Agatha Christie's Marple, Series 1

I have never been a real fan of Geraldine McEwan. Something about her voice and rabid alertness always put me off...but these features feel exactly right for the knitting lady who solves crimes with the kind of eagerness that can only be found in a small town. Other reviewers have gotten into all the comparisons, I'm taking this series for what it is. Yes the plots are a little formulaic, but there is such joy in their telling. (And we must admit, and I'm sorry if this offends, but I don't think the Agatha Christie books were deeply intellectual.... She wanted to tell fast paced, entertaining yarns, and she wasn't too particular about hiding information from her readers that she pulled out at the last minute. There, I said it.) I am currently watching the second series and finding them getting a little cartoony in costume choices and directoral and editing style, as if they are now making fun of the 50s style. Still fun, and I'll still buy them. This first season it enjoied inhabiting the 50s style - it is spot on. These glossy 1950s versions of Marple are jam packed with film stars and really gorgeous costumes and sets - they are a visual feast and a complete joy. Ignore the caterwalling and just buy the set - very enjoiable several times through!

To me, this series captures the true Miss Marple. Highly recommended.

Down through the years, I've seen Agatha Christie's Miss Marple played by various actresses from Helen Hayes, Angela Lansbury, Margaret Rutherford to Joan Hickson. In all honesty, I've enjoyed them all. I loved Margaret Rutherford and her hilarious interpretation (although Christie has been quoted as saying that Rutherford was nothing like her idea of Miss Marple) and I adored Joan Hickson (I truly feel she was closest to Agatha's idea of the character). Now comes Geraldine McEwan (one of my favorite actresses) doing savvy Miss. Marple proud playing her with a little more spunk than the others did. I love it! What sparkle she exhibits! Watch her eyes-they gleam. I really enjoyed this new interpretation of these stories and failed to see any offensive homosexual displays. The series is done with the optimum of good taste. Everyone involved is splendid. Each episode has a great cast with some of the UK's best actors on display! Each episode has great direction and camera work. So if you love the Miss Marple mysteries, you'll enjoy this edition.

Agatha Christie loved humor and wove it through all of her books..sometimes just below the surface. This new series lifted that humor right off the pages and gave these films a wonderful, light and fresh look. The Hickson version was a tad dull for me and unfortunately, BBC didn't pull out the same production stops as ITV did for this new series. But best of all is Geraldine McEwan's interpretation of Jane Marple. She too, has found the brilliant and sometimes tongue-in-cheek humor and presents it to us with that twinkle and slightly raised eyebrow. This is entertainment. She's given the character dimension and I for one would love to sit down to tea or a Damson Gin with this Jane. The conversation would not be dull! I chuckle a little at the constant need to compare the Hickson version to this one. Who the heck cares? Now the world has one more Marple to either enjoy or ignore. And by the audience viewing numbers, this Marple is a huge hit! Waiting impatiently for Series II!!

