Sarah Phelps to adapt The ABC Murders

Miranda

http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/news/a853308/bbcs-agatha-christie-writer-drops-first-hint-about-new-poirot-tv/
This bit is quite scary:

quote - Asked by Digital Spy how she felt about approaching the iconic character, Phelps explained: "I've never read a Poirot, and I've never watched a Poirot, so for me, this is all about asking who he is. That's all I've got to say."

P_Lombard

That is scary, especially considering her reputation for dramatically altering characters and plots. I shudder to think what she will do to Poirot.

Miranda

Me too.  I'm hoping she was joking but .....

ChristieFanForLife

P_Lombard said:

That is scary, especially considering her reputation for dramatically altering characters and plots. I shudder to think what she will do to Poirot.

Sarah Phelps need to stay away from adapting Agatha Christie's books. We need someone who is well-acquainted and versed in Christie's works and know them front to back enough to adapt them the way they are written. I'm not looking for a 100% faithful adaptation, though such a thing is impossible, but when you're dramatically altering characters, plots and murderers, and adding gratuitous swear words and sexual scenes and mindless action sequences, then it's essentially not Christie anymore. You're writing your own work slapping Christie's name on it. And please don't give me that excuse of changing Christie's stories to appeal to a 21st century society. I wouldn't be surprised if Phelps made such a comment. Everyone in today's society don't need mindless swear words and sexual scenes in order to enjoy a film. I sure don't. I just want to sit back and watch a good mystery, that's all. 

I know that the upcoming ABC Murders won't be good, just as a lot of the recent adaptations weren't. I think the age of great Christie adaptations are over. We're seeing a splurge, a renaissance of adaptations but they're not good. Big budget but the adaptations lack something. I look at adaptations like the 1985 version of A Murder Is Announced, The ABC Murders, The Mysterious Affair At Styles, The Body In the Library (with Joan Hickson) and comparing those to what we're getting today with the recent Ordeal By Innocence, Witness For the Prosecution, And Then There Were None, and the Partners In Crime w/ Tommy & Tuppence, they don't hold a candle to the older adaptations. No, the older adaptations weren't perfect but they respected Christie's work to adapt what she wrote. 

Miranda

It always makes me laugh when they say the adaptations are for 'a modern audience'.  Anyone would think the Christie books have stopped selling the way they go on.

Tommy_A_Jones

If she doesn't stay away from Agatha Christie at least stay away from Poirot, Miss Marple and Tommy and Tuppence, the way she has done Ordeal By Innocense and And Then There Were None (I missed Witness For \the Prosecution) it is obviously she is better suited to Adapting Stories that aren't so well loved, she will probably have Hastings and Poirot as Childhood friends with a Dark secretthat is the way Adaptions of Christie is going, If Adaptations of Christie can't be done with sensitivity and respect Don't bother PLEASE!!!

Miranda

WftP concentrated much more on the lawyer's private life than it did on the case.   And it completely blew the ending.

Tommy_A_Jones

What Lawyer?

Miranda

Solicitor, sorry.

Tommy_A_Jones

Oh, Your'e talking about Witness For The Prosecution are you? I didn't see that, I thought you were talking about Ordeal By Innpcense.

Tommy_A_Jones

I meant Ordeal By Innocense.

Miranda

Oh ok, I got you.

Tommy_A_Jones

I wonder if Hastings and Japp will be included and if they are who will play them and Poirot?

Luke

WFTP did deal with his private life and it didn't need two episodes and it was only a short story. The Poirot short stories were adapted for 1hr episodes with the exception of the labours of hercules. She complicates the characters and therefore has to change the plot to suit her style. I worry about Poirot, as he is a treasure that should be protected not used in this way. I am concerned.  I don't think that these SP adaptations have been very successful, and she as far as I can see doesn't understand Christie. The only positive thing is that it does increase interest in Christie and people go looking for the novels and the better adaptions.

Tommy_A_Jones

ABC is not a short story, It is a Novel.

Luke

Sorry I didn't make it clear, I was talking about Witness for the prosecution

ChristieFanForLife

I agree @Luke , Sarah Phelps doesn't understand Christie. She's trying so hard to appeal to a modern audience and add her own flavor of character development and drama that it strays away not only from Christie's writing but the tone and flavor in which Christie wrote her stories. Not all her stories were dark in tone as Phelps makes it sounds. 

Tommy_A_Jones

I think she said she had never read a Poirot Book so she would be discovering who he is, Perhaps that is a way that The BBC teach new writers these days, they give them a Book by an Author they are not keen on or familiar with to see how they get on and if they impress The BBC Executives by giving the Complaints Department a lot of work the Writer is allowed to write something he or she is interested in.

Instead of trying to appeal to a younger Generation she should try and please Real Agatha Christie Fans and The BBC need to realise it is OK if not everything appeals to Everybody.

ChristieFanForLife

It's been years and I mean YEARS since I watched a good . . .no, a great . . . NO, an exceptional Christie adaptation! The last one I watched that was really good was After The Funeral and that was in 2006! These latest adaptations are subpar compared to past adaptations, especially to the quality that Christie exemplified in her writing. 

Luke

I understand that the same team are also going to do 'Death Comes As The End' I haven't read it and know nothing about the plot except that it is one of AC's only historical novel 
http://http//www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-37174913

ChristieFanForLife

I hate to see what they will do with Death Comes As The End. They'll find a way to sex it up, inserting F-bombs and profanity just to appeal to contemporary 21st century . . . . as if we need all that just to enjoy a good film. I'm not looking forward to it because I already know that they're going to wreck it. That's appears to be the trend of these adaptations as of late. I'm not excited when I hear of an upcoming Christie adaptation in the pipeline anymore. 

