Rating: 
Summary: Great summer DVD
Review: Great summer DVD: sweltering Mediterranean scenery, caustic characters (Silvia Miles, James Mason, Rodney McDowell, Diana Rigg), insane costumes, and stinging dialogue. Color is bright and dramatic. Music is snappy and ominous. Lots of sun, water, and strange boozey drinks no one touches today.
Rating:
Summary: An Entertaining Way to Spend an Afternoon
Review: Having seen all the Peter Ustinov/Hercule Poirot films, I find something worthwhile about each and every one. The use of Cole Porter's timeless music, the Meditteranean locations, Sylvia Miles, Diana Rigg, Roddy McDowall, and James Mason, and a script chocked full of vicious barbs between the characters makes this a great time at the movies.Jane Birkin's Liza Doolittle-like transformation near the film's end is a stunner!
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Summary: Everyone has an alibi...yet we still have a body
Review: Hercule Poirot ponders a troubling predicament in EVIL UNDER THE SUN. There is a murderer among them, they have a dead body that proves that, yet everyone who could have committed the murder has an alibi. How Poirot overcomes this obstacle and presents the details of the crime is a large part of the fun in this second of the Peter Ustinov star studded Poirot movies after the entertaining and successful DEATH ON THE NILE.
A big fan of the gorgeous Diana Rigg, I was excited to see her listed as one of the stars in this adaptation of the Agatha Christie book.
In fact it appears that my favorite actresses invariably end up being the corpse in these Ustinov Poirot movies. In DEATH ON THE NILE I was attracted to the title because Lois (MOONRAKER) Chiles played the key part of the murdered heiress.
Here, another former Bond girl Rigg plays a famous stage star who ends up as the victim of a plot that is so ingenious and amazing in both its complex nature and absolute simplicity.
The Christie novel was set on the Engliush coast but here the producers have wisely switched the setting to an island resort hotel in the Adriatic which is run by a former chorus girl Daphne Castle (played with some nice humor by Maggie Smith).
Arriving as a guest at the hotel is a former rival of Castle's Arlena Marshall (played by Rigg). As is the case with most Christie novels (and especially DEATH ON THE NILE and 1974's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS), the victim Marshall is surrounded by enemies at the resort. Apart from Smith's Castle they include Roddy McDowell as Rex Brewster who is devastated to learn that Marshall will not allow his biography of her to be published. Also guests at the hotel are theatrical producers Odell and Myrna Gardner (played by James Mason and Sylvia Miles) who hold a grudge against Marshall for walking out on a stage production they had produced. Colin Blakely plays Sir Horace Blatt who made Marshall the offer of a diamond before being jilted by her. Also included in the cast is Nicholas Clay (as Marshall's lover Patrick Redfern) and Jane Birkin as his wife Christine Redfern. Also included is Denis Quilley (as Marshall's husband) and Emily Hone as her stepdaughter. The cast all play their parts perfectly, with equal dashes of humor and drama.
Found dead sunbathing on the beach is legendary actress Arlena Marshall, yet nobody seems to have had the opportunity to kill her. Belgian detective Hercule Poirot must unravel the truth and expose the red herrings to identify the murderer. Ustinov (as always) delivers a tour de force performance and Poirot and is (to my mind) the most consistently entertaining of all the actors to have played the part.
Another alumni of the James Bond series is Director Guy (GOLDFINGER) Hamilton who guides the movie through to its thrilling climax.
Included on the DVD is a vintage documentary on the `Making of EVIL UNDER THE SUN as well as theatrical trailers. The picture quality is good (nicely presented in widescreen) as is the Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono audio track.
Overall this movie is a lot of fun, and the mystery is involving and surprising - factors that make this movie especially entertaining towards the final scenes.
This movie is also available as part of a three-pack along with DEATH ON THE NILE and THE MIRROR CRACK'D or individually. Whichever option you choose this is a fine addition to anyones collection which I have no hesitation in recommending.
Rating: 
Summary: Ustinov is no Poirot!
