Underplayed Gems

The Body in the Library (1984)

The Body in the Library poster
Original title
Miss Marple: The Body in the Library
Directed by
Silvio Narizzano
Genre
crime, drama, mystery
Country
United Kingdom
Runtime
52 min
Rated
12
Rating
7.5 of 10 from 46 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

Miss Marple helps the police investigate when a young woman's body is found in a library of a country house. She notices small details that others miss and unravels the connections among the local residents.

methodicalgentleclevercozysuspensefulwittyold-fashionedobservant

What happens

The Body in the Library is a 3-part 1984 television film adaptation of Agatha Christie's 1942 detective novel The Body in the Library, co-produced by the BBC and the A&E Network. The film uses an adapted screenplay by T. R. Bowen and was directed by Silvio Narizzano. Starring Joan Hickson in the title role, it was the first film presented in the British television series Miss Marple and premiered in three parts from 26 to 28 December 1984 on BBC One. In the United States, the film was first broadcast on 4 January 1986 as a part of PBS's Mystery!. In his review in The New York Times, critic John J. O'Connor wrote: Miss Christie would no doubt approve of Joan Hickson, the veteran British character actress who plays Miss Marple... This BBC/Arts & Entertainment co-production offers an especially good example of Agatha Christie in adaptation. The characters are nicely realized and the suspense holds. Miss Hickson is lovely, neither as awesome as Miss Rutherford nor as overly cute as Helen Hayes. And the supporting cast is admirable, particularly Gwen Watford as Dolly and David Horovitch as Inspector Slack. As someone notes about the case, "you'll have to admit it has all the bizarre elements of a cheap thriller." Once hooked, you won't be able to turn it off. The Body in the Library was repeated on BBC Four in September and October 2013. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

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