Tommy_A_Jones

I am not so worried about that one as I don't like the Book at all, knowing my luck that will be one she does accurately and without swearing and Vulgarity just because I am not fussed about it.

TheLastWord

ChristieFanForLife said:

Sarah Phelps need to stay away from adapting Agatha Christie's books. We need someone who is well-acquainted and versed in Christie's works and know them front to back enough to adapt them the way they are written.

[...]

and adding gratuitous swear words and sexual scenes and mindless action sequences, then it's essentially not Christie anymore. You're writing your own work slapping Christie's name on it.

[...]

what we're getting today with the recent Ordeal By Innocence, Witness For the Prosecution, And Then There Were None, and the Partners In Crime w/ Tommy & Tuppence, they don't hold a candle to the older adaptations. No, the older adaptations weren't perfect but they respected Christie's work to adapt what she wrote.

Absolutely. You have said it all, so I realised I didn't need to post my own comments as they are - more or less verbatim - the points that several of you have already made!! :-)

My, isn't it nice to read that someone else has the same opinion; it makes me realise I'm not being pernickety at all in wanting a faithful but still vibrant adaptation

[ALERT: POTENTIAL SPOILER re recent TV version of 'Ordeal By Innocence':] One major criticism of the 'Ordeal By Innocence' TV drama, I really need to make. Though I can't mention too much about the end of the TV adaptation, as I think that might be deemed a spoiler (although it seems that you have all seen this TV drama already...!), I think I can safely state that the very last moments of the drama were NOT in the style of ANY of the (many) Christie books I have read. It was more like an adaptation of a great Barbara Vine tale, or a Minette Walters , et al. It is appalling to think that this dark moment could be cited as being an adaptation of any of A.C.'s stories.

I may well go out of the house when the next A.C. televisualisation - 'The ABC Murders' - is broadcast. I have had enough. And no, I won't be recording it. ,-)

Please, BBC, take Sarah Phelps - or whoever is responsible for this - off the job. She is, IMHO, simply not up to it.

ChristieFanForLife

TheLastWord said:

I may well go out of the house when the next A.C. televisualisation - 'The ABC Murders' - is broadcast. I have had enough. And no, I won't be recording it. ,-)

Please, BBC, take Sarah Phelps - or whoever is responsible for this - off the job. She is, IMHO, simply not up to it.

I'll probably watch The ABC Murders adaptation when it comes on but I'm definitely not excited about it as previous Christie adaptations. The best ABC Murders adaptation was the David Suchet version from the 90's -- it's the definitive version and probably the best and only one that we'll ever get no matter how many versions we'll get in the future. 

I agree, PLEASE BBC, get someone who has both a passion and RESPECT for Christie's books and yearns not only to be faithful to her works but understand changes that are appropriate to the tone and style of Christie instead of attempting to modernize at the expense of betraying what made Christie popular to begin with. 

Tommy_A_Jones

Please BBC, sever all ties with Sarah Phelps and get Anthony Horowitz or Simon Brett to Adapt ABC Murders, just someone who has read Agatha Christie Books or loves Agatha Christie Books and is going to Adapt the Book sympathetically and with the feelings of life-long fans in mind.

TheLastWord

OMG! The new 'Hercule Poirot' is to be played by . . .

John Malkovich ! ! :

John Malkovich to play Hercule Poirot in The ABC Murders

28 May 2018

John Malkovich is set to take on the role of legendary Belgian detective Hercule Poirot in an adaptation of Agatha Christie’s The ABC Murders for Amazon Studios and the BBC.

I should think Malkovich would imbue Christie's 'precise' Poirot with a psychotic edginess! No matter how contained he seems in the role, I would be watching the programme thinking that any minute Malkovich's Poirot would - or could - explode into a tirade of manic behaviour of some kind. Which is presumably why he was cast.

Plus it will be a new version of the Poirot character, & any new casting will naturally make people's heads turn. And by casting a Hollywood star it will, of course, sell the programme back to the US. But whether or not such a new depiction works in the TV drama, it's hardly a shrewd, insightful, & neat little character, is it? And isn't that how Agatha Christie penned the character?!

Yet another example of BBC 'ineptitude'!! And of Phelps changing Christie for her own ends.

And all the more reason not to watch this Phelps adaptation. :-(

Hey-ho! More disappointment! ,-)

Tommy_A_Jones

It might be that if we have to have an American Poirit then Malkovivch is the ideal person just like Helen Hayes was the best choice if we were going to have an American Miss Marple, Angela Landesbury was also a Great choice but she is English., I can see Poirot being played the way you fear Malkovich will, I think, The Last Word's Post is Brilliant.

Carter

From today's Daily Telegraph: 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/12/15/christmas-agatha-christie-will-reflect-parallels-fascism-brexit/

Carter

"The Case of the Unfaithful Scriptwriter" a critical review penned by EE Carter of Ms. Phelps' revisionist BBC adaptation of The ABC Murders:

http://eecarter.com/poirot-script/

ianthepoet

I watched the first 25 minutes of ABC Murders, what are the BBC doing to Agatha Christine's novel, they've butchered it. I'll definitely not be watching anymore of them. 

Tommy_A_Jones

I have only watched Episode 1 but it seems to me she has all the right elements but just like someone going up stairs 2 at a time she is cranking every element up more than she should, in the Book Betty Barnard is a bit of a Tarter but in the Adaptations she is a temptress and a whore.

I liked Japp, It is a shame he was killed off, I took it to be her saying "Right, now I have got rid of him, I can do what I like", after I finished watching Episode 3 I won't watch it again, Crooked House had its problems but it was much better than the BBC Adaptations in recent years.