Martin Edwards's Blog, page 208
January 8, 2014
Gravity - film review
Like ghost stories and horror fiction, sci-fi is one of the genres I enjoy dipping into from time to time. I have published one futuristic short story, for an anthology co-edited by Maxim Jakubowski, but I certainly wouldn't describe myself as a sci-fi expert. But I was recommended to watch the new Sandra Bullock film Gravity, and I'm very glad I did.
The first thing to say about this movie is that it's the first I've ever watched in the cinema with 3D glasses, and I don't think there' s any doubt that this film, more than any other I know, benefits from being watched in 3D. The visual effects are absolutely stunning - the debris flying through space, for instance, seems to be heading right for the audience. This is not just a gimmick - it's very involving.
Sandra Bullock plays Ryan Stone, a scientist with an unhappy past, who is at work out in space with an affable colleague played by George Clooney. All is going well until news comes from Houston of an accident in space that may complicate life for the astronauts. So it proves. Soon Bullock and Clooney are the only survivors of the mission, and face a desperate race against time if they are to survive.
Sandra Bullock has a very engaging personality, but more than that, she is a terrific actor, and I doubt if she's ever performed better than in this role, which must have been very demanding. I was expecting the action in space to be inter-cut with scenes in Houston as the tension mounts. Apparently, the studio expected this too, but director Alfonso Cuaron resisted the pressure. This was an excellent judgment - the result is a very strong piece of work that benefits (as so many films, like books, do benefit) from being fairly short. I very much enjoyed Gravity. Watch it in the cinema, though, if you possibly can.
The first thing to say about this movie is that it's the first I've ever watched in the cinema with 3D glasses, and I don't think there' s any doubt that this film, more than any other I know, benefits from being watched in 3D. The visual effects are absolutely stunning - the debris flying through space, for instance, seems to be heading right for the audience. This is not just a gimmick - it's very involving.
Sandra Bullock plays Ryan Stone, a scientist with an unhappy past, who is at work out in space with an affable colleague played by George Clooney. All is going well until news comes from Houston of an accident in space that may complicate life for the astronauts. So it proves. Soon Bullock and Clooney are the only survivors of the mission, and face a desperate race against time if they are to survive.
Sandra Bullock has a very engaging personality, but more than that, she is a terrific actor, and I doubt if she's ever performed better than in this role, which must have been very demanding. I was expecting the action in space to be inter-cut with scenes in Houston as the tension mounts. Apparently, the studio expected this too, but director Alfonso Cuaron resisted the pressure. This was an excellent judgment - the result is a very strong piece of work that benefits (as so many films, like books, do benefit) from being fairly short. I very much enjoyed Gravity. Watch it in the cinema, though, if you possibly can.
January 5, 2014
Sherlock: The Sign of Three - BBC 1 TV review
Sherlock returned in double-quick time tonight with another nicely titled episode, The Sign of Three,which saw Watson (Martin Freeman) marry Mary Morstan (his real life partner, Amanda Abbington). Much as I've enjoyed previous episodes in the series, I think this is the one I've relished most. It was crammed with good things, and above all, it was great fun. That matters, because the central point about Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories is that they were great fun, and all the best detective fiction (whatever its other virtues may be) is highly entertaining..
I love the way the writers take aspects both of the Conan Doyle stories, and detective fiction from the Golden Age, and refresh them, cleverly and wittily. Tonight, for instance, we had a "locked room" mystery, countless neat deductions, an idea borrowed from Agatha Christie (a murder committed by way of rehearsal) and a plot line founded on Dorothy L. Sayers' theory that Watson's middle name was Hamish. Great stuff.
Mark Lawson wrote a fascinating piece in The Guardian the other day, ruminating on the festive season episodes of Doctor Who and Sherlock, from the prolific and talented Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, and the way that fan speculation (on blogs, for instance) seems to have influenced the writing. Like me, Lawson admires their achievements, but suggested that one risk of the writers' approach is that they cater increasingly for the more diehard series fans, rather than the typical viewer. His point is well-argued, but I think it is more persuasive in the case of Doctor Who than Sherlock. It seems to me that detective fiction tends to be more structured than sci-fi, and tends by its nature to impose rather more discipline on the writer.Much as I enjoy Doctor Who, I feel sometimes that the stories tip over into self-referential self-indulgence (and this was my feeling about the Christmas special), whereas in Sherlock, the self-indulgence which is undoubtedly present does not get in the way of the story.
