It was nice, as nice as it could be since the book was actually a little bit boring if I remember correctly. At least this ep had interesting actors and flew more easily.
There’s John Hannah as the doctor, there’s Mark Gatiss as Leonard, the son of lord Boynton and the stepson of the horrible woman that will die. Also, Tim Curry as lord Boynton himself!
I think they are all in Syria to visit an archeological site.
Doctor Sarah King likes Raymond but he’s mom’s little slave and is even afraid of introducing himself to her in front of mom. Carol and Jinny are terrified of her and have nightmares regarding their childhood. Leonard is only her stepson, the son of Lord Boynton, but she’s rude to him like to everybody else. Carol is losing her sanity and Raymond seems to want to talk to her about killing her “we have no choice” and him “she has to die” and Poirot hears these last words.
Dr Gerard already knows Poirot from a previous case he consulted on, and likes to talk to him about the people around. Lord Boynton cares deeply about his archeology-mission, and he hugs the girls and Leonard when they catch up with him and even kisses his wife’s hand - to him she smiles.
Boynton tells Poirot the Samarcanda story and Poirot finishes it because he knows it of course.
The horrible old woman said that putting sugar in tea is a sign of a weak character... :-/
Anyway, Lady Leonora Boynton is rude to everyone, she hates everybody and everybody hates her.
When everyone goes on a trip, Dr Gerard goes too because he doesn’t like the idea of staying back with Lady Boynton, but he almost faints and Jinny and Raymond take him back. Jinny and Gerard kiss then she lays beside him to rest.
When she’s found dead Poirot says “your appointment with death madam, it was always to be here”.
Everyone is shocked, but not really heartbroken, if you know what I mean. Only Lord Boynton seems actually sad that she’s dead. In the group there’s also a nun, a businessman and Dame Celia, an adventurer.
Poirot works on the case and says to the colonel that “the voices of the little grey cells they have become to sing to Poirot”.
Raymond tells Poirot that he didn’t kill her only because he lacked the courage but she was a monster. She was controlling, manipulative and cruel.
At night there’s a scream and then Jinny appears with blood on her hands. Poirot finds the nun injured, and Dr King treats to her wounds. It seems the two women fought against a man-slaver.
Apparently when Lady Boynton was still Mrs Pierce she couldn’t have kids so she went for adoption, but here I didn’t totally understand something. Did she beat some children and then sent them back, and only kept Raymond, Carol and Jinny? But Poirot asks the nanny who did she beat, and she said Leslie. She was the one doing the beating, under the evil woman’s orders.
After her death, there were rumours in the stock market and all her shares are now worthless, businessman Cope tells Poirot. The nanny is found drowned in the bathtub. Suicide?
Poirot and all the others go back to the dig and here Poirot has his long moment, where he talks about it from the start, who has motive, who would have gained from it, and blahblahblah,
Leonard tells him: “you can stare at me significantly as long as you like monsieur, I’ve done nothing wrong” , and that word ‘significantly’ seems wrote specially for Gatiss :-)
Leonard planted a fake skull for his father to find it, because he had spent all his life looking for it and he wanted him happy and free of that obsession.
Mr Cope is revealed as the little Leslie that was beaten at the orders of lady Boynton, so he planned against her to ruin her, strip her of her money.
The colonel was there to uncover the trafficking of slave-women, and it was actually the nun.
Celia was a junior maid working for Mrs Pierce when she got pregnant with a guest and gave up her child, Jinny. She hoped that the child would be happy, but heard rumours of her cruelty, so she looked for Jinny’s father and together they investigated the matter and planned to kill her, together. And they did. They poisoned her: Celia used a syringe given to her by doctor Gerard so that the woman couldn’t move or speak, then he put blood inside a ball of wax that melted in the sun , when actually Celia stabbed her right then, when they all thought she was already dead.
He also pushed the nanny to commit suicide. The last bit is quite interesting, when he tells Jinny he’s sorry, then Gerard and Celia state their love to each other, and then he poisons her and then himself, to die together.
Next scene: the ‘nun’ driving away, then walking in the desert and falling down... what does that mean? :-/ that’s her escape plan? Did she run out of gas? Did she get lost?
They changed a lot in this movie from the original story, so, why was this bit really necessary??
Ending:
Raymond and Dr King are together. Jinny and Carol are to go to Egypt together. “Lady Boynton would have said I was constitutionally too feeble, that my skin was too fair, but I think it’s probably time I showed my feeble skin who’s boss” :-)
This should have been the end, instead there’s also a bit where he encourages her to have faith in God and he gives her a rosary :-/ I mean, I like the thing and all, but I don’t like people preaching to others what they should think. A simple ‘have faith and everything will be alright’ would have been enough, simple and encouraging, and for anyone to have faith the way they want it.
ITA La domatrice / appuntamento con la morte
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