Review: I am a huge Agatha Christie fan, so this film was adisappointment for me. Overall the set-up and actors were okay, but Iwas very turned off by the performance of Peter Ustinov. Anyone who knows the character of Hercule Poirot knows that he wouldn't be caught dead hamming it up and spouting bad French the way Ustinov portrayed him! Christie's Poirot was extremely vain about his appearance and even dyed his hair! Ustinov takes away all the character's suave, quiet dignity and turns him into a bloated clown. This could have been an okay murder-whodunnit, but Ustinov really ruined it for me. David Suchet really IS Poirot, and it's a shame he wasn't discovered before this movie was filmed! END
Rating:
Summary: Off to summer camp
Review: I am very grateful to my dear, multi-talented friend Sun for introducing me to this delightful, extremely campy film. Based on the Agatha Christie Hercule Poirot whodunit, it makes for an enjoyable 2 hours. "Evil" boasts a terrific cast, a witty script, lovely Majorca locations, a delightful Cole Porter score, and some of the funniest costumes seen on film. The suspense factor is practically nonexistent, but who cares? The story takes place at a resort isle in the Adriatic, run by ex-chorus girl Daphne Castle, played by Maggie Smith. One of the guests is Smith's old rival, Arlena Marshall, a bitchy, Gertrude Lawrenceish musical comedy stage star, played by the gorgeous, fabulous Diana Rigg (that's Dame Diana Rigg to you, nowadays). Arlena has made a lot of enemies, many of whom happen to be staying at the same resort. There's Odell and Myra Gardner, theatrical producers that Arlena left in the lurch when she left a show they had produced, due to "health" problems; Rex Brewster, a flamingly effeminate columnist whose biography of Arlena she will not allow him to publish; her stepdaughter Linda; Sir Horace Blatt, from whom she accepted a fabulous diamond and then jilted him; Daphne, who has carried a torch for Arlena's husband; and Christine Redfern, the plain-Jane wife of studly Patrick Redfern, with whom Arlena is having an affair. Arlena is found strangled to death on the beach, and it is up to Hercule Poirot to find out who the murderer is. The performances, as I said before, are a lot of fun. Roddy McDowell lets it ALL hang out, complete with Tallulah Bankhead voice, James Mason and Sylvia Miles are great as the bickering Gardners, Ms. Miles particularly hilarious as a shrill-voiced harpy (her voice could shatter glass). Maggie Smith, Peter Ustinov as Poirot, and Nicholas Clay and lovely Jane Birkin (so frumped-up in this film, you wouldn't know her), Colin Blakely, Denis Quilley, and Emily Hone as Arlena's stepdaughter round out this wonderful cast. The score, made up of well-known and not-so-well-known Cole Porter tunes, is a delight, and then there are the costumes! Anthony Powell, with a strong sense of camp, designed the outrageous, black, white, red, and navy blue costumes that are a homage to legendary MGM designer Adrian, known for his exaggerated silhouettes, oversized decorations, and stark contrasts. The direction, by Guy Hamilton, who also has the James Bond classic "Goldfinger" to his credit, is capable. The picture and sound quality on the DVD are great, the colors crisp and clean, the sound fine and clear. I highly recommend this film to anyone who has a good sense of "camp"-it's like being at a catty, 2-hour-long cocktail party!
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Summary: Possibly, the Best Mystery Movie Ever!
Review: I can think of only a few movies that combine this much drama, suspense, comedy, superb acting, and images with such phenomenal results! Ustinov is over the top in his role as the famous Belgian detective! Not only does he show his sharpness and intelligence, but he also shows his comical and witty side well. The solution to the mystery is well hidden and concealed, but YET there are subtle things that an intelligent observer can catch on to. I do not want to ruin the solution for those of you who have not seen it. But I will say that almost never before, have I seen such a well developed and diverse group of suspects. This is not a typical dark and scarey mystery, but that in no way whatsoever hampers this phenomenal masterpiece!
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Summary: IF BABY YOU'RE THE BOTTOM.......
Review: I don't care what others say about this delirious souffle',I like it better than the other Christie/Poirot incarnations. For one thing, the others are just too stuffy and rather blah. "EVIL UNDER THE SUN" is a lot more fun---even if it isn't "faithful" to it's source material. The cast is priceless and seem to be having a good time. The photography is gorgeous with on location shooting in the Adriatic and the costumes are way over the top (in keeping with the overall campy tone of the script) but could be what rich, jaded people wore on holiday in an exotic locale. The performances are arch and the characters developed adequately enough to clue you to who's who and what's what. I didn't pick it apart when I first saw it in the theater because it satisfied me then and it satisfies me now on DVD from the reliable Anchor Bay folks. A top-notch quality cast delivers the goods and it's all very tongue-in-cheek anyway so why quibble over moot points when the damn thing is so entertaining? I just enjoy the performances, the scenery and the escapism of Maggie Smith and Diana Rigg as old rivals finally going at it as only actresses of this caliber can do. I think old Agatha would have liked this one!
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Summary: Sous le soleil exactement...
Review: I have seen many books' adaptations in my life but i really think this one is the best.It really recreates the book's atmosphere even in his little details (cf. Poirot and his theory about eggs !).Peter Ustinov is just great as Poirot and you will not see time passed under this nice balearic sun.This movie is 19 years old but it is still much better than most of the actual movies.
Rating: 
Summary: We don't know
Review: It's a story about a murder and it's so good. It's a worth seeing. Now we don't know what to write more and I'll say good BYE!!!
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Summary: Hercule Poirot shows proper swimming techniques
Review: Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot is challenged to locate a missing jewel. To do this he must go to a small island. Guess who has a tendency to get seasick? He requests his fee in guineas (a guinea is equivalent of 21 shillings.) Naturally someone/s is unexplainably dispatched. Of course the island is loaded with the usual suspects. Everyone has a motive and an alibi. By this time you have completely forgotten how the movie started. Speaking about the movie, they pulled out all the stops with expensive locations, costumes and actors. And Cole Porter tossed in for ambiance. There was even an appearance of Roddy McDowall who played Alan "Mollymauk" Musgrave in "Lord Love A Duck" Only Hercule Poirot can figure this out. Naturally Hercule Poirot is in the right place at the right time to hear everything and extract the truth.
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