Part of the cleverness of The Empty Hearse lay in the multiple solutions to the mystery of Sherlock's survival, and this device was not just a nod to fan obsessions but also, and more significantly, to the Golden Age tradition of multiple ingenious solutions to a given mystery. Anthony Berkeley was the master when it came to multiple solutions, but Agatha Christie, the excellent John Dickson Carr and others (including, in one wonderful post-modern take on the Golden Age story, "Cameron McCabe") also played games with their mysteries to great effect. Other than Jonathan Creek, I can think of no television show which has played games with the genre so often and so well as Sherlock.
I love the way the writers take aspects both of the Conan Doyle stories, and detective fiction from the Golden Age, and refresh them, cleverly and wittily. Tonight, for instance, we had a "locked room" mystery, countless neat deductions, an idea borrowed from Agatha Christie (a murder committed by way of rehearsal) and a plot line founded on Dorothy L. Sayers' theory that Watson's middle name was Hamish. Great stuff.
Mark Lawson wrote a fascinating piece in The Guardian the other day, ruminating on the festive season episodes of Doctor Who and Sherlock, from the prolific and talented Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, and the way that fan speculation (on blogs, for instance) seems to have influenced the writing. Like me, Lawson admires their achievements, but suggested that one risk of the writers' approach is that they cater increasingly for the more diehard series fans, rather than the typical viewer. His point is well-argued, but I think it is more persuasive in the case of Doctor Who than Sherlock. It seems to me that detective fiction tends to be more structured than sci-fi, and tends by its nature to impose rather more discipline on the writer.Much as I enjoy Doctor Who, I feel sometimes that the stories tip over into self-referential self-indulgence (and this was my feeling about the Christmas special), whereas in Sherlock, the self-indulgence which is undoubtedly present does not get in the way of the story.
Part of the cleverness of The Empty Hearse lay in the multiple solutions to the mystery of Sherlock's survival, and this device was not just a nod to fan obsessions but also, and more significantly, to the Golden Age tradition of multiple ingenious solutions to a given mystery. Anthony Berkeley was the master when it came to multiple solutions, but Agatha Christie, the excellent John Dickson Carr and others (including, in one wonderful post-modern take on the Golden Age story, "Cameron McCabe") also played games with their mysteries to great effect. Other than Jonathan Creek, I can think of no television show which has played games with the genre so often and so well as Sherlock.
January 2, 2014
The Thirteenth Tale - BBC TV review
The Thirteenth Tale, a BBC adaptation of a best-seller by Diane Setterfield (which I haven't read) proved to be one of the stand-out dramas of the festive season. Screenplay by Christopher Hampton, lead roles played by Vanessa Redgrave and Olivia Coleman - what could possibly go wrong with this gothic tale? Not much. I really enjoyed it.
The opening was spookily (sorry, couldn't resist it0 reminiscent of the preamble to The Tractate Middoth on Christmas Day. A woman arrives at an impressive but rather forbidding country house by an enigmatic housekeeper, and is ushered into the presence of an elderly person who is close to death but has something important to say. But from that point, the two stories diverged. Redgrave plays a famous writer who wants Coleman to write her biography. Her story proves to be compelling, but deeply disturbing.
That story is (or seems to be - I'm trying to avoid spoilers here) about twins who grow up in a strange and almost surreal environment. Ronald Knox famously urged mystery writers to exercise restraint in the use of twins as a plot device, but The Thirteenth Tale is not really a detective story, although there is a puzzle to be solved. And more importantly, there is to my mind something deeply fascinating about twins. Perhaps it's because I'm an only child that I find the nature of the twin relationship especially mysterious, yet very intriguing. The experience of being a twin is so very different from my own experience. I've never written a story about twins, but one of these days, I'd like to have a go.
If I did, I'd be very happy if it was anything like as good as The Thirteenth Tale. The weird old houses, the slightly sinister family retainers, the entrancing gardens complete with topiary, and the frequent hints that something sexually illicit was going on, all these elements were mixed skilfully by Hampton to provide first rate entertainment. A gripping story, well told.
No Forgotten Book tomorrow, by the way. But there will be a post about a good and little known Golden Age novel in a week's time.
The opening was spookily (sorry, couldn't resist it0 reminiscent of the preamble to The Tractate Middoth on Christmas Day. A woman arrives at an impressive but rather forbidding country house by an enigmatic housekeeper, and is ushered into the presence of an elderly person who is close to death but has something important to say. But from that point, the two stories diverged. Redgrave plays a famous writer who wants Coleman to write her biography. Her story proves to be compelling, but deeply disturbing.
