Stars: Vanessa Redgrave, Dustin Hoffman, Timothy Dalton, Helen Morse, Celia Gregory
Director: Michael Apted
Oscar History: 1 nomination (Best Costume Design)
Snap Judgment Ranking: 2/5 stars
(Spoilers Ahead) It should be noted that the film itself doesn't take place over Christie's illustrious career, but at perhaps the most mysterious moment of it-the famed disappearance of the mystery novelist that attracted massive media speculation (it was on the front page of the New York Times) at the time. After all, the world's most famous mystery writer suddenly disappears in a moment that seems plucked from the plot of one of her books? How could the public not eat that up? Since that story to this day remains shrouded in enigma (the Christies were pretty mum on the situation with Agatha ignoring the event entirely in her autobiography, and at the time claiming Agatha had amnesia though they divorced soon after), this is a series of made-up events, and in many ways they lean heavily into the idea that this could be one of Christie's novels. After all, we have Agatha largely playing a Gone Girl situation here, disappearing into a Turkish Bath (truly random coincidence-I was in Hot Springs, Arkansas last week so I actually got to see a bathhouse similar to that used in this movie for the first time!), and attempting to frame her husband's mistress for murder, while in the process attempting suicide (she's unsuccessful in both attempts).
The film features Christie (Redgrave) as a woman of deep introversion, almost socially-awkward and Hoffman as Wally Stanton, an American reporter trying to get a major scoop on the world's most famous writer suddenly disappearing in the midst of a scandalous divorce. The two actors clearly care about these characters deeply, particularly Redgrave who puts a tenderness around the author that is lacking in the script (which realizes pretty early on that the actual plot, devoid of side characters, is far too thin and so stretches the movie to the point of tedium). Both are fine actors, but they have zilch chemistry with each other, and cannot seem to connect at all, making their fictional romance exceedingly dull to watch. The movie at its best shows the mind of Christie, the way that she tries to pick up things from those passing by to create her characters, or the way her plan is never said out loud, so you have to deduce it the same way you would if you were reading her novels. Unfortunately, these are only short bursts in the film, and the rest is terribly dull. This isn't really a lost treasure other than in describing its plot; the movie itself is best left forgotten, particularly considering all of the truly great work Hoffman and Redgrave did in the late 1970's.
The movie's Oscar nomination was for Best Costume Design, and while it's easy to see why the Oscars honored it (and a nice nod to Shirley Ann Russell, who had been doing showy work for a decade at that point and never been cited by AMPAS), there's nothing special here. The suits are fine, but nothing memorable, and the dresses worn by Redgrave aren't particularly insightful. Yes, she wears frocks and furs as if she's covering up something, but that's about the most basic reading one could make into such a character, and quite frankly may be due more to Redgrave than anything else. Otherwise, this is a case of another period film scoring a citation in a year that was oddly bereft of such opportunities.
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