Poirot "Dead Man's Folly" #13.3 (2013) (TV)

Location and atmosphere, 3 April 2017

Poirot's friend, Ariadne Oliver, has been asked to prepare a murder game for a fete being held on the grounds of a large estate. She has a sense of unease regarding the proceedings. and feels that someone may use the game as an opportunity to commit a real murder. She summons Poirot for help. Her fears prove to have been founded when the game's intended murder victim is found to have been strangled to death.

I may not remember a lot of the specific details of the Agatha Christie I read years ago, but I certainly remember enjoying Dead Man's Folly. It was one of my favorites. There was something about the murder game being turned into a real murder that appealed to me. And, the fete provided a lot of interesting suspects, all going in different directions. While a few changes have been made, overall, the plot, most of the important plot points, and characters remain. I don't remember if the book was atmospheric, but this filmed version of Dead Man's Folly is dripping with it. I can understand why Mrs Oliver had a sense of unease, because I had the same feeling as a viewer. I just love atmosphere like this. The acting is especially strong in Dead Man's Folly. David Suchet gives another of his fantastic performances. This may be Zoe Wanamaker's best performance as Mrs Oliver – at least it's the least annoying. The supporting cast includes a nice turn by Sean Pertwee as Sir George Stubbs. I've read that much of the movie was filmed at Agatha Christie's actual home. What a fantastic location! Overall, a nice episode that is only hurt by Poirot's wild accusations at the end that prove to be 100% accurate, even though he had little actual evidence from what I could see. Anyway, a 7/10 from me.

7/10