Murder Ahoy (1964)

Fantastic!

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Worth seeing just to witness how winsome it is.

First of all, this movie really captures Agatha Christie's special blend of light-hearted humor, clever plotting, and atmosphere of genuine tension and danger. Secondly, the cast here is really excellent. Besides Margaret Rutherford, who was the consummate Miss Marple, and her real-life husband Stringer Davis, and Charles "Bud" Tingwell, all three of whom appear in all four of this series, the directors always included fine comedic actors in the casts, such as Ron Moody in "Murder Most Foul", and, in "Murder at the Gallop", Robert Morley and Flora Robson. Here we get the hilarious Lionel Jeffries, whose performance as an uncomfortable ship's captain will remind modern viewers of John Cleese playing Basil Fawlty in the Brit series "Fawlty Towers" (except that Lionel Jeffries is more likeable and sympathetic). PLUS, don't overlook the great character-actor Miles Malleson as one of the trustees--his double-chin and floppy cheeks will be familiar to anyone who knows "Kind Hearts and Coronets" where he played the poetical hangman.

Ever since I was 11 I've loved Agatha Christie and Miss Marple. And while they are not perhaps films that die-hard traditionalists of Christie's work the four George Pollock-Margaret Rutherford Miss Marple films are entertaining enough still. Murder Ahoy is the fourth and last of the series, and for me it is also the weakest. The main problem is the story, which is rather contrived and confusing at points(Christie's lack of involvement and that it wasn't based on any of her work- even with a couple of moments where there are echoes of it- was all too evident here. While the sword-fighting scene is tacky and just felt silly compared to everything else going in the film and while there are some witty and funny moments the script does sketch over the characters too much so we never get to know anybody. However, the setting, locations and period detail are great, and the black and white photography is crisp. Pollock's direction is smooth, the film goes by at a good- if not as zippy as the other three- pace and there are some decent clues and solving of them. But the strongest points are the music and the cast. The music is deliciously catchy, just love the opening theme. Margaret Rutherford steals the film and is simply terrific(if somewhat unconventional) as Miss Marple, her in the naval uniform alone is guaranteed the viewing, while Lionel Jeffries seems to be having great fun as the Captain. Overall, not great but definitely worth watching. 7/10 Bethany Cox

Whilst visiting the monthly meeting of a naval trust set up long ago one of her relatives, Miss Marple is surprised by the rudeness of Follie Hardwick who demands to speak outside of the agenda. Hardwick insists that his news will drop the rest of the agenda as irrelevant and, taking a pinch of snuff, he stands to speak. Seconds later he is dead from a heart attack and the police are called. Marple notices later that someone has stolen the dead man's snuff, but left the snuffbox. Believing the death was murder by way of poisoned snuff, Miss Marple insists on investigating, much to the chagrin of Detective Inspector Craddock.For many viewers, myself included, this is not really a Miss Marple film as we think of it. For most of us this should be a film with Joan Hickson that is very slow and very English, however this is not to say that the Rutherford versions are not any good because they are actually pretty enjoyable. Less of a Miss Marple film, this is more a Margaret Rutherford film because she does her usual performance of huff, puff and sheer bloody-minded persistence. The plot is written around this well and is lively and fun with a surprise amount of comedy for a mystery film. The actual development of the case is not that strong but the whole thing is entertaining enough to avoid having to rely too heavily on just this aspect.The cast make it work as well as it does. Rutherford could be accused of doing what comes naturally but so what if it works? Real life partner Stringer Davis is good value as always in his small role as is Tingwell in the typically cynical Detective Inspector. The crew of the ship are great fun; Jeffries is nearly always funny and he is well supported by Nimmo, Parsons, Mervyn and Benham. Nobody is brilliant and the film belongs to Rutherford, but the presence of some great comedians helps matters.Overall this is an entertaining and enjoyable film that is driven by the force of Rutherford's presence. She may not be a great Miss Marple but she does what she does well. The rest of the cast are fun as well and they manage to cover the fact that the mystery side of things could have been stronger and more interesting. Light fun though.

The story begins with a murder onshore, and then shifts to a harbor bound ship where the real answers to the puzzle can be found. The story isn't really that interesting. But what makes the film worthwhile is Margaret Rutherford. She is wonderful as the overpowering amateur detective, always two steps ahead of the bumbling police.The main problem with the film is the screenplay, with a contrived plot and some rather obvious plot holes. Further, there's a conspicuous lack of character development. We never really get to know the suspects. In some cases, they are interchangeable. It's as if the screenwriters devised the plot first, and then created stick figure characters, to advance the plot.Aside from the script, the production design is weak. And I found the hammy performance of Lionel Jeffries to be mildly annoying. It's like he was trying too hard to be funny. This problem might have originated with the director.Absent the elaborate costumes, the gorgeous scenery, the flashy cinematography, and the star power of blockbuster films like "Death On The Nile" and "Evil Under The Sun", "Murder Ahoy!" is rather humdrum. But what this film does have is Rutherford's Miss Marple, a battleship of integrity, energy, humor, and intelligence. In this film she dabbles in chemistry with gusto, engages in a fencing duel, and in general converts a lackluster script into an enjoyable whodunit.