That story is (or seems to be - I'm trying to avoid spoilers here) about twins who grow up in a strange and almost surreal environment. Ronald Knox famously urged mystery writers to exercise restraint in the use of twins as a plot device, but The Thirteenth Tale is not really a detective story, although there is a puzzle to be solved. And more importantly, there is to my mind something deeply fascinating about twins. Perhaps it's because I'm an only child that I find the nature of the twin relationship especially mysterious, yet very intriguing. The experience of being a twin is so very different from my own experience. I've never written a story about twins, but one of these days, I'd like to have a go.
If I did, I'd be very happy if it was anything like as good as The Thirteenth Tale. The weird old houses, the slightly sinister family retainers, the entrancing gardens complete with topiary, and the frequent hints that something sexually illicit was going on, all these elements were mixed skilfully by Hampton to provide first rate entertainment. A gripping story, well told.
No Forgotten Book tomorrow, by the way. But there will be a post about a good and little known Golden Age novel in a week's time.
January 1, 2014
Sherlock: The Empty Hearse: BBC One TV review
Sherlock returned tonight with The Empty Hearse, and Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman were in fine form, consolidating their joint reputation as one of the best, (and, many would argue, the very best), Holmes-Watson duos we have seen..The very title of this episode, The Empty Hearse, is a nice example of the wit that abounds in this series - in the canon, Holmes returns from the dead in a story called "The Empty House".
We were offered multiple solutions for Sherlock's escape from death - the kind of trickery that Anthony Berkeley, rather than Arthur Conan Doyle, delighted in. There was also, almost as a throwaway, an "impossible mystery" - how can a man disappear while travelling on a journey between two Tube stations? The ingenuity and playfulness of this episode were absolutely delightful. Mark Gatiss not only wrote the excellent script, but did his usual imperious job as Mycroft Holmes. All told, it made for a striking example of how detective fiction, old and new, can be both entertaining and enthralling when done well.
One of the highlights of the Crimefest week-end last May was a fascinating on-stage conversation led by Nev Fountain, with the creators of Sherlock, Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss and producer Sue Vertue. I've mentioned my admiration for Gatiss more than once on this blog, and what struck me about the conversation as a whole was the respect that Gatiss and his colleagues showed for Arthur Conan Doyle's creation.
I do not believe that Sherlock would have been half as successful if it had been written by people who did not have a genuine affection for the character and the stories. Despite updating the basic premise to the 21st century, they have stayed true, by and large, to the spirit of the originals, and when I met members of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London in the autumn, it was clear that they approve of the show. Rightly so, because if you are going to reinvent fiction's greatest character, this is the way to do it.
We were offered multiple solutions for Sherlock's escape from death - the kind of trickery that Anthony Berkeley, rather than Arthur Conan Doyle, delighted in. There was also, almost as a throwaway, an "impossible mystery" - how can a man disappear while travelling on a journey between two Tube stations? The ingenuity and playfulness of this episode were absolutely delightful. Mark Gatiss not only wrote the excellent script, but did his usual imperious job as Mycroft Holmes. All told, it made for a striking example of how detective fiction, old and new, can be both entertaining and enthralling when done well.
One of the highlights of the Crimefest week-end last May was a fascinating on-stage conversation led by Nev Fountain, with the creators of Sherlock, Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss and producer Sue Vertue. I've mentioned my admiration for Gatiss more than once on this blog, and what struck me about the conversation as a whole was the respect that Gatiss and his colleagues showed for Arthur Conan Doyle's creation.
I do not believe that Sherlock would have been half as successful if it had been written by people who did not have a genuine affection for the character and the stories. Despite updating the basic premise to the 21st century, they have stayed true, by and large, to the spirit of the originals, and when I met members of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London in the autumn, it was clear that they approve of the show. Rightly so, because if you are going to reinvent fiction's greatest character, this is the way to do it.
December 31, 2013
My Year of Crime
New Year's Eve is a good time to reflect on the year just coming to an end, as well as looking ahead. First things first - I'd like to wish all of you a happy and healthy 2014, and to thank you for all your support during the past twelve months. For me, the past year has been a lucky one, with lots of interesting things happening. So today I'm going to indulge myself by recalling some of the crime-fiction related activities I've got up to in during the year - a reminder, perhaps, that one doesn't need to be a best-seller to enjoy the good life through crime writing. And I hope in the process of picking out some personal highlights to persuade myself that, despite relatively limited time spent novel writing. I've really not frittered 2013 away after all!
* The launch of The Frozen Shroud at Gladstone's Library was a trememdous evening in a truly atmospheric location. The reviewer reaction to the book has really gratified me. Plenty of people have said it's my best book to date. Whether that's so, I don't know, but I'm pleased that the result of my taking a slightly different approach to the writing process has gone down well.
