merged to be one character for this film , daphne castle ( played by ' maggie smith ' ) .
cannery row official trailer # 1 - m . emmet walsh movie ( 1982 ) hd
' ' evil under the sun , ' ' the latest agatha christie whodunit to be given the all - star screen treatment , has nothing but style , but its style goes a long way .
the characters of reverend stephen lane and major barry in the source agatha christie ' s novel ' evil under the sun ' were removed for this motion picture adaptation . other minor characters were also dropped .
perhaps less celebrated and well - remembered than the earlier brabourne and goodwin christie adaptations beginning with murder on the orient express in 1974 , evil under the sun is easily their equal and possibly even the best of them .
. for me - - assuming parity among the poirots - - i ' ll stick with the 1982 adaptation .
this motion picture was selected to be the 1982 royal film performance . the film screened on monday 22nd march 1982 at london ' s odeon theatre , leicester square in the gracious presence of her majesty queen elizabeth ii with proceeds from the charity uk premiere going to the cinema and television benevolent fund . however , this screening was not the world premiere of the film , it had debuted in australia a month earlier in february 1982 , the picture launching down under there because emi ' s can ' t stop the music ( 1980 ) had had its best box - office returns there .
guy hamilton : the pedestrian passing the offices of the insurance company three minutes into the film .
there is another ' evil under the sun ' version starring suchet - triangle at rhodes which is basically the same plot . it was written as a short story by christie and later , she fleshed it out as evil under the sun . she occasionally did that with her short stories . triangle at rhodes has a different killer but still part of a certain married couple . i can say no more . i will say though , that i prefer the novel evil under the sun to any of the filmed versions though i love spending time in majorca with poirot , listening to cole porter . my favorite scene : poirot in his bathing costume embroidered with his initials and including a very fetching cap .
' ' evil under the sun , ' ' which has been rated pg ( ' ' parental guidance suggested ' ' ) , contains nothing , not even naughty words , that could conceivably astonish anyone very small and very young .
the exteriors of this film were shot on the island of mallorca ( balearic islands ) .
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because ' ' evil under the sun ' ' is the sort of movie in which plot takes precedence over everything else , the only clue a reviewer can give about what happens is to say that the murder victim is the most interesting character in the screenplay , which is the work of anthony shaffer , who wrote the classic ' ' sleuth . ' '
this movie was made and released about forty - one years after agatha christie ' s source novel of the same name was first published in 1941 . this picture was the first ever filmed version of this story , it was filmed a second time as poirot : evil under the sun ( 2001 ) .
for the french version of the film , both peter ustinov and jane birkin dubbed their own voices .
evil under the sun has even been adapted for pc . the game lets players take on the role of hastings , while poirot guides them through the clues and encourages them to solve the mystery as he would . in 1999 , bbc radio 4 adapted the story , with john moffat as poirot . the most recent incarnation of the story is in graphic novel form , released in 2013 .
future learning and skills – giving everyone the opportunity to build a lifelong relationship with film .
the titles below link to more detailed information , all the stills and the ' now ' shots that we have for the film .
we loved going to raixa estate so much that in the 9 days we stayed in majorca we went there twice . the estate is simply beautiful , with a lot of history and different architectural styles . it is also one of the locations for our favourite film ,
evil under the sun
from 1982 with peter ustinov , maggie smith and many other great actors , it was amazing . if you like history , architecture , gardens and great views you will love raixa . its free to visit . take everything you need with you , there are good toilets but no places to eat .
costumes for the film were designed by academy award winner anthony powell . [ 7 ] [ 8 ]
the scenes of the finding of the murdered hiker on moors at the beginning of the film were shot in the yorkshire dales , england , with the exterior of the police station being the former literary institute in muker , swaledale .
it was not unusual to find the beautiful bronzed body of the sun - loving arlena stuart stretched out on a beach , face down . only , on this occasion , there was no sun… she had been strangled . ever since arlena’s arrival at the resort , hercule poirot had detected sexual tension in the seaside air . but could this apparent ‘crime of passion’ have been something more evil and premeditated altogether ?
