Dead Man's Folly (film)

*Dead Man's Folly*
Dead Man's Folly
Based on	Dead Man's Folly; 1956 novel; by Agatha Christie
Written by	Rod Browning
Directed by	Clive Donner
Starring	Peter Ustinov; Jean Stapleton; Constance Cummings; Tim Pigott-Smith; Jonathan Cecil
Music by	John Addison
Country of origin	United Kingdom; United States
Original language	English
Production
Producer	Neil Hartley
Production locations	Cliveden, Taplow, Berkshire, England; Harrods, Brompton Road, Knightsbridge, London, England; West Wycombe Park, West Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England
Cinematography	Curtis Clark
Editor	Donald R. Rode
Running time	94 minutes
Production company	Warner Bros. Television
Original release
Network	CBS
Release	January 8, 1986
Related
	Thirteen at Dinner; Murder in Three Acts;

Dead Man's Folly is a 1986 British-American made-for-television mystery film featuring Agatha Christie's Belgian detective Hercule Poirot.^[1] It is based on Christie's 1956 novel Dead Man's Folly. The film was directed by Clive Donner and starred Peter Ustinov as Poirot.

The cast included Jean Stapleton, Tim Pigott-Smith, Jonathan Cecil, Constance Cummings and Nicollette Sheridan. It was shot largely on location at West Wycombe Park in Buckinghamshire, England.

Plot introduction[edit]

Hercule Poirot and his associate, Captain Hastings, are called in by his eccentric mystery author friend, Ariadne Oliver, to a manor house in Devon. Oliver is organizing a "Murder Hunt" game for a local fair to be held at Nass House, but she is troubled by something she cannot quite put her foot on.

Things take a turn for the worse when during the "Murder Hunt" the girl playing the "dead" body is murdered for real. Soon afterwards, the lady of the manor mysteriously disappears and an old man's body is pulled from the river. Poirot must discover who and what are behind these seemingly unconnected events.

Cast[edit]

Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot
Jean Stapleton as Ariadne Oliver
Constance Cummings as Amy Folliat
Tim Pigott-Smith as Sir George Stubbs
Jonathan Cecil as Captain Arthur Hastings
Kenneth Cranham as Detective Inspector Bland
Susan Wooldridge as Amanda Brewis
Christopher Guard as Alec Legge
Jeff Yagher as Eddie South
Nicollette Sheridan as Hattie Stubbs (as Nicolette Sheridan)
Ralph Arliss as Michael Weyman
Caroline Langrishe as Sally Legge
Alan Parnaby as The Boatman

Sequels[edit]

In 1974, Murder On The Orient-Express was released, starring Albert Finney as Hercule Poirot. As Finney was unable to reprise his role in 1978, for the sequel, Death On The Nile, Peter Ustinov was cast. He reprised the role for Evil Under The Sun in 1982 and later committed to several made-for-television-films. Apart from Dead Man's Folly, Murder In Three Acts and Thirteen At Dinner were released. Another screen adaption of one of Christie's novels in 1988, Appointment With Death, marked Ustinov's final portrayal of the Belgian detective.

References[edit]

^ O'Connor, John J. (8 January 1986). "TV REVIEW; USTINOV IN 'DEAD MAN'S FOLLY' ON CBS". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 16 March 2023.

External links[edit]

Media related to Dead Man's Folly (1986 film) at Wikimedia Commons
Dead Man's Folly at IMDb
Dead Man's Folly at the TCM Movie Database
Dead Man's Folly at AllMovie

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[1] O'Connor, John J. (8 January 1986). "TV REVIEW; USTINOV IN 'DEAD MAN'S FOLLY' ON CBS". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 16 March 2023.

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