* Publishing Deadly Pleasures, the CWA's Diamond Jubilee crime anthology, was also very satisfying. It's a privilege to be the first person to read wonderful stories by the likes of Lindsey Davis, John Harvery, Ann Cleeves, and Peter Lovesey.
* I was delighted that Arcturus reissued Yesterday's Papers as a "crime classic" and equally thrilled to find that their edition of All the Lonely People not only featured prominently in a display of classics in the British Library shop, but also earned a rave review in The Daily Mail, more than 20 years after its first appearnce.
* Speaking of the British Library, I've enjoyed writing introductions for a total of three of their Golden Age reprints, to appear in 2014, along with an intro for an ebook reissue of a legendary American crime novel. I've also written essays for Morphologies, and for a crime reference book due to be published next year.
* While I've under-achieved in terms of writing novels this year, at least I've produced quite a few short stories, including one inspired by a steam train trip to Whitby which appeared in Margot Kinberg's anthology, In a Word, Murder, and another inspired by a holiday visit to Grand Cayman, due out next year.
* One especially memorable holiday trip was on the Orient Express, from Venice to London. An exhilarating, once in a lifetime experience -shades of Agatha and Poirot...
* I never imagined when I wrote a paper on Golden Age fiction for the St Hilda's conference that as I delivered it, P. D. James would be sitting in the front row of the audience. But so it proved...
* I also had the great pleasure of sitting next to Baroness James at a dinner when she gave me a heads-up on her forthcoming article on the Wallace case, and this was followed by further conversation with her during a taxi ride through London's West End. An unforgettable night at the Detection Club, that was for sure, and so was a subsequent Club dinner at which I acted as Torchbearer...
* I discovered a fresh pastime as a tour guide, leading a group of international crime writers on a literary tour of Oxford. This led, quite unexpectedly, to a commission to write a crime story for a new international anthology which should appear within the next twelve months.
* My first ever after dinner speech, to the Sherlock Holmes Society of London, proved to be a painless experience, and led to my meeting a very pleasant Society member who arranged for me to see Charles Dickens' legendary final manuscript at the National Art Library
* I was invited on to BBC Breakfast to talk about Agatha Christie, which was fun, and was interviewed on BBC radio about Broadchurch, the year's stand-out crime drama on TV.
* It's more of a challenge to give a talk or lecture to one's fellow authors, I find - rather more nerve-wracking than the typical talk. So I approached my talk about the Golden Age at the CWA conference in Windemere with some trepidation, but in the end, all was well. Diane Janes organised the week-end brilliantly, and a boat trip on the lake was just one of the highlights. A trip to Wray Castle was another, while later in the year, a research trip to Ravenglass gave me lots of story ideas (I just need to write them up....)
* Among other events, I took part in Gladfest, when Gladstone's Library proved to be the perfect setting for a performance of my Victorian murder mystery event.
* Crimefest was, if anything, better than ever, and I enjoyed moderating the Forgotten Books panel as well as being a member of the team that won the pub quiz, alongside old friends like Kate Ellis and new ones like Alexandra Benedict.
* This year saw the centenary of the birth of another notable Ellis, Ellis Peters, and I enjoyed taking part in the festival to mark the occasion. On the other other hand, I found it rather odd that the centenary of that great book Trent's Last Case was almost universally ignored.
* The CWA Dagger Awards was an excellent evening, very well organised by Alison Joseph and Lucy Santos. I've now spent a year on the CWA committee - my colleagues are a really good bunch of people.
* I've read some terrific books, old and new, during the course of the yeat - it's almost impossible to pick out a favourite, but Andrew Taylor's latest was definitely up there with the best.
* And finally, this blog has prompted a great many very welcome comments and emails, introducing me - yet again - to some generous and really interesting people. Quite honestly, I gain much more from this blog than I put into it. I'm very grateful to you all for reading it, and making it such a pleasurable and interactive way of deferring the hard graft of writing the new novel! Sounds like a cue for a new year's resolution...
See you in 2014!
* The launch of The Frozen Shroud at Gladstone's Library was a trememdous evening in a truly atmospheric location. The reviewer reaction to the book has really gratified me. Plenty of people have said it's my best book to date. Whether that's so, I don't know, but I'm pleased that the result of my taking a slightly different approach to the writing process has gone down well.
* Publishing Deadly Pleasures, the CWA's Diamond Jubilee crime anthology, was also very satisfying. It's a privilege to be the first person to read wonderful stories by the likes of Lindsey Davis, John Harvery, Ann Cleeves, and Peter Lovesey.