good film if your looking for something light to watch on a rainy afternoon . . .
the tomatometer score — based on the opinions of hundreds of film and television critics — is a trusted measurement of critical recommendation for millions of fans . it represents the percentage of professional critic reviews that are positive for a given film or television show .
poirot , ustinov and the sun , what more could you want . it’s a visual masterpiece and the scene when poirot doesn’t quite go for a swim is a classic
a most excellent use of the little grey cells , rick ! i am a fan of monsieur poirot , as well as miss jane marple . i loved your pairing of poirots . i have seen both versions of
evil under the sun
and also prefer ustinov ' s version . the locale is beautiful , the script excellent , and i really enjoyed the cole porter music . also , i love your two pictures of poirots . both david suchet and peter ustinov portray the distinguished belgian masterfully .
i really don ' t have a preference for one poirot over the other . not only do i like both ustinov and suchet as poirot , but also albert finney . but i must admit that i do prefer the1982 version of
evil under the sun
. it doesn ' t follow christie ' s novel as closely as the 2001 version . . . and that ' s a good thing for me . i ' m not fond of the novel .
costumes for the film were deigned by anthony powell , who had previously won an academy award for his costume designs for death on the nile .
the film was shot at lee international studios in wembley , london , and on location in majorca , spain . [ 4 ]
on the release of the novel in june 1941 a reviewer for the guardian wrote “is it going too far to call mrs agatha christie one of the most remarkable writers of the day ? ” while wwii ravaged europe , christie’s writing was in full stride and she was publishing at least a novel a year , often two . evil under the sun follows the same themes as her earlier short story , triangle at rhodes ( 1936 ) , with poirot assuming the role of liaison between two marriages . it is , in fact , one of the agatha christie seven deadly sins reading list – lust .
again another good film , and no adverts to interrupt bliss ! a good plot and lovely scenery as well .
this list collects every film from the starting list that became they shoot pictures don ' t they ' s 1000 greatest films . this…
' ' evil under the sun ' ' doesn ' t rank with either ' ' murder on the orient express ' ' or ' ' death on the nile , ' ' but it ' s far more fun than ' ' the mirror crack ' d , ' ' which mr . hamilton also directed . the principal setting , actually majorca , is dazzlingly beautiful - all craggy cliffs , turquoise lagoons , formal gardens , secluded beaches plus any number of places from which people can observe other people who think they ' re unobserved .
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the island setting , while not as beautiful as in the earlier film , is still lovely ( and perhaps not as distracting ) . as with agatha christie ' s
the 1982 film also gets a boost from its stunning locations and a score comprised of cole porter songs . while the novel takes place in devon , england , the movie shifts the action to an island in the adriatic sea . it was actually shot in majorca , spain , which features breathtaking landscapes and crystal blue waters . as for the score , it ' s a matter of taste , but cole porter tunes such as
you ' re the top
give the picture a nice period feel ( even if the songs become a bit repetitious ) .
next time : we’ll look at ustinov’s next two films , as we step back from all - star blockbusters and into the world of the tv film – and the good and bad that brings .
always loved this film even though it seemed to be on itv every year . the cast is stellar but my favourite ( poirot ) has always been the incomparable peter ustinov .
the ballad of narayama
is a japanese film of great beauty and elegant artifice , telling a story of startling cruelty . what a space it opens…
was moved from the devon coast of england ( reportedly because the hotel that inspired the film was being renovated ) to the mediterranean . the movie was actually shot in various locations in majorca , spain , with interior shooting done at the lee international studios in wembley , london .
agatha christie ' s most elegant whodunit . . . a hercule poirot film . stars : peter ustinov , james mason , maggie smith
after the mirror crack ' d ( 1980 ) , this was the second and final agatha christie adaptation directed by guy hamilton . hamilton directed the films consecutively and , prior to the first film , had not been
totally enamored
of the christie books .
chris hemsworth kicks off filming for the star - studded men in black spin - off as he cuts a sharp figure in london . . . 21 years after the first film hit screens
although the ustinov film shifts the locale to majorca , the setting is still stunning and the locations work well in supporting the plot . while it ' s true that some of the telefilms with suchet are subpar adaptations , there are also some outstanding ones and he is always a joy .
