Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *
Cast: John Malkovich, Andrew Buchan, Rupert Grint, Eamon Farren, Fraya Mavor, Michael Shaeffer, Shirley Henderson, Kevin McNally, Bronwyn James, Christopher Villiers, Anya Chalotra, Tara Fitzgerald, Suzanne Packer, Eve Austin, Jack Farthing, Tamzin Griffin, Lizzy McInnerny, Ian Pirie, Cyril Nri, Gregor Fisher, Neil Hurst, Henry Goodman.
No one actor has the monopoly on a character, not one viewer has the definitive right to install as an absolute god their chosen performer in the role in which others can bring a different dimension to the flaws and assets possessed of those brought to life before an audience; it is perhaps not even the right of the imaginative soul who brought them into existence to dictate who should don the greasepaint of any one individual who is there to glean insight into the human condition.
That said, there are some roles that are not easily identifiable in the hands of another actor, characters who have been built up to resemble the heart of the actor instead of the other way around, roles such as Agatha Christie’s Belgian detective, for many the role will always be associated with David Suchet, for right or wrong, he inhabited the greatness of the man and his own detailed odd uniqueness with absolute insight.
Much loved he may be in the role, surely even Mr. Suchet would agree that Poirot should always be kept fresh, always given the right to breathe and in the updated, arguably revised, version of The ABC Murders, John Malkovich does much to add a different, and welcome, dimension to the investigator’s distinctive charm and armoury.
It is always a pleasure to see actors such as Andrew Buchan, Kevin McNally and Shirley Henderson on television screens and employing a certain stylish gravitas to the matter and the story at hand, in the ABC Murders though that gravitas is elevated with the inclusion of both John Malkovich and Rupert Grint to the proceedings, the former for the seismic on screen strength he carries like a hundred pound cannon ball ready to tear down perceived notional walls of what it means to be an actor, the later in respect for the youthful baggage he is unfortunately labelled with as part of the Harry Potter series of films in which he starred with absolute conviction.
Sarah Phelps’ adaptation of Ms. Christie’s work is riveting, one that leads down a false trail of intrigue, leading the viewer to suspect that one of fellow crime writer Colin Dexter’s rules of reveal is broken indiscriminately but instead is marvellously paraded as the finest of ruses, a clever and cunning deception in which to really get the armchair detective’s juices flowing.
With enjoyable supporting performances from Eamon Farren, Freya Mavor and in particular Anya Chalotra, the 2018 version of The ABC Murders deserves to breathe in its own collective sharpness, alert to the decay of time, mindful of the imagery it is asking the audience to witness, especially with the comparisons between the unsightly and vile rise of Fascism on British streets, one that employs a different touch to the great detective with polish and care.
Ian D. Hall