* I was delighted that Arcturus reissued Yesterday's Papers as a "crime classic" and equally thrilled to find that their edition of All the Lonely People not only featured prominently in a display of classics in the British Library shop, but also earned a rave review in The Daily Mail, more than 20 years after its first appearnce.
* Speaking of the British Library, I've enjoyed writing introductions for a total of three of their Golden Age reprints, to appear in 2014, along with an intro for an ebook reissue of a legendary American crime novel. I've also written essays for Morphologies, and for a crime reference book due to be published next year.
* While I've under-achieved in terms of writing novels this year, at least I've produced quite a few short stories, including one inspired by a steam train trip to Whitby which appeared in Margot Kinberg's anthology, In a Word, Murder, and another inspired by a holiday visit to Grand Cayman, due out next year.
* One especially memorable holiday trip was on the Orient Express, from Venice to London. An exhilarating, once in a lifetime experience -shades of Agatha and Poirot...
* I never imagined when I wrote a paper on Golden Age fiction for the St Hilda's conference that as I delivered it, P. D. James would be sitting in the front row of the audience. But so it proved...
* I also had the great pleasure of sitting next to Baroness James at a dinner when she gave me a heads-up on her forthcoming article on the Wallace case, and this was followed by further conversation with her during a taxi ride through London's West End. An unforgettable night at the Detection Club, that was for sure, and so was a subsequent Club dinner at which I acted as Torchbearer...
* I discovered a fresh pastime as a tour guide, leading a group of international crime writers on a literary tour of Oxford. This led, quite unexpectedly, to a commission to write a crime story for a new international anthology which should appear within the next twelve months.
* My first ever after dinner speech, to the Sherlock Holmes Society of London, proved to be a painless experience, and led to my meeting a very pleasant Society member who arranged for me to see Charles Dickens' legendary final manuscript at the National Art Library
* I was invited on to BBC Breakfast to talk about Agatha Christie, which was fun, and was interviewed on BBC radio about Broadchurch, the year's stand-out crime drama on TV.
* It's more of a challenge to give a talk or lecture to one's fellow authors, I find - rather more nerve-wracking than the typical talk. So I approached my talk about the Golden Age at the CWA conference in Windemere with some trepidation, but in the end, all was well. Diane Janes organised the week-end brilliantly, and a boat trip on the lake was just one of the highlights. A trip to Wray Castle was another, while later in the year, a research trip to Ravenglass gave me lots of story ideas (I just need to write them up....)
* Among other events, I took part in Gladfest, when Gladstone's Library proved to be the perfect setting for a performance of my Victorian murder mystery event.
* Crimefest was, if anything, better than ever, and I enjoyed moderating the Forgotten Books panel as well as being a member of the team that won the pub quiz, alongside old friends like Kate Ellis and new ones like Alexandra Benedict.
* This year saw the centenary of the birth of another notable Ellis, Ellis Peters, and I enjoyed taking part in the festival to mark the occasion. On the other other hand, I found it rather odd that the centenary of that great book Trent's Last Case was almost universally ignored.
* The CWA Dagger Awards was an excellent evening, very well organised by Alison Joseph and Lucy Santos. I've now spent a year on the CWA committee - my colleagues are a really good bunch of people.
* I've read some terrific books, old and new, during the course of the yeat - it's almost impossible to pick out a favourite, but Andrew Taylor's latest was definitely up there with the best.
* And finally, this blog has prompted a great many very welcome comments and emails, introducing me - yet again - to some generous and really interesting people. Quite honestly, I gain much more from this blog than I put into it. I'm very grateful to you all for reading it, and making it such a pleasurable and interactive way of deferring the hard graft of writing the new novel! Sounds like a cue for a new year's resolution...
See you in 2014!
Alanna Knight MBE
Alanna Knight, one of the stalwarts of British crime writing, has been awarded an MBE in the New Year's Honours List for services to literature, and her many friends and fans will be delighted that this prolific novelist, very popular both as an author and in person, has been recognised in this way.
Alanna is, as this award illustrates, one of Scottish literature's leading lights. In addition to her many novels, she is a biographer and playwright and expert on the work of that gifted fellow Scot, Robert Louis Stevenson. As a crime writer, she is probably best known for her long series of historical mysteries featuring Inspector Faro,and I was very pleased a couple of years back when she agreed to contribute a Faro short story, "The Case of the Vanishing Vagrant", to the CWA anthology Guilty Consciences.