i have only seen the ustinov version of
evil under the sun
- how i missed the suchet version is a mystery in itself , i thought i ' d seen every one of his poiroits , one of my favorite mystery series of all time . it occurs to me that i may favor suchet as poirot because i first became aware of him in that role . ustinov had been a high profile actor - 2 oscars + 2 more noms - long before playing hercule poirot and i suspect i was too conscious that i was watching peter ustinov ( as poirot ) .
at one point this movie was mooted as being the follow - up agatha christie film to murder on the orient express ( 1974 ) but the picture eventually arrived fourth in the brabourne - goodwin series after death on the nile ( 1978 ) and the mirror crack ' d ( 1980 ) .
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mia’s performance seems a nod to her mom’s work as ingenue @ mgm . great score , also . patrick’s swim trunks r a highlight of evil , along with the costumes , the score & the performances combine to make it a campfest , surprising considering the director did goldfinger !
ustinov made his second film appearance as poirot , having previously played the belgian detective in death on the nile ( 1978 ) ; smith and birkin also appeared in both films . quilley and blakely appeared in the earlier brabourne - produced murder on the orient express ( 1974 ) . [ 5 ] guy hamilton had previously directed another agatha christie film , the mirror crack ' d , in 1980 . [ 6 ]
everything here just feels tighter than the previous film ( i’d say it’s the strongest of ustinov’s canon ) . half the film may have occurred before the murder , but – unlike death on the nile , where the subsidiary characters were keeping their motivations and secrets obscure – we’ve got to know the characters to a point where we understand them , reducing the need for further exposition as the film nears its climax . on top of this , the movie feels jam - packed full of plot and humour . none of the characters liked arlena very much , so the resort is a mix of emotions : regret and paranoia , but also great relief , all in this gorgeous setting which – in spite of its size – begins to feel increasingly claustrophobic ( not unlike that christie classic and then there were none ) . while the film shifts the action away from devon , it makes things feel isolated , in a very clever way .
i can observe , however , that one of the delights of the movies made from agatha christie novels is their almost complete lack of passion : they substitute wit and style . nobody really cares who gets bumped off , and nobody really misses the departed . what ' s important is that all the right clues be distributed , so that poirot and the audience can pick them up , mull them over , and discover the culprit . perhaps , then , one of the reasons i liked “evil under the sun” was that this time , when ustinov paused in his summation ( after verbally convicting everyone in the room ) , and it was clear he was about to finger the real killer , i guessed the killer ' s identity , and i was right . well , half right . that ' s better than i usually do .
( 1982 ) , based on agatha christie ' s 1941 novel of the same name , with a screenplay by anthony shaffer and barry sandler , marked the second time that peter ustinov played the role of christie ' s belgian sleuth , hercule poirot . co - starring with ustinov were diana rigg , jane birkin , who was also in another christie adaptation ,
both adaptations have their virtues and both make significant deviations from christie ' s novel . the superior version is ustinov ' s film , which was written by anthony shaffer , a playwright (
in the film , patrick redfern was wearing swim briefs (
speedos
) on many occasions ( suntanning on the beach , steering a motorboat with myra gardener on board ) , and it is suggested that , since the film was set in the 1930s or 1940s , that the male
overall
swimsuit was
norm
, and the
speedo
type suit was an anachronism . this is not true ; by 1936 ( after the olympics ) men started wearing one piece and much tighter fitting
speedo
suits . the film is probably set before 1939 ( the book was written in 1941 ) , and by this time , fashionable and daring men would have worn this type of swimsuit , particularly to secluded getaways , such as the setting for the movie . see more »
the film , which opens today at the new york 1 and other theaters , has peter ustinov , wittier and wider than ever , as the brilliant belgian detective hercule poirot . it has a cast of marvelous actors who communicate mosly through rude remarks :
, the isolated locale is central to the plot ( though it ' s easier to reach a nearby village than in ustinov ' s film ) . a cove , a ladder along the rocks leading to the beach , and the many island paths play a crucial part in a crime where impeccable timing is mandatory .
