Rating: 
Summary: The GARDENER did it!! Or did he??
Review: +++++
I watched this movie without reading the 1932 Dame Agatha Christie novel that it was based on. I'm glad I did this! Why? Because it forced me to really watch the movie in order to try and deduce who the murderer was.
As a brief synopsis, the murder takes place on the grounds of a mansion called "End House" that's owned by an accident-prone wealthy socialite. As it turns out Hercule Poirot (David Suchet) meets this wealthy socialite when he sustains an accident while on vacation and is at End House when the murder occurs. This case is quite perplexing to Poirot and as the investigation proceeds he admits that he "understands nothing." Thus, he needs the help of several people to bounce his ideas off. These people are Captain Hastings (Hugh Fraser), Chief Inspector Japp (Philip Jackson), and later on Miss Lemon (Pauline Moran). Eventually another person that's a resident of End House is killed (?).
Poirot's three helpers in this crime mentioned above don't want him to buck his system of solving murder mysteries. As it turns out, Poirot manages to solve the murder in the nick of time just before he is about to give up.
Who are the people of or associated with End House? They are as follows:
(1) Wealthy socialite Magdala "Nick" Buckley (Polly Walker)
(2) Commander George Challenger (John Harding)
(3) Frederika "Freddie" Rice, Nick's friend (Allison Sterling)
(4) Playboy Jim Lazarus (Paul Geoffrey)
(5) Ellen, Nick's maid (Mary Cunningham)
(6) Alfred, the maid's husband (Joe Bates)
(7) Gardener Bert Croft (Jeremy Young)
(8) Milly Croft, the gardener's disabled wife (Carol Macready)
(9) Lawyer Charles Vyse, Nick's cousin (Chris Baines)
(10) Maggie Buckley, another of Nick's cousins (?)
Of all the actors mentioned, Suchet's performance stands out (as usual). He does a stellar job in depicting the super sleuth. Other performances to look for are those of Polly Walker and Allison Sterling.
What I like about the final scene is that Poirot not only deduces who the murderer is but catches several other people for criminal offences.
The cinematography of this movie is visually stunning. The costumes are authentic looking. As well, the background music adds to each scene.
The DVD (which has the movie in full-screen format) has the usual text extras. Newcomers to the series may find these interesting.
The only minor problem I had with this movie (initially made for TV) was that roughly in the middle of the movie there is a "to be continued" notice given. (This was because the original movie was televised in two parts). Then the opening credits begin again. I found this distracting.
In conclusion, this is a fun movie, even if you have read the novel!!
(1990; made for TV; 100 min; 10 scenes; British drama; color)
+++++
Rating: 
Summary: Another solid Poirot adventure
Review: A young woman is murdered during a party where a fireworks display is featured. Just moments before, she borrowed a distinctive jacket from her cousin, who was wearing it. It seems clear that the cousin was the intended target. Once again, it is up to Hercule Poirot to ferret out the culprit. This is yet another solid entry in the POIROT series, with David Suchet providing the definitive portrayal of the Belgian sleuth. Hugh Fraser, Pauline Moran and Philip Jackson all provide solid support as usual. Another must-see for Agatha Christie fans. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Another solid Poirot adventure
Review: A young woman is murdered during a party where a fireworks display is featured. Just moments before, she borrowed a distinctive jacket from her cousin, who was wearing it. It seems clear that the cousin was the intended target. Once again, it is up to Hercule Poirot to ferret out the culprit. This is yet another solid entry in the POIROT series, with David Suchet providing the definitive portrayal of the Belgian sleuth. Hugh Fraser, Pauline Moran and Philip Jackson all provide solid support as usual. Another must-see for Agatha Christie fans. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Oh how Poirot figuers this one out!
Review: Agatha Christie at her best and David Suchet at his best with that ever present cast of assistants. Don't be fooled by what you see at the beginning for the plot has a very different ending full of twists and turns. Attempts at murder and then a real murder or are it two murders? A great film to add to your Poirot collection!
Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENT! YOU MUST SEE THIS MOVIE
Review: first of all i would like to tell you that this one of the most intellegent Hercule Poirot movie, Agatha Christie have ever made. It is not David Suchet wich is Poirot, Poirot is Suchet... with his speach, intellegence and charm, David acts as poirot very very very well.and remember, as in all of Agatha Christies films, it is not what it seems to be. so, The only way to find out who the murder really is, is to not accept your eyes or ears... do yor self a favour and see this movie...
