Thirteen at Dinner

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Matthew D Peter Ustinov is a riot as Hercule Poirot. Director Lou Antonio does fun with his television version of Agatha Christie's murder mystery with his pleasant Thirteen at Dinner (1985). It's not so stylish, but very funny with screenwriter Rod Browning adding plenty of quaint British jokes alongside Antonio's charming direction. Christie's story of the murder of a husband and a double is engaging and complex. I found it easy to follow, but predictable as far as the mystery goes. David A. Simmons' editing is adequate like cinematographer Curtis Clark's steadfast panning shots as Poirot goes around interviewing suspects. It's not a pretty television film, but composer John Addison provides a nice plucky film score. Peter Ustinov's Hercule Poirot is always funny with his grumpy complaints and shrewd intellect with his little gray cells. Fay Dunaway is excellent in her unique dual roles. Jonathan Cecil's idiot assistant Arthur Hastings is awful, but somehow fits Ustinov's style as Poirot. Bill Nighy is fun as a drunk. David Suchet is remarkably fun as Inspector James Japp before he took on the role of Poirot. Lee Horsley is terrible as the dull actor Bryan Martin with no charisma. The side characters are so boring and give Thirteen at Dinner a lackluster sense of drama or suspense. In short, Thirteen at Dinner is not comparable to Albert Finney's Murder on the Orient Express or Peter Ustinov's Death on the Nile and Evil Under the Sun. However, Thirteen at Dinner is vastly superior to Murder in Three Acts as well as Appointment with Death. It's a quirky and pleasant mystery at a brisk pace for a tight 95 minutes. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 09/24/23 Full Review Audience Member Not one of the better Poirot stories. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 12/11/22 Full Review Audience Member In this 3rd effort the formula starts to go a tad wonky and it doesn't help that the BBC's Poirot is in attendance. Ustinov is still agreeable and it's great to see Dunaway but that is about all. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/04/23 Full Review Audience Member Peter Ustinov is my favourite Poirot and he certainly doesn't dissapoint! Movie a bit slow at times and a little predictable but we still didn't work out the 'whodunnit'! Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Audience Member entertaining version of a good Agatha Christie story..., Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member This is one of the early made-for-TV Poirot movies. Peter Ustinov had already played Poirot in the feature films of Death on the Nile and Evil Under the Sun. It is generally well-acted (though some of the performances are a bit hammy). One interesting side note is that David Suchet, who is perhaps best known for playing Poirot, plays Inspector Japp in this feature. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Thirteen at Dinner

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