CROOKED HOUSE
UK, 2017, 115 minutes, Colour.
Max Irons, Glenn Close, Stefanie Martini, Honor Kneafsey, Christina Hendricks, Terence Stamp, Julian Sands, Gillian Anderson, Christian Mc Kay, Amanda Abbington, Preston Nyman, John Heffernan, Jenny Galloway.
Directed by Gilles Paquet- Brenner.
Another Agatha Christie murder mystery.
This is one of her stand-alone novels, a young private detective involved in an investigation, not relying on her super-sleuths Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. The setting is England in the late 1950s.
The film opens with the news of a murder, the private detective, Charles Hayward (Max Irons) seeing the newsreel about the death of a millionaire from Greece who came to settle in England. His granddaughter, Sophie (Stefanie Martini) who had had a romance with Charles Hayward in Cairo but broken it off, comes to his office (a bit poor and seedy with few clients) and invites him to come to investigate the death – the audience having seen only a hand an alarm in the filling a syringe and it being inserted into the old man’s arm in bed.
The first part of the film, as expected, is the detective going to the mansion where three generations of the family live. It gives the opportunity for him to meet each of the suspects and for the audience to get some information, begin to get suspicions, start to make a preference list of who is the most likely murderer and who the least likely.
He meets the grand dame of the family, the dead man’s sister-in-law, Edith De Haviland. We are already on familiar ground because she is played by Glenn Close, at times rather similar to her sinister presence as Cruella de Ville. There are the dead man’s two sons, one bailed out of a bad gambling debt, Philip (Julian Sands) who now lives at the mansion with his would-be actress wife, a sardonic dilettante a and alcoholic Magda (Gillian Anderson). The other son is Roger who manages the family business, although ineptly, (Christian Mc Kay) and his somewhat disgruntled wife, a scientist, Clemency (Amanda Abbington). Magda has three children, Sophia, her very young little sister, wise beyond her years, Josephine (Honor Kneafsey). She tells the detective that she too is doing her detective work and writing everything in her diary. There is also a handicapped son, Eustace (Preston Nyman), rather bitter and offhand. The millionaire’s young wife, Brenda (Christina Hendricks) whom he met as a dancer at a casino he owned in Las Vegas also lives in the house, resented by everyone, except by Laurence Brown, Eustace’s tutor, (John Heffernan) who is obviously in a relationship with Brenda. Finally, there is the family nurse who looks after Josephine (Jenny Galloway).
And there we are. Whodunnit?
It is rather old-fashioned in its visual style, dialogue (with Julian Fellowes, the Downton Abbey, is one of the writers).
Each of the characters, of course, has suspicious moments. The film consists of a lot of interviews with each of the characters, and there are some red herrings about the dead man’s links with the CIA and anti-Communist movements.
Terence Stamp also appears as a detective from Scotland Yard. He has ups and downs with Charles Hayward but, eventually, there are some arrests. Or are they wrong arrests?
The payoff and the murderer is not bad – depending on how high the suspect was on your list of most probable released probable.
Perhaps best recommended as an entertaining Agatha Christie night out for those who are more senior rather than those who are more junior.
1. The popularity of Agatha Christie murder mysteries? The puzzle, the suspects, the clues, the investigation, the revelation?
2. Crooked House as a stand-alone Agatha Christie mystery? No Poirot, no Miss Marple?
3. An old-fashioned film, visuals, directing style, as a film of its period? The late 1950s? Costumes and decor? The dialogue and interactions?
4. The wide range of songs, and highlighting characters?
5. The opening, the newsreel, Charles Hayward, his office, few clients, his secretary? Sophia and her arrival? The past relationship between them, her work at Sotheby’s, his diplomatic work, their presence in Egypt, the affair in Cairo? Sophia breaking it off? The effect on Charles? The explanation of the murdered man, from Greece, to England, multi-millionaire? Sophia as his granddaughter, inviting Charles to investigate the case before the police arrived?
6. Charles, in himself, his age, the reputation of his father, police, his father’s murder, no solution? His interest in investigation, private detective? His relationship with Taverner, Scotland Yard, explaining the case, Taverner giving him two days? Taverner later wanting Charles to get information about the family for various cases concerning the millionaire?
7. The CIA connections, financing Greek anti-Communists, Charles and his connection from the US, his car being followed, the Scotland Yard policeman?
8. The screenplay Charles driving to the house, the visuals of the large house, the various generations of the family living there? His interviewing all the characters, in bits and pieces to move the drama along? Audiences meeting all the characters, listening to them, their body language and attitudes, forming suspicions?
9. The audience seeing the arm and the hand with the syringe, injecting the millionaire? Sophia finding him? The portraits of him around the house?
10. Charles and the manner of his interviews, the variety of rooms, the grounds, the tree house, the stairs leading to the turret and roof?
11. Edith De Haviland, Glenn Close in the role, her sister having married the millionaire, her early death, Edith remaining to bring up the children, the two sons? Her outgoing manner, some sardonic comments, suspect, the meal table? Shooting the moles, and the later cyanide? Friendly, her relationship with the other characters, supporting Josephine? Reasons for her being the murderer? Her going to the doctor, terminal illness, with Josephine, her knowing the truth, hiding the diary, the promise of an ice cream, driving her away, crashing the car and killing themselves?
12. Philip, gambling, his father getting him out of debt, the older brother, despising his younger brother? His wife, acting, not successful? Philip writing the screenplay for her, Exposure? Asking his father for production money? His surly attitudes? The contrast with his wife, languid, drinking, her relationship with her children? Motivations?
13. Roger and Clemency, their marriage, his attraction towards Brenda, Clemency forgiving him? His father giving him the company, the catering firm, his difficulties in managing, almost bankrupt, the issue of the cheque and his father bailing him out, his wife not wanting him to accept this? His brusqueness with Charles? Clemency and her opinions? Their decision to leave the house, to tear up the cheque, to manage on their own?
14. Sophia, under suspicion despite finding the body? The oldest of the children, poise, her grandfather choosing her for management? Collaboration with Charles, going to London, the rock ‘n’ roll, the jazz club? Her moods? With Josephine?
15. The issue of the will, everybody present, thinking that the millionaire had signed it, blank? The second will, leaving everything to Sophia instead of to Brenda, his wife?
16. Brenda, the Las Vegas showgirl, marrying the millionaire, alleging love? The interviews, her deceptions, the relationship with Laurence, his presence as the tutor to Eustace, his ghost writing the memoir? The disappearance of the manuscript, Sophia burning it? The hostility of the rest of the family? The finding of the box of love letters between them? The arrest, jail? One of the motivations for Edith killing Josephine so that Brenda and Laurence were innocent?
17. Eustace, the limp, his age, tutor, standoffish attitudes, questions about Charles and the affair with Sophia?
18. Josephine, her age, precocious, notebook, telling Charles she was doing detection work, her dislike of the nanny, the hot chocolate? Listening in, taking notes? Her relationship with everybody in the family? The cutting of the ropes in the treehouse, the secateurs? Her fall?
19. The nanny, fussing, the hot chocolate? A suspect? Her death?
20. Taverner, investigations, the visit to the house, the arrests? The other police, medical examiners?
21. Josephine a suspect or not? The explanation? The ballet dance in her resentment towards her grandfather? Her reasons for killing him? The killing the nanny? Telling Charles
that she knew who the murderer was, not concerned with Edith taking her for the drive? Her death?
22. A satisfying Agatha Christie novel and adaptation?
