Product Details

• Actors: Geraldine McEwan, Jane Asher, Emily Bruni, Christina Cole, Julie Cox
• Directors: Andy Wilson, Charles Palmer, John Strickland
• Writers: Agatha Christie, Kevin Elyot, Stephen Churchett, Stewart Harcourt
• Producers: Anthony Dominici
• Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1
• Number of discs: 4
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Acorn Media
• DVD Release Date: May 24, 2005
• Run Time: 376 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (87 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0007Y3XRG
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #70,129 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Agatha Christie's Marple: Series 1" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

The amateur, elderly detective Miss Marple solves cases that baffle the police.
Genre: Television
Rating: NR
Release Date: 24-MAY-2005
Media Type: DVD

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

71 of 82 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too many changes., July 4, 2005

By 

Katherine (Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Agatha Christie's Marple: Series 1 (DVD)

I watched the new Miss Marple series, excited to see what Geraldine McEwan would do with the role. Unfortunately, I don't like what they've done with this latest batch of Christie's. Mrs. McEwan is a fine actress and she brings a "fluffiness" to the role that is missing from the Hickson version. Still, there is too much tampering with the plotlines to suit me. There are significant changes made in a couple of the stories, most notably in "The Body in the Library" so let the buyer beware. This isn't a minor change either as it involves the resolution of the case. They also add an odd, on-going storyline involving Miss Marple's own past love life that is simply not part of the books and isn't even close to being in keeping with the character of Miss Marple. As Agatha Christie is arguably the most acclaimed and accomplished mystery writer that ever lived, these changes were pretty outrageous. Her books stand the test of time and need no updating simply to satisfy 21st century ideas. I was surprised at this as the British are usually the ones who can be depended upon to leave good stories alone. So, if you just want a few hours of light entertainment, have at it, but if you're an Agatha Christie purist, you won't like this dvd so save your money.

53 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Really awful, August 20, 2007

By 

Margaret M. Duffy (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Agatha Christie's Marple: Series 1 (DVD)

The new Miss Marple series is truly awful. Not only is Geraldine McEwen completely miscast as the elderly spinster sleuth, but the stories themselves have been distorted to make them "politically correct" in the modern sense. The result is a confusing mess. Ms. McEwen is a fine actress and I have enjoyed her in other roles, but as Miss Marple she's a disaster. Her Miss Marple, with the little smirks and little girl voice, could hardly be described as Nemesis. Nor would she ever have gained the respect of any law enforcement professional. She's really Ms. Marple light.

If you want the real Miss Marple, read the books, or see the Joan Hickson versions. After all, Miss Hickson was Agatha Christie's own choice for the role.

35 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars New Marple is too young and fails to disguise herself as an amateur, August 5, 2007

By 

Lawyerly "lawyerly" (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Agatha Christie's Marple: Series 1 (DVD)

Hasn't anyone noticed that the new Miss Marple (Geraldine McEwan) is far too young for the role? They try everything in the costume and makeup department to make her look older - give her a pale, ghostly complexion, fuzzy white hair, a dowdy, pale dress to wash out her complexion even more, little round spectacles and a frumpy old hat. What is worse is her voice. She tries to sound old and crotchety, and she can't pull it off. But worst of all, she lacks the dry wit of the Marple character. She does not have the personality of Marple. The trademark quality of the Marple character is this: underneath the guise and pretense of being a bumbling, feebleminded, old woman is really a brilliant, calculated, super sleuth. The new Marple doesn't put up the facade of the bumbling, feebleminded old woman at all. Instead, she acts sassy and clever. This takes the wind out of the sail of the Marple character, because there is no building of a deception or act that she is not who she portrays herself to be. The end is when she should reveal her true capabilities of unraveling a baffling mystery, but in this series, she gives that away scene by scene during the entire movie. It is evident that she fails to portray her dotty old woman character because none of the other characters treat her like she is a nosy, old busybody who should keep to herself. Instead, they all willingly answer her questions and then act as if they care about her opinion. To add insult to injury, the other characters are all unlikable and overplay their parts. The only qualities which give the illusion that these films are good are the sets, the modern film equipment, and modern filming techniques used. Ultimately, the films lack the building the suspense in order to climax when the mystery is revealed. Instead, the mystery is finally revealed after the suspense of the film is deflated, has dragged on and you are already tired of the characters and the story.