Alanna has been a prominent member of the CWA for many years, and more than twenty years ago, she and her late husband Alistair organised a terrific CWA conference in Edinburgh. I remember that week-end vividly - it was great fun, and the Knights put a great deal of work into ensuring that everyone enjoyed themselves. My family and I have enjoyed her company many times since, and the Edwardses will certainly be raising a glass to her this Hogmanay.
Alanna is, as this award illustrates, one of Scottish literature's leading lights. In addition to her many novels, she is a biographer and playwright and expert on the work of that gifted fellow Scot, Robert Louis Stevenson. As a crime writer, she is probably best known for her long series of historical mysteries featuring Inspector Faro,and I was very pleased a couple of years back when she agreed to contribute a Faro short story, "The Case of the Vanishing Vagrant", to the CWA anthology Guilty Consciences.
Alanna has been a prominent member of the CWA for many years, and more than twenty years ago, she and her late husband Alistair organised a terrific CWA conference in Edinburgh. I remember that week-end vividly - it was great fun, and the Knights put a great deal of work into ensuring that everyone enjoyed themselves. My family and I have enjoyed her company many times since, and the Edwardses will certainly be raising a glass to her this Hogmanay.
December 29, 2013
Agatha Christie's Marple - Endless Night - ITV review
Endless Night, screened this evening on ITV, made an appealing Christie for Christmas. Agatha Christie's Marple is not an entirely consistent series, but here, the Queen of Crime's last really good novel was capably adapted by Kevin Elyot, who is a seasoned writer of Christie stories for stage and screen. Introducing Jane Marple into a story in which she did not originally appear was risky, for sure. Yet on the whole Elyot did a highly professional job - even though this did entail Julia McKenzie popping up so often and so unexpectedly that she became a spookier presence than the gypsy whose curse sets the story going.
The brilliance of the original novel, lay in the fact that Christie, writing in the Sixties, repeated one of her most famous tricks, despite its being supposedly unrepeatably. I borrowed the book from the local library shortly after it first came out, and was much impressed. As a student, I also enjoyed the film version starring Hywel Bennett as Michael Rogers, the poor lad who marries a lovely heiress. The film's cast was superb - it also included the likes of Hayley Mills, Britt Ekland, George Sanders and Peter Bowles. I'd rate it as the most under-rated movie ever made of a Christie novel.
Back to tonight's show, which also had an impressive cast. Tom Hughes played Michael, while his architect pal was played by Aneurin Barnard (the young hero of Moonfleet - he's had as impressive a festive season as Jenna Coleman.) Tamzin Outhwaite was almost unrecognisable as Michael's miserable mum, while there were cameo roles for Wendy Craig and Hugh Dennis.
The unusual structure of the plot means that Endless Night is far from orthodox Christie fare. This has caused some commentators to under-estimate it. In fact, it's a good story, and although this version did not strike me as being quite as compelling as the film (though in saying that, I have to admit I've not seen the film for a very long time) nevertheless it made excellent Sunday evening entertainment.
The brilliance of the original novel, lay in the fact that Christie, writing in the Sixties, repeated one of her most famous tricks, despite its being supposedly unrepeatably. I borrowed the book from the local library shortly after it first came out, and was much impressed. As a student, I also enjoyed the film version starring Hywel Bennett as Michael Rogers, the poor lad who marries a lovely heiress. The film's cast was superb - it also included the likes of Hayley Mills, Britt Ekland, George Sanders and Peter Bowles. I'd rate it as the most under-rated movie ever made of a Christie novel.
Back to tonight's show, which also had an impressive cast. Tom Hughes played Michael, while his architect pal was played by Aneurin Barnard (the young hero of Moonfleet - he's had as impressive a festive season as Jenna Coleman.) Tamzin Outhwaite was almost unrecognisable as Michael's miserable mum, while there were cameo roles for Wendy Craig and Hugh Dennis.
The unusual structure of the plot means that Endless Night is far from orthodox Christie fare. This has caused some commentators to under-estimate it. In fact, it's a good story, and although this version did not strike me as being quite as compelling as the film (though in saying that, I have to admit I've not seen the film for a very long time) nevertheless it made excellent Sunday evening entertainment.
Moonfleet - Sky TV review
Moonfleet aired last night on Sky TV, the first of a new two part version of this classic smuggling story, written by Ashley Pharoah, best known for the brilliantly conceived time-travel cop show Life on Mars. With Ray Winstone his usual commanding self as pub landlord and contraband king Elzevir Block, it was a very entertaining show indeed. There's a suitably nasty magistrate, a forbidden love affair between the bad guy's lovely daughter and the courageous young hero, and plenty of dramatic action. You'd think it was based on a story written by Robert Louis Stevenson - but it wasn't.