i don’t mean to sound negative : the film does look absolutely stunning ( the costumes were the big winners at award season ) , and the cast – for the most part – do their jobs satisfactorily . to me , though , it seems all style and little substance . ( i mean , seriously : an hour before the murder ? )
the early scenes on the moors were shot in the yorkshire dales , england , with the exterior of the police station being the former literary institute in muker , swaledale . [ 15 ]
review , writing that hamilton didn ' t get much glamour out of the cast , who he called
hideously dressed ,
and that
the movie reeks of fussiness .
denby suggested that the film was so slow that the audience would be compiling their laundry list in their heads before the mystery thriller was over . jack matthews , writing for the
as with both previous poirot films , evil under the sun takes its time setting up the murder . what makes it work is that we know – or at least , we’re pretty sure we know – who’s going to get killed . diana rigg bursts on to the screen as arlena , and everyone hates her from moment one . orient express had an uneasy atmosphere even though we weren’t certain who was going to die , while nile relied more on several false starts to build suspense . instead , we know everyone wants arlena dead , and people aren’t exactly shy in expressing that . as a result , the day of the murder is all the more tense , because we feel like we have the jump on poirot : we’re already examining alibis and motives before she’s even dead ! in spite of – or perhaps because of – cole porter’s light score , things become increasingly unnerving until the reveal of the murder .
peter ustinov is hercule poirot , the master detective , in this agatha christie murder mystery film . an opulent beach resort provides a scenic background to this amusing whodunit as poirot attempts to uncover the nefarious evildoer behind the strangling of a notorious stage star . is the killer one of the many rich and famous patrons in attendance , or is the answer even more diabolical ? before the final curtain call , poirot must find the truth .
number of refugees accepted into the u . s . falls below the rest of the world combined for the first time . . .
as hercule poirot , mr . ustinov more or less presides - hostlike - over the revels that must be continually interrupted to get in plot points , and which prevent the movie from becoming the high comedy the cast could handle so effortlessly . this is not to say that ' ' evil under the sun ' ' doesn ' t have its memorable moments . it does , including the sight of mr . ustinov taking his morning ' ' swim , ' ' which means walking back and forth in water up to his knees , making tentative , australian crawl - like movements with his arms . there ' s also an extremely promising sequence in which miss rigg graciously entertains the guests in the drawing room after dinner by singing ' ' you ' re the top , ' ' when miss smith attempts to upstage her with unwelcome harmony . when these two actresses are on the screen , you can believe the hotel ' s register that lists as recent guests ivor novello , ' ' fred and adele ' ' and even cole porter .
maggie smith is – again – the best thing on hand here , as daphne castle , the manageress of an island resort in the adriatic . it’s a distinctly stiff - upper - lip english resort , but it has a wonderful ambience . filmed in majorca ( a far – but fair – cry from the devon of the novel ) , the film makes adequate use of the scenery , but always in service of the plot . ( to be fair , the scenery is far more part of the plot than in death on the nile . )
the auction for the beach takes place on may 9 at the st mellion international resort in cornwall .
personally i wasn ' t a fan of this version of a christie classic . this is probably because i love the david suchet film version of this book rather than anything else , although i did find this version rather dated .
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, on the other hand , enjoyed the film , writing that it had
a cast of marvelous actors who communicate mostly through rude remarks [ . . . ] in adapting dame agatha ' s not exactly flamboyant novel , mr . shaffer seems to have put a paperback edition of it under his pillow for one night and then allowed his imagination to take over . that ' s all to the good , though , because this is - after all - a conventional whodunit ; both he and guy hamilton , the director , faithfully observe all of those genteel , drawing room conceits that so charm christie fans and stupefy the rest of us .
