Appointment with Death (film)
| Appointment with Death | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Michael Winner |
| Produced by | Michael Winner Menahem Golan Yoram Globus |
| Written by | Novel: Agatha Christie Screenplay: Michael Winner Anthony Shaffer Peter Buckman |
| Starring | Peter Ustinov Lauren Bacall Piper Laurie David Soul |
| Music by | Pino Donaggio |
| Cinematography | David Gurfinkel |
| Editing by | Arnold Crust Jr. (Michael Winner) |
| Distributed by | Cannon Film Distributors |
| Release date(s) | 15 April 1988 (US) |
| Running time | 102 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
Appointment with Death is a 1988 mystery film, made by Golan-Globus Productions and produced and directed by Michael Winner. It is an adaptation of the Agatha Christie novel Appointment with Death featuring the detective Hercule Poirot. The screenplay was by Peter Buckman, Anthony Shaffer and Winner.
The film stars Peter Ustinov as Poirot, along with Lauren Bacall, Carrie Fisher, John Gielgud, Piper Laurie, Hayley Mills, Jenny Seagrove and David Soul.
Gielgud and Bacall had previously co-starred in another big-screen Poirot adaptation, 1974's Murder on the Orient Express.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
Emily Boynton, stepmother to the three Boynton children – Lennox, Raymond and Carol – and mother to Ginevra, blackmails the family lawyer, Jefferson Cope, into destroying a second will of her late husband that would have freed the children from her dominating influence.
She takes herself, the children and her daughter-in-law Nadine on holiday to Europe and the Holy Land. In Jerusalem, the great detective Hercule Poirot meets up with a woman friend, Dr. Sarah King, who falls in love with Raymond Boynton to Emily's disapproval.
Lady Westholme, her secretary Miss Quinton and lawyer Cope are following them too. The children discover the second will and Emily succeeds in rubbing the rest the wrong way, causing much hatred towards her. At a dig, Emily is found dead. Poirot investigates.
[edit] Cast
- Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot
- Piper Laurie as Emily Boynton
- Lauren Bacall as Lady Westholme
- John Gielgud as Colonel Carbury
- Carrie Fisher as Nadine
- Hayley Mills as Miss Quinton
- David Soul as Jefferson Cope
- Jenny Seagrove as Dr. Sarah King
- Nicholas Guest as Lennox
- Amber Bezer as Ginerva
- John Terlesky as Raymond
- Valerie Richards as Carol
[edit] Family tree
Elmer Boynton had three children with his first wife: Lennox Boynton (married to Nadine), Carol Boynton, and Raymond Boynton. He married his second wife, Emily Boynton, and had one child Ginevra Boynton. Mr. Boynton dies, and Emily continues to control the family as the wicked stepmother.
[edit] Changes
The novel takes place primarily in Petra, Jordan whereas the film takes place in Jerusalem. This change was made because the production company was Israeli.
[edit] Ustinov as Poirot
This film was Peter Ustinov's sixth and last appearance as Hercule Poirot.
- Death on the Nile (1978)
- Evil Under the Sun (1982)
- Thirteen at Dinner (1985)
- Dead Man's Folly (1986)
- Murder in Three Acts (1986)
- Appointment with Death (1988)
[edit] DVD Availability
This is the only one of the six films in which Peter Ustinov portrayed Poirot that has never been released onto Region 1 DVD for U.S. and Canadian home video.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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