I first read - and much enjoyed - Moonfleet years ago, and I'd like to say a little about its author. J. Meade Falkner (1858-1932) was an Oxford-educated teacher who went into business, travelling the world and making a good deal of money before settling in Durham and devoting himself to a variety of leisure pursuits, including the study of ancient manuscripts.
Perhaps because he seems to have packed so much else into his life, Falkner was a far from prolific writer, though he did range from verse and fiction to writing topographical guides. Although Moonfleet is by far his most famous book, The Lost Stradivarius is a notable ghost story. I don't know if Falkner and M.R. James were acquainted, but I'd like to think so. And then there is The Nebuly Coat, a really good Edwardian novel whose neglect I find baffling. Fellow Golden Age fans might like to know that it's said to have been an influence on Dorothy L. Sayers' The Nine Tailors.
One of the most memorable scenes in Moonfleet - done very well in this version - is the candle auction. Candle auctions can be legally valid, and still take place occasionally - I recall once reading a learned article about them in The Law Society's Gazette. Falkner uses this and other plot devices to great effect and I felt that Ashley Pharoah made very good use of the excellent material. One of the best shows of Christmas.
I first read - and much enjoyed - Moonfleet years ago, and I'd like to say a little about its author. J. Meade Falkner (1858-1932) was an Oxford-educated teacher who went into business, travelling the world and making a good deal of money before settling in Durham and devoting himself to a variety of leisure pursuits, including the study of ancient manuscripts.
Perhaps because he seems to have packed so much else into his life, Falkner was a far from prolific writer, though he did range from verse and fiction to writing topographical guides. Although Moonfleet is by far his most famous book, The Lost Stradivarius is a notable ghost story. I don't know if Falkner and M.R. James were acquainted, but I'd like to think so. And then there is The Nebuly Coat, a really good Edwardian novel whose neglect I find baffling. Fellow Golden Age fans might like to know that it's said to have been an influence on Dorothy L. Sayers' The Nine Tailors.
One of the most memorable scenes in Moonfleet - done very well in this version - is the candle auction. Candle auctions can be legally valid, and still take place occasionally - I recall once reading a learned article about them in The Law Society's Gazette. Falkner uses this and other plot devices to great effect and I felt that Ashley Pharoah made very good use of the excellent material. One of the best shows of Christmas.
December 27, 2013
Forgotten Book - Arrogant Alibi
Is there any Golden Age novelist whose work is as fascinating and yet as frustrating as C. Daly King's? If so, I've yet to find him or her. My Forgotten Book for today is Arrogant Alibi, first published in 1939, and it's a case in point. Nowadays it's incredibly scarce. It took me years to track it down, and when eventually I got hold of a poor copy, I fell on it with delight.
And there are some superb elements in the story. A terrible flood in the vicinity of the crime scene lends atmosphere, while Eygptology and a mysterious mummy and other ancient artefacts play a part in the story. There's lot of complex plot material concerning alibis and the apparent impossibility of certain events. There's a neat double twist ending. Michael Lord, the cop who stars in King's books, and his pal Dr L. Rees Pons are on the scene as well. What's not to like?
The famous critics and Golden Age fans Barzun and Taylor really liked this book Since they could be very harsh judges, that's quite something. But I'm afraid I didn't get on with Arrogant Alibi. It's one thing to have all the right ingredients for a whodunit, quite another to make best use of them. And I'm afraid I felt that this is the sort of book that justifies people who don't like Golden Age novels in saying that they are boring. King spends pages, for instance, on explaining a telephone system that is connected to the storyline. I'm afraid this went so far beyond pleasingly authentic detail as to cause me to lose the will to live. And the characters didn't come to life at all as far as I was concerned. I wasn't expecting Sophie Hannah or Nicci French, but this wasn't even Freeman Wills Crofts.
Because my hopes had been high, I ended the book feeling disappointed, but not surprised that Arrogant Alibi hasn't been reprinted, as far as I know, in the intervening years. Yet this experience simply reinforces my curiosity about King, and the way he could veer from excellence, for instance in Obelists Fly High and The Curious Mr Tarrant, to tedium (and Obelists En Route shows both his best and his worst sides.) Dorothy L. Sayers admired some of his work, and so do I. And if you are lucky enough to find a first edition of this book in a fine dust jacket, it will no doubt be a good investment, even if not the best whodunit you'll ever read!
And there are some superb elements in the story. A terrible flood in the vicinity of the crime scene lends atmosphere, while Eygptology and a mysterious mummy and other ancient artefacts play a part in the story. There's lot of complex plot material concerning alibis and the apparent impossibility of certain events. There's a neat double twist ending. Michael Lord, the cop who stars in King's books, and his pal Dr L. Rees Pons are on the scene as well. What's not to like?