I thought I could never appreciate anyone in the role of Miss Marple more than Joan Hickson, but have been pleasantly surprised to discover Geraldine McEwan (Mapp & Lucia) portrays a wonderful Miss Marple. I read Chrisite's `Miss Marple' stories back in the 1950s and 1960s and remember feeling a good deal of fright (I was a teenager then, and these were the pre-Psycho days). Although I cannot now remember clearly how I pictured Jane Marple, Joan Hickson relayed in an interview aired on PBS that Agatha Christie once told her, after a West End performance as Miss Marple, that she (Hickson) represented Miss Marple as she (Christie) had envisioned her. Whether this comment was meant only for that particular performance or for all time, I have no idea, but I recommend that you read the books before you view the dramatizations so as to form your own mind's eye view. Christie was famous for her complex and diabolical plots and as far as I am concerned no writer has ever bested her on this score. The shorter dramatizations in the current film set leave out a good deal of information found in the books and the earlier dramatizations, and I am of the opinion that like fine wine you cannot hurry a good plot. However, the screen play writers have compensated for the tightening of the narrative in the current films by making subtle plot changes, and although none of the critical material has been omitted (the basic plots are still entact), some points might be clearer if you had read the books, and/or seen the older dramatizations. I think Christie's character development was a little thin and the films compensate for this shortcoming through excellent casting. However, the character development in the longer dramatizations from the 1980s is more thorough than that in the recent offerings. On the other hand, some of the casting for the newer films is more accurate. To 'improve' the plot, some characters were dropped and others given larger roles. Dereck Jacobi was badly miscast as the overbearing retired military officer in `Murder at the Vicarage', but Tara Fitzgerald is excellent in her role as the twice-widowed daughter-in-law of Ian Richardson. Joanna Lumley is wonderful as Jane Marple's friend who invites her to investigate when her husband (Edward Fox) finds a body in his library. Lumley's character is reminiscent of the 'Aunt' she played in `Cold Comfort Farm' not the "burnt out" hippie of `Absolutely Fabulous'. This particular story is excellently cast with Ian Richardson, Simon Callow, Jack Davenport (Coupling) and Tara Fitzgerald in supporting roles. At one point, when Marple questions one of the hapless witnesses, McEwan reprises the tone of the wicked Mother Superior of the Magdalen Sisters, and thus gives a steely side to Miss Marple that Hickson used to bring forth by pursing her lips and staring disapprovingly with cold blue eyes. The other films in this set include somewhat less stellar but recognizable actors, not the least of which are Zoe Wanamaker and John Hannah. In sum, the plots of the older versions of `Body in the Library' `4:50 to Paddington' `Murder at the Vicarage' and `The Body in the Library' done in four installments and starring Hickson were better developed in most respects, however, the newer versions with their tighter plots manage to make their point. The filmograhy of the newer versions is beautiful (the older films date from a period when technology was not so "advanced" and the films were not well preserved, AND times have changed in England and much of the old countryside is gone, but the camera shoots around the changes). This is an excellent set of films and a better bargain can't be found for Anglophiles who love mystery, however, view the old set and read the books and you will discover nuances that elude the current films. Now, if someone would dramatize `Cat Among the Pigeons'....that was a scary book indeed.

There have been a number of actresses who've portrayed Miss Jane Marple. If you look online, generally the concensus is that Joan Hickson is the best--and Agatha Christie, herself, had asked Joan Hickson to take on the role! Just from this first set, though, I would say that Geraldine McEwan is a very close "second place" to Joan Hickson! The acting is first-rate in this boxed set. Of course, the writing is closely based on Agatha Christie's stories of Miss Jane Marple. (I have read all of Christie's "Marple" books, and I actually think the British dramatizations are better than the books. That is saying something, because I LOVE reading murder mysteries normally!) The only "downside" are 2 small quibbles I have: 1. The price. This is a very costly price for 4 extra-long episodes of the stories. and 2. I wanted to order the full 3 series (1-3) of Geraldine McEwan's portrayal of Marple, and unfortunately that "complete set" of hers is currently unavailable. So if you enjoy this set as I did, you then have to order numbers 2 & 3 individually. And that is darn expensive! What I didn't understand, until I did a little bit of research, is why Geraldine McEwan hadn't continued portraying Miss Marple for series 4-6. Why had Julia McKenzie--generally considered "Marple #3"--taken over for those series? It's because Geraldine McEwan had had a fall after the 3rd series. She wasn't physically well enough to continue to play Miss Marple. I prefer Geraldine McEwan as "Marple #2"; my husband thinks Julia McKenzie is "Marple #2"! I would strongly recommend this series to anyone who loves good British mysteries; decide for yourself!!

As with my review of the sets #2 and #3. I enjoyed all 4 movies. The characters are well played believable, human, perfect for their role. I have watched many Agatha Christie movies with different actors, this has perfectly matched people. I also enjoy the lack of violence, swearing and sex; being left to the watcher's imagination. The stories unfold nicely, easy to follow, make sense. The stories are 'light-hearted' murder mysteries. I have watched each movie close to a dozen times and will watch again and again. I just simply enjoy watching all three series of movies. There is no specific reason, it is just everything about them. Thank you

All good

i am disappointed because it says cc or subtitles on the back of DVD. I watch one today...no cc or subtitles at all.

Geraldine McEwan is fantastic. I'd recommend her tenure as the titular sleuth over any other.