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when poirot asks who threw the bottle or took the bath , none of the guests will admit to either act . during the night , poirot reads a report he submitted to the same insurance firm that hired him to investigate the blatt diamond issue and checks something in the hotel register .
this was a film i was madly in love with as a child and led me to reading the vast majority of agatha christie ' s work long before my teens , as such on this rewatch - the first in years - i ' m naturally predisposed to loving this perhaps a little more than it deserves .
peter ustinov designed the bathing suit he wears in one scene in the movie . .
as we move toward the denouement , things get genuinely mysterious , since it seems that no one could have killed arlena . of course , as with many of the most well - known poirot novels , everything hinges on one lie . once you find that lie , you can unravel the whole chain . i’m sure this is true of many murders , and it doesn’t lessen the impact of the film ( after all , this is why poirot’s little gray cells come in so handy ) , but it does make the rest of the clues seem rather inconsequential in hindsight . boldly , though , shaffer decides to reveal the murderer at the start of poirot’s lengthy climactic speech , rather than the end . in spite of losing the “and thus it was… you ! ” element of the climax , it works , because the key here is the puzzle , not the puzzle - maker .
daphne was walking along the top of the cliffs and saw arlena on the beach at ladder bay . she also saw the argument between arlena and sir horace . she then returned to the hotel to chair a staff meeting .
assembling the suspects together , poirot announces that the solution to the murder hinges on several items : linda ' s bathing cap , a bath no one would admit to taking , a mysterious bottle flung into the sea , the particular geography of the island , the cannon being fired to mark noontime , and the fact that people sunbathing from a distance look similar .
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after myra left the bay , christine changed out of arlena ' s bathing costume . patrick then strangled arlena in the grotto , changed her back into the bathing costume and set her up for when poirot and the others arrived to examine the body . christine meanwhile pitched the bottle of self - tanner into the sea—narrowly missing rex brewster—and then dashed back to the hotel to wash off the self tan—the bath no one admitted to taking—and turn up for her tennis date .
as hercule poirot enjoys a luxurious cruise down the nile , a newlywed heiress is found murdered on board . can poirot identify the killer before the ship reaches the end of its journey ?
a hiker rushes into the local police station at the moors in yorkshire . she has found the body of a woman who appears to have been strangled . the victim ' s name is alice ruber but the police find no leads .
the screenplay was written by anthony shaffer ( who had worked on previous christie films ) and an uncredited barry sandler . the adaptation stayed fairly close within the plotlines of christie ' s work , but truncated scenes for time constraints , removed minor characters and added certain humorous elements that weren ' t present in the novel . additionally , the novel is set in devon , but the film is set on an adriatic island in the fictional kingdom of
tyrania
( based on albania ) . the character lineup is also slightly different . whereas the characters of rosamund darnley and mrs . castle are merged , the characters of major barry and reverend stephen lane are omitted , and the female character of emily brewster is now a man named rex brewster , played by roddy mcdowall .
the park’s list of catalogued seafaring birds is extensive and includes the audouin’s gull and the balearic shearwater , one of the few birds that are endemic to the balearic islands . sa dragonera also boasts the largest eleonora’s falcon population in the archipelago . as to the mammals , the bats are the park’s only naturally existing group and include at least 5 species , some of which are migrant . the waters and marine floor are included in the park’s area of marine influence , which contains a well - conserved array of underwater ecosystems representative of the western mediterranean . particularly worthy of note for their diversity are the posidonia oceanica prairies , a refuge for countless marine species and coral communities .
the screenplay was written by anthony shaffer ( who had worked on previous christie adaptations ) and an uncredited barry sandler . [ 4 ] the adaptation stayed fairly close to christie ' s work but truncated scenes for time constraints , removed minor characters , and added humorous elements that were not present in the novel . additionally , the novel was set in devon , but the film was set on an adriatic island in the fictional kingdom of tyrania ( based on albania ) . the characters of rosamund darnley and mrs . castle were merged , the characters of major barry and reverend stephen lane were omitted , and the female character of emily brewster was written as a man named rex brewster , played by mcdowall .
composer john lanchbery , normally a ballet conductor , was hired to arrange the music . to recreate the mood of the 1930s , he chose cole porter tunes for the entire soundtrack and assigned a song to each situation and each character .
i felt that the island was a terribly important character in the picture and needed a theme . there was something about the way they photographed majorca that give it a certain rolling dignity .