The famous critics and Golden Age fans Barzun and Taylor really liked this book Since they could be very harsh judges, that's quite something. But I'm afraid I didn't get on with Arrogant Alibi. It's one thing to have all the right ingredients for a whodunit, quite another to make best use of them. And I'm afraid I felt that this is the sort of book that justifies people who don't like Golden Age novels in saying that they are boring. King spends pages, for instance, on explaining a telephone system that is connected to the storyline. I'm afraid this went so far beyond pleasingly authentic detail as to cause me to lose the will to live. And the characters didn't come to life at all as far as I was concerned. I wasn't expecting Sophie Hannah or Nicci French, but this wasn't even Freeman Wills Crofts.
Because my hopes had been high, I ended the book feeling disappointed, but not surprised that Arrogant Alibi hasn't been reprinted, as far as I know, in the intervening years. Yet this experience simply reinforces my curiosity about King, and the way he could veer from excellence, for instance in Obelists Fly High and The Curious Mr Tarrant, to tedium (and Obelists En Route shows both his best and his worst sides.) Dorothy L. Sayers admired some of his work, and so do I. And if you are lucky enough to find a first edition of this book in a fine dust jacket, it will no doubt be a good investment, even if not the best whodunit you'll ever read!
December 26, 2013
Death Comes to Pemberley - BBC One tv review
Death Comes to Pemberley, adapted from the novel by P.D.James, and BBC One's flagship crime show for Christmas, began this evening. Naturally, it boasts a glittering cast,including one of my favourite actors, Trevor Eve (I still mourn the premature demise of that excellent series of long ago, Shoestring). as well as the excellent Rebecca Front, whose very varied CV includes Lewis, and Jenna Coleman, seen yesterday evening in Doctor Who.
Traditional Golden Age detective fiction, of which the admirable P.D. James is - perhaps alongside Colin Dexter - the greatest modern exponent, is often associated with country house settings, and a storyline which presents a sort of homicidal sequel to Pride and Prejudice was James' neat way of combining the country house backdrop with a historical mystery paying due homage to Jane Austen. She isn't, however, the first British crime writer to have made good use of Austen's work. The late Reginald Hill wrote a notable story inspired by Emma, a book which he argued had many of the attributes of a detective novel.
This first episode of three began enigmatically, in the grounds of the Darcys' mansion. Two young women servants walking in the woods become frightened and claim to have seen a ghost, although we do not learn for some time the legend behind the apparition, or that it is (surprise, surprise!) supposed to be the precursor of misfortune. After this promising opening, though, the focus was for a long time rather more on pastiche Austen than on mysterious murder, and there were moments when I found myself wondering when the detective work was likely to get going.
Things did, however, start to warm up when, after shots were heard, a man was found dead in the grounds of the house. A local magistrate (Eve, in terrific form) was duly called in, and the credits rolled as the obvious suspect was driven away for further questioning while protesting his innocence. We can, of course, be sure that there is more to this crime than meets the eye. How much more, I don't know, because this is one of only a couple of James' books that I haven't read. But I'm looking forward to finding out..
Traditional Golden Age detective fiction, of which the admirable P.D. James is - perhaps alongside Colin Dexter - the greatest modern exponent, is often associated with country house settings, and a storyline which presents a sort of homicidal sequel to Pride and Prejudice was James' neat way of combining the country house backdrop with a historical mystery paying due homage to Jane Austen. She isn't, however, the first British crime writer to have made good use of Austen's work. The late Reginald Hill wrote a notable story inspired by Emma, a book which he argued had many of the attributes of a detective novel.
This first episode of three began enigmatically, in the grounds of the Darcys' mansion. Two young women servants walking in the woods become frightened and claim to have seen a ghost, although we do not learn for some time the legend behind the apparition, or that it is (surprise, surprise!) supposed to be the precursor of misfortune. After this promising opening, though, the focus was for a long time rather more on pastiche Austen than on mysterious murder, and there were moments when I found myself wondering when the detective work was likely to get going.
Things did, however, start to warm up when, after shots were heard, a man was found dead in the grounds of the house. A local magistrate (Eve, in terrific form) was duly called in, and the credits rolled as the obvious suspect was driven away for further questioning while protesting his innocence. We can, of course, be sure that there is more to this crime than meets the eye. How much more, I don't know, because this is one of only a couple of James' books that I haven't read. But I'm looking forward to finding out..
