Review of Evil Under the Sun (1982) by Samuel M — 22 Jan 2014

"MURDER IN PARADISE".

- 'Evil Under the Sun' is a 1982 murder mystery based on the famous novel by Agatha Christie. After the big success of 'Death on the Nile', Peter Ustinov makes his second appearance as Hercule Poirot, the Belgian detective, and we get to see reappearing cast members Jane Birkin (wife of French singer Serge Gainsbourg) and Maggie Smith (Harry Potter saga). Another brilliant, but nowadays very old fashion 'Whodunit' with an ingenious plot set at a marvelous island and a unexpected revelation in the end. Can you solve this case?

Trying to find how millionaire Horace Blatt ended up with a fake diamond, the famous Hercule Poirot (Ustinov) goes on investigation to an exclusive island resort. He is welcomed by Daphne Castle (Smith) who owns the hotel and gets introduced to the wealthy guests: glamorous and recently wed Hollywood actress Arlena Stuart Mashall along with her husband Kenneth and stepdaughter Linda, the quirky writer Rex Brewster and New York producers Odell and Myra Gardener. Seemly slight out of place are the handsome young Patrick Redfern and his mousy wife Christine (Birkin).

When Arlena is found dead on the beach, Poirot examines her body and concludes that she has been strangled by one of the people on the Island. While everyone had a good motive to get rid of the awful woman, nobody seems to have had the occasion to do it...