he created a seven - minute medley called
porter meet poirot
which was later performed with the boston pops . to stay historically accurate , lanchbery went to the cole porter estate and looked at all of porter ' s compositions up until 1938 , when the film is set . he copied 100 songs and used 24 .
basically the story of a man forced to finally see the injustice around him . riley’s movie is designed to do the same thing to you . …
on leaving the hotel , patrick pays by cheque , signing the
r
in
redfern
in a distinctive way that poirot recognizes as the same way
felix ruber
, husband of the yorkshire moor victim , signed his name . the hiker that found the body had been christine , establishing patrick ' s alibi . poirot knows photos from the british police will show patrick and felix to be the same person . patrick puts a pipe in his mouth that has never been lit during his stay ; poirot empties the pipe bowl to reveal the genuine diamond . the redferns are then arrested as poirot and the other guests leave the island .
later the redferns are arrested , while the other guests mock them from blatt ' s yacht . recovering from the assault , poirot is told that he is to be decorated by the king of tyrania .
it is deplorable ! to remove all the romance - all the mystery ! today everything is standardized .
in adapting dame agatha ' s not exactly flamboyant novel , mr . shaffer seems to have put a paperback edition of it under his pillow for one night and then allowed his imagination to take over . that ' s all to the good , though , because this is - after all - a conventional whodunit ; both he and guy hamilton , the director , faithfully observe all of those genteel , drawing room conceits that so charm christie fans and stupefy the rest of us .
( the title was derived from a verse in ecclesiastes ) . after a prologue involving a seemingly unrelated murder , hercule poirot journeys to a secluded island hotel where all the guests share one thing : a hatred of wealthy , former actress arlena marshall . when her corpse is discovered on the beach , the belgian detective sets out to uncover the identity of the murderer . at the climax , he assembles all the suspects , confronts the culprit , and explains ( aided by flashbacks ) how the ingenious crime was committed .
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christine was sketching landscapes with linda during the morning at gull cove . on realizing that the time was 11 : 55 , christine remembered she had a tennis match at 12 : 30 back at the hotel and quickly left . every day at noon a local cannon is fired on the mainland to mark the time and can be heard as far as the island ( this figures into the plot - line of the story ) . christine claims to have heard it while waving to linda from the top of the cliff as linda was swimming in the sea . linda confirms this .
cole porter gets the credit for ‘music by’ , and his songs – constantly playing on the gramophone at the resort – provide a surprisingly unsettling atmosphere . however , porter himself was deceased by this point ; i guess his estate must have angled for the credit , rather than simply listing the films in the credits .
this movie is the perfect blend of heightened reality , and show how hercule poirot works within the gaps .
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the most resounding praise is reserved for maggie smith , as the stoic assistant to bette davis’ character . smith is such a strong actress that we expect her characters to be icy and controlling . here , smith proves how remarkable she is , by toning down her inherent power , giving us a woman who is weaker and more infallible , always jumpy . ( it’s a nice contrast , too , to her performance in the next film , below . )
poirot notes the signature on the cheque and then suddenly addresses redfern as
felix ruber
, husband of the woman whose body was found on the moors in england some months ago . he points out that the
r
of redfern on the check matches the distinct
r
to the signature of felix ruber on the insurance form he was reading earlier . the time of mrs . ruber ' s death was established as occurring at the time her husband could prove he had been on a train to london . witnesses complained he smoked in a non - smoking compartment ,
a little too obvious
.
daphne castle insists that poirot investigates the matter , dismissing the efficacy of the local police , and he agrees . sir horace blatt turns up on his yacht and , as poirot had guessed , reveals that arlena was the woman he had the affair with and who took his diamond .
period detective drama . a snow - drift prevents the orient express from continuing its three - day journey across europe . the belgian detective hercule poirot becomes involved in a case in which the murderer could be any one of the aristocratic high - ranking and eccentric passengers on board the train .
when miss marple reports witnessing a murder through the window of a passing train , the police dismiss her as a dotty spinster when no trace of the crime can be found .