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant....
Review: I've been purchasing the AcornMedia Poirot mysteries--feature-length DVD as well as 3-pack 50 minute episodes--and was quite pleased to discover PERIL AT END HOUSE (an extended DVD of 103 minutes) is excellent. The resolution and clarity of this DVD is quite good and better than THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES, though I like these mysteries so much I did not find the quality of the latter offputting. This is not a Criterion restoration by any means, but then we are not paying Criterion prices. The End House of this story is a magnificent old home sitting on a point of rocks that juts out into the sea in the West Country, said to be Cornwall in the film. The owner of End House, a young woman named Nick Buckley, is played by Polly Walker (ENCHANTED APRIL, RESTORATION), a beautiful and talented young actress. As usual with these masterful BBC productions, the film is brimming over with all sorts of period touches including the 20s-30s architecture, planes, trains, automobiles, boats, and fashionable clothing including the fabulous resort-wear Poirot sports. The BBC doesn't miss a beat. The dance band with lead tenor singer is pure Rudy Vallee, the golf clubs, victrola, and wristwatches are the sort one might find in Aunt Louise's attic. Even the poisoned chocolates are pure art deco. Oops...did I say poisoned chocolates..don't want to give away the plot. Speaking of the plot, I thought it was pretty clever. At least it fooled me the first time I saw it. As always, it's fun to watch the second or third time and study the behavior of the killer..oh yes, there is a killing, a murder if you will, and of course, Japp, Hastings, and Poirot are together on the case. Even Miss Lemon, or should we call her Madame Lemoine, joins in the chase. My husband commented over and over about the old cars and planes--he could identify them all by name and year. He said he enjoyed looking at them, but I noticed it was Polly Walker's name he looked for in the credits. As usual, the BBC provides entertainment for everyone at our house.
Rating:
Summary: VERY SAID
Review: It is a great movie but, sadly enough it is without Widescreen and subtitles i was dissapointed, but it was not the movie's fouldt.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Intriguing!
Review: Not as good as ABC, Lord Edgware, and 1,2,Shoe, but still a 5-star show! It's nice to see Hastings and Lemon in a two-hour feature! The show has a nice twist at the end, and a great feeling of surealness all through-out. Some plot aspects reminded me a little too much of Miss Marple's "The Mirror Cracked From Side to Side"
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Intriguing!
Review: Not as good as ABC, Lord Edgware, and 1,2,Shoe, but still a 5-star show! It's nice to see Hastings and Lemon in a two-hour feature! The show has a nice twist at the end, and a great feeling of surealness all through-out. Some plot aspects reminded me a little too much of Miss Marple's "The Mirror Cracked From Side to Side"
Rating: 
Summary: Anyone can have a bad day
Review: One of the weaker of the Poirot series, "Peril at End House" starts out promisingly enough as Poirot and Hastings arrive for a vacation on the Cornwall Riviera. The early sequences in their luxurious, Art Deco hotel are prime for the series, and whenever the film pauses to soak up the atmosphere, it's entertaining enough. Things start to slip once the story starts. The mystery is not terribly compelling and the solution pretty obvious. (Even Poirot admits as much when he suddenly figures out the key to the crime.) The pace throughout is uneven and distended. The disc also rather bizarrely includes the "to be continued" title at the end of the first half, as well as the introductory credits to the second. While the programs were no doubt aired in two parts, none of the other features released by Acorn so far have kept the titles. They are obtrusive less for themselves than for the reminder they give us that the story itself is split in two, with the redoubtable Miss Lemmon arriving in the second half to give Poirot information that she just as easily could have provided in a telegram. While Miss Lemmon does figure prominently in the concluding scenes, her presence never really makes sense. Both she and Chief Inspector Japp have little to do but hang around, waiting for Poirot to solve the crime. The ramshackle plotting doesn't prevent a few winning moments, chiefly the by-play between the regulars. Unfortunately, the rest of the characters are not terribly interesting, and in a couple of cases (a supposedly Australian couple living on the grounds of the protagonist's estate, for example) are downright obnoxious. The Cornwall locations are lovely, although even the visual style of the episode seems just a bit "off," with the production design a tad tacky by the standards of the rest of the series. In the best episodes of "Poirot," story, design, character and atmosphere work in harmony. Here, bits and pieces are constantly sticking out as we wait for events to sort out. It feels less like a mystery than a muddle.
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