Miss "Marple"

[Famous Mortimer]

http://www.deadline.com/2011/03/miss-marple-resurfaces-and-this-time-shes-no-spinster/

Imagine all the people in the world you'd think of to play Miss Marple in a new film. Imagine a big list. Where would Jennifer Garner be on that list?

I'm genuinely amazed at this news, when I thought it would be impossible for a film company to baffle me again with its ignorance of the source material. In case you don't want to click the link, there's an amazing bit of doublespeak in it:

The character had been portrayed by a long line of actresses who played Marple as an elderly spinster who cracked crimes in her spare time.

They've portrayed her that way because that's how she's fucking written. The entire basis for the character has been removed, for absolutely no good reason. And I'm not even an Agatha Christie fan.

[Small Man Big Horse]

I just read about this on the AV Club, and pictured Jemble's head exploding. It's clearly the most ridiculous idea since...well, that annoying Babies film, which was quite recent. But still, you know what I mean.

[Jemble Fred]

I wonder if they'll even bother to try and throw in some of Jane Marple's characteristics beyond "nice old lady", or if she will basically just be an entirely unrelated woman who just happens to share the name? I liked the idea that Marple had been around a bit in her youth, and witnessed every kind of dark act, but was now too old for all that, and just liked drinking tea with distant relatives and solving murders. Hard to imagine how they'd reflect the character's apparent doddery passivity with Garner. They'll make her some kind of uber-nerd?

Lest we forget...
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0279250/

EDIT: Hoho, timing!

[biggytitbo]

I'd rather see Garners tits than Joan Hicksons, and ultimetly, isn't that all that counts?

[Cerys]

Please let this be an early April Fool.

[Ignatius_S]

A friend and I came up with an idea for 'Young Miss Marple', showing the exciting exploits of Jane 'Mad for it' Marple in her earlier life - instead of thinking of it as a joke, we should have been pitching it.

At least I still have the idea for a Christie and The Shield crossover, 'Marple and Mackie'.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

It's a step in a right direction, as they'd originally cast a bear wearing a policeman's helmet with a ribbon around its neck.

[Jemble Fred]

How's this for a bit of cross-thread linkage...

Agatha Christie's Great Detectives Poirot and Marple Opening

I'll have to check these out sometime. Maybe when I retire.

[Jack Shaftoe]

A friend and I came up with an idea for 'Young Miss Marple', showing the exciting exploits of Jane 'Mad for it' Marple in her earlier life - instead of thinking of it as a joke, we should have been pitching it.

That was seriously being discussed about a year ago by at least one production company. I thought it was a great idea m'self - open up the whole Agatha Christie universe fifty years previous in a LOEG stylee.

[Ignatius_S]

How's this for a bit of cross-thread linkage...

That looks amazing - not Alfred Molina amazing, but amazing enough. Plus, there's a pet duck who could get up to all kinds of shenanigans.

I suspect my idea for a crossover would have more fitting up of suspects and beatings ("For the love of God, you'll kill him... he's had enough Jane.")

That was seriously being discussed about a year ago by at least one production company. I thought it was a great idea m'self - open up the whole Agatha Christie universe fifty years previous in a LOEG stylee.

Ah, we didn't realise we were sitting on a goldmine - we had the idea about three years or so ago, a little while after I dreamt up 'Marple and Mackie'.

Still, at least I still have 'Young Columbo'.

[Zetetic]

That was seriously being discussed about a year ago by at least one production company. I thought it was a great idea m'self - open up the whole Agatha Christie universe fifty years previous in a LOEG stylee.

Higson (of Young James Bond of course these days) mentioned that might be what they're going for on Today (today). Although he noted that this mean it should be set in Victorian England, which doesn't quite fit...

(It was also pointed out at length that the estate hasn't actually made any indication that the current rumors mean much.)

[The Roofdog]

I nearly started a thread about this in TV before I realised it was a film. Article about Garner-Marple and famous characters getting younger in general in the Graun today:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2011/mar/30/miss-marple-jennifer-garner-younger-characters

The thing about this is how you could see it coming a mile away once you heard they were looking to make new Marple. It's just the default position now: remake whatever you want just don't cast anyone who looks like they're the wrong side of 30. Somebody in the Sherlock thread suggested Don Warrington for the role, how brilliant would that have been? Would never happen these days though. I've nothing against Cumberbatch except the tedious predictability of it, same with this Marple remake. If the only way you can make an adaptation original is by casting a lead actor who's half the age the original author intended then I think you need to ask yourself why you're bothering.