the hotel in question is the former summer palace of the reigning king of tyrania . it is now owned by daphne castle ( maggie smith ) , who received it from the king
for services rendered .
her guests include :
this uninhabited island off mallorca ' s western tip was the focus for a turning point in mallorcan history in 1977 , when it was occupied by environmentalists protesting against a planned tourist development . the campaigners won , the island became a nature reserve instead , the seabirds survived , and for the first time the authorities realised that mass tourism had reached its limit .
the ending is a little excessive . while i adore the costume transformation reveal , the link to an older murder is a bit much . not only does it require very specific knowledge on the part of poirot , but it just feels … unnecessary . we shouldn’t be detracting from the monstrosity that was arlena . ( christie’s fault , not the screenwriter’s . )
boredom is the enemy in this world . style is everything - the weapon as well as a defense . even when the mots are not especially fresh , they are delivered with the kind of elegance that only the rich , famous or heedless can affect with confidence . come what may , everyone dresses for dinner at 8 , including the gentleman whose beloved wife that morning was found on the beach in untimely death , strangled and , for good measure , bashed about the head .
all the alibis appear to indicate that no - one could have committed the murder at the time established , so someone is lying and poirot announces that this someone is christine redfern .
bigbury beach in south devon is one of the region ' s largest sandy spots , according to the agents selling it .
justin bieber is the perfect gentleman as he handles the bags . . . while crop top - clad hailey baldwin struts alongside
here come the godparents ! kate and william are joined by childhood friends - including guy pelly - and the . . .
fit for a prince ! louis becomes the eighth royal baby to wear the historic honiton lace christening robe on . . .
the setting is an island in the adriatic and a small , exquisite , extremely expensive resort hotel that once was the summer palace of the reigning king of tyrania . it ' s the late 1930 ' s , just about the time of the anschluss , though no one at the hotel could care less about hitler , national socialism , austria ' s sovereignty or an era ' s imminent end . they ' re all too busy with their intramural assaults on friendship , marriage , reputation , character and , when pushed to the limits , life itself .
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at that point patrick makes his third mistake : he puts his pipe in his mouth . poirot points out that the pipe has never once been lit during the redferns ' stay . he takes it , empties it and hidden in the tobacco is the diamond . patrick concedes defeat by punching poirot to the floor .
the company which held mrs . ruber ' s life insurance , and was also to insure the blatt diamond , sent poirot to investigate . he never met the husband or the hiker who found the body . as an agent of the insurance company he may have been limited to simply checking the police reports and ensuring that they were thorough in their investigation . felix could thus cash in on his wife ' s life insurance . however , the death of alice ruber seemed to parallel that of arlena : the coincidence was too great for an investigator like poirot to ignore .
huge fan of peter ustinov & this is my second favourite of his poirot films behind murder on the nile . the cast is tremendous and the setting is beautiful . lovely , easy escapism .
the kingdom of tyrania in this movie is a fictional land which was based on the country of albania . the isle setting of daphne ' s island ( in tyrania ) was also fictional .
after the lavish adaptation of murder on the orient express , hercule poirot returned four years later , looking less like the traditional interpretation , but having gained the famous moustaches christie lamented omitting with albert finney ’s performance . finney chose not to return – reportedly in part because the fat suit and makeup was dense enough in europe , let alone in the middle east ! – and the role was passed to peter ustinov , who would hold the mantle for six films , ending one year before david suchet took over .
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hercule poirot attends a dinner party in which one of the guests clutches his throat and suddenly dies . the cause seems to be natural until another party with most of the same guests produces another corpse .
miss marple comes to solve the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim .
buzzing comedies such as the spy who dumped me await you in our summer movie guide . check in for all the info you need .
while i enjoyed the grandeur of albert finney ‘s sole outing as poirot much more the second time around , i wondered how peter ustinov would fare . until this project , i’d only seen one of his films – death on the nile – so in the next couple of weeks , i’ll visit all six . let’s begin with the first two :
when a successful but extremely narcissistic broadway actress is murdered while visiting a mediterranean island resort , the famed sleuth hercule poirot is called to find the culprit . poirot must find the killer amongst a wide variety of potential suspects , all of whom have good reasons for wanting the victim dead .
