"Agatha Christie: Poirot"
Five Little Pigs (2003)

Director:

Paul Unwin

Writers:

Agatha Christie (novel)
Kevin Elyot (screenplay)

TV Series:

"Agatha Christie: Poirot" (1989)

Original Air Date:

14 December 2003 (Season 9, Episode 1)

Genre:

Drama | Mystery | Crime | Thriller

Plot:

Lucy Crale enlists Poirot to investigate the fourteen-year-old murder case in which her mother was hanged for poisoning her philandering painter father.

Plot Keywords:

Detective Series | Hemlock | Hercule Poirot | Flashback | Marital Infidelity

Cast

David Suchet	...	Hercule Poirot
Rachael Stirling	...	Caroline Crale
Aidan Gillen	...	Amyas Crale
Toby Stephens	...	Philip Blake
Marc Warren	...	Meredith Blake
Aimee Mullins	...	Lucy Crale
Julie Cox	...	Elsa Greer
Gemma Jones	...	Miss Williams
Sophie Winkleman	...	Angela Warren
Talulah Riley	...	Young Angela
Patrick Malahide	...	Depleach
Annette Badland	...	Mrs. Spriggs
Roger Brierley	...	Judge
Richard Teverson	...	Hollinghurst
Melissa Suffield	...	Young Lucy

Runtime:

100 min | Finland:94 min

Country:

UK

Language:

Italian | English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Certification:

Australia:M

Company:

A&E Television Networks

Trivia:

Meredith Blake is also the name given to a character in The Parent Trap (1998).

Quotes:

Amyas Crale: Living in a house full of women is enough to send any man off his chump.

Soundtrack:

Alice Blue Gown

A crucial bit of miscasting weakens an otherwise fine adaptation

Out of all the Agatha Christie stories I've seen or read so far, "Five Little Pigs" is one of my favorites. This search for the truth about past events through a maze of (sometimes) conflicting flashbacks and viewpoints anticipates in many ways such later films as "Rashomon", "Basic", and even the very recent "Vantage Point" (2008). This adaptation, although artistically made (one transition shot in particular, from the golden-tinted past to the grey-toned present, is a real marvel), is weakened by a crucial bit of miscasting: Julie Cox as Elsa Greer. Not only is Cox too old for the role (she was 30 when this was made; Elsa is supposed to be a fresh, irresponsible teenage girl), but she is also far less attractive than Rachael Stirling who plays Caroline Crale, making it hard for the viewer to believe that her husband Amyas could be seduced by Elsa even temporarily, because Caroline beats her in beauty AND in youth (Rachael was 26 at the time), not to mention character. Considering the long history of fine casting in the "Poirot" series, this casting error is almost inexplicable. The other weak spot of the movie is the pointless turning of a supporting character from a straight to a gay man. But if you can overlook these 2 points, "Five Little Pigs" is a fine little mystery. (***)