Anyhow, I'm looking forward to the remake of 'One Foot In The Grave' starring Matthew Horne.

[Jemble Fred]

I hate to say it – because obviously Marple is an old woman, and the Garner thing is loopy – but surely Sherlock Holmes is in his twenties at the start of his adventures with Watson? Maybe 30 at a pinch? He's quite specifically not an old or even middle-aged character anyway, most of his actions and characteristics would just seem laughable if he was an old or well-ripened man.

[The Roofdog]

Point taken. He is supposed to be about 60 by the time of the final stories, which only puts him around 35 by the time of The Final Problem & Hound Of The Baskervilles and yes, mid-20s in the early stories.

At this point I'd switch to complaining about the age of Doctor Who instead but then Jake'll show up.

[Panbaams]

There could be something in it. Chorion, which owns the rights to Agatha Christie's work, also owns the rights to Enid Blyton's books, and has previously worked with Disney to update the Famous Five.

Does this mean that ITV's Marple series is ending?

[Ignatius_S]

...Does this mean that ITV's Marple series is ending?

I thought with the rumoured Garner project, that Disney had acquired the film rights, not the television ones.

With ITV series, the biggest challenge with it continuing is the amount of source material. I know they've used non-Marple stories to eke it out, but are there any Marple tales they haven't done?

[Panbaams]

I thought with the rumoured Garner project, that Disney had acquired the film rights, not the television ones.

With ITV series, the biggest challenge with it continuing is the amount of source material. I know they've used non-Marple stories to eke it out, but are there any Marple tales they haven't done?

Ah, I didn't know how these things worked or whether they'd want a rival series of Miss Marple stories around if they had plans to make more than one film.

But as you suggest, there may not be much life left in the ITV series anyway – the only Miss Marple novel that ITV hasn't adapted is A Caribbean Mystery. There's a few short stories left, but I don't know how promising they'd be stretched over a 100-minute episode.

[Ignatius_S]

Ah, I didn't know how these things worked or whether they'd want a rival series of Miss Marple stories around if they had plans to make more than one film...

I think I've seen the word 'franchise' in articles about the reported film but in this day and age, I would be very surprised if they were planning to make one film without a possibility.

As the rights are very different, I don't think Disney would have any grounds to stop the ITV version – but if they had and did play hardball, I think they would be shooting themselves in the foot in terms of PR.

That all said, it's been rumoured that the film(s) will be set in America and with making that the character is a much younger woman, so there'll be a fair bit of differential! However, I think characters like Marple are so popular that they can sustain a large number of adaptations – fans tend to lap it up.

I'd be interested in seeing what they do – I assume that they want Garner to appeal to a younger demographic, but we'll have to see. Moving it to the States might be a mistake – my own take is that why so many enjoy watching this things is for the English settings, clothes, locations etc.

... But as you suggest, there may not be much life left in the ITV series anyway – the only Miss Marple novel that ITV hasn't adapted is A Caribbean Mystery. There's a few short stories left, but I don't know how promising they'd be stretched over a 100-minute episode.

Ah, I forgot about that one!

I don't really know the short stories – in fact, my experience is largely confined to Joan Hickson reading a couple (and very good they were too).  My first instinct would be that it would be hard making them into an episode, but thinking about it, I think one could drag it out – throw in a few herrings, new characters etc.

However, one I listened to, the case was solved when Marple got the police to fit the murderer up. Suspecting the dressmaker, she arranged a fitting, stole one of her pins to give to the police, telling them if they say they found it by the body and she'll believe it and confess as she was 'always a stupid kind of woman'. I suspect that they might have to change that!

[Jemble Fred]

But as you suggest, there may not be much life left in the ITV series anyway – the only Miss Marple novel that ITV hasn't adapted is A Caribbean Mystery. There's a few short stories left, but I don't know how promising they'd be stretched over a 100-minute episode.

About 88% of the attraction of the new series is the stellar cast all having a ball in period costume in lovely English village settings, so lack of plot isn't too much of a handicap – most of the episodes so far have been massively rewritten, updated and filled with lesbian sex and the like already anyway.