as the morning progresses , myra tags along on a boat trip with patrick , who is transparently attempting to rendezvous with arlena . as they arrive there they see a yacht leaving which myra recognizes as sir horace blatt ' s . when they reach the secluded beach , they see the body of a woman on the sand . patrick goes ashore , approaches the body and suddenly announces to myra that it ' s the strangled corpse of arlena . myra goes to fetch help while he waits with the body .
the park is open to visitors all year round , from 10 : 00 to 17 : 00 between 1st april and 30th september , and from 10 : 00 to 14 : 30 during the rest of the year .
one thing you’ll notice about the world of christie adaptations is that there’s quite a repertory feel : writer anthony shaffer penned death on the nile , director guy hamilton helmed lansbury’s the mirror crack’d , and we have cast members from both nile and murder on the orient express on hand this time .
a number of the cast had appeared in the earlier brabourne - goodwin agatha christie movies . actors colin blakely and denis quilley had both previously appeared in murder on the orient express ( 1974 ) whilst actresses jane birkin and maggie smith had both previously appeared in death on the nile ( 1978 ) .
makeup artist joyce bonelli reaches out to the kardashian clan on instagram . . . after the famous family ' fire ' and unfollow her on social media
we had the privilege to enter raixa already 12 years ago . . . when only hidden sign posts were leading to the arabic villa . space for parking was limited to 6 cars . . . . entry was granted after loud shouting . the interior was in a ~ mediocre state . what a difference to today . only 2 days per week ( tue and thu from 10 : 00 to 14 : 00 ) the entry is allowed - free of charge . when we arrived 5 minutes to ten the parking area was crowded . . . people queuing and waiting to be let in . the rooms are now in a renovated state . . . the garden better arranged than before . the water reservoirs bluer and greener than at that time . you can easily understand that rich people fall in love with the location . good that the public is now again allowed ( since 13 . april 2014 ) to
rush in
. follow the water channeling hidden along the mountain side . . go jp the hill . . . enjoy the spectacular view in various directions . . spot the giant fishes in the reservoit . . sit down . . . relax . . . relax . . . relax
made up of three islets , illot des pantaleu , sa mitjana and sa dragonera , it is home to 361 different plant species , 18 of which are endemic to the balearics . the park’s fauna is another of its most interesting aspects . particularly worthy of note is the wall lizard population , an endemic subspecies that cannot be found anywhere else in the world , as well as the particular snail species , which is also endemic to the balearic islands .
all of the rest of the cast are suspects . they include maggie smith , a former actress who now runs an elegant spa in the adriatic sea ; diana rigg , as her jealous contemporary ; sylvia miles and james mason , as a rich couple who produce shows on broadway ; jane birkin and nicholas clay as a young couple constantly arguing over his roving eye ; colin blakely as a rich knight who ' s been taken by a gold digger ; emily hone as the young new wife ; and roddy mcdowall as a bitchy gossip columnist who knows the dirt about everybody . the newly discovered corpse belongs to one of the above . the murderer is one ( or more ) of the above . nothing else i could say about the crime would be fair .
i mean , what ' s not to like . dames maggie and diana , cole porter tunes and a fiendishly clever murder . also , the look on sylvia miles ' face when jane birkin descends the stairs at the end .
the main problem is proof of guilt . poirot admits that he has none , just circumstantial evidence . as the smug redferns are about to depart , christine - no longer the mousy pitiful wife - confidently remarks :
give us some time and we may discover how you [ poirot ] did it . after all , where were you at the time of the murder ?
later she reappears , dressed in expensive clothes , now no longer the vulnerable sympathetic wife but dressed to kill , so to speak . then patrick unwittingly makes the second of three mistakes : he pays the hotel bill with a check .
when patrick points out his wife has vertigo and thus couldn ' t have climbed down the ladder at the cliff leading to the grotto , poirot mentions that in order for linda to have seen christine waving she would have to have stood at the edge of the cliff . he reveals that he tried and became dizzy , so no one with vertigo would have even dared to try .