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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Margaret Rutherford is outstanding, April 27, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: Murder at the Gallop [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I was very excited to find this video! I have been looking for it for over a year. Although Margaret Rutherford is not the Miss Marple that I envisioned when reading Agatha Christie's books (Joan Hickson is much closer), I find Margaret Rutherford a delightful eccentric. She is lively, independent and forceful! She is my favorite Miss Marple! Stringer Davis(Mr. Stringer) and Margaret are a wonderful pair. They are a delight! In addition, Robert Morely and Margaret team up for some comedic fun. I would really like to see the four Margaret Rutherford, Miss Marple films(Murder at the Gallop, Murder She Said, Murder Most Foul, Murder Ahoy) brought out on DVD as a box set. Anyone listening?
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's great!, February 12, 2003
This review is from: Murder at the Gallop [VHS] (VHS Tape)
When elderly spinster Jane Marple (played by Margaret Rutherford) witnesses the death of Mr. Enderby, she realizes that this is no accident. Eavesdropping at the reading of the old man's will, she overhears Aunt Cora state categorically that he was murder, and later Aunt Cora is ruthlessly murdered. There's a murder on the loose, and Miss Marple is determined to find out who it is! [Black and White, released in 1963, with a running time of 1 hour, 22 minutes.] I must admit that my wife and I chanced across this Miss Marple movie after having become great fans of Joan Hickson's interpretation of the role, and were not too happy with it. Later, however, having accepted that this is not Joan Hickson's Miss Marple, but accepting it for its self, we came to love this movie. Margaret Rutherford brings a real presence to the role, adding a touch of humor, and making the story (based on Agatha Christie's "After the Funeral") quite entertaining. So, if you like a good mystery, or if you like old movies, then I highly recommend this movie to you. It's great!
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Original Miss Marple, April 22, 2007
Oscar winner Dame Margaret Rutherford was the first to play the famous Agatha Christie amateur sleuth. This time around, Miss Marple is doing her usual charity drive and runs across a dead wealthy recluse. The death is cited as a heart attack due to his fear of cats, but Marple has a piece of hardened mud of a riding boot marking. She deliberately listens through the window of the reading of the will and none of the family seem to upset over the death but are keenly interested in what they might gain. The estranged sister declares he was murdered and Miss Marple finds her later stabbed through the back of a chair with a long hat pin. The nephew owns "The Gallop" a pseudo hotel riding stable and Ms. Marple declares to the always exasberated Inspector Craddock, she is going on holiday--much to his relief (or so he falsely assumes). It it at the Gallop the movie unfolds and clues mount complete with false leads until the killer is revealed. But only after Marple fakes a heart attack in order to corner the murderer of the brother and sister.
The Miss Marple MGM series made in the UK only totalled 4 films although a fifth installment was announced at the end of the 4th movie--it never materialized (possibly due to Ms. Rutherford's failing health).
There have been many Miss Marple incarnations, but Rutherford was the first and the best. She plays the role as Christie created her with great panache and wit. The spinster sleuth is as clever a detective as any of Mrs. Christie's inventions and other writers of the genre.
Rutherford is a delight, as usual and real-life husband Stringer Davis plays her friend and sidekick. Charles Tingwell is also great as the sometimes harassed Inspector Craddock who has to take the snooping Miss Marple with more than a just grain of salt.
The complete Miss Marple series has been compiled into a DVD set and is worth the investment because once you watch just one, you will want to see the other movies in this worthwhile but short-lived series.
Extremely well done.
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