Ten Little Indians
Directed by George Pollock
Written by Peter Yeldham and Harry Alan Towers from a novel by Agatha Christie
1965/UK
Tenlit Films Ltd.
First viewing/Amazon Instant
[box] Ilona Bergen: He’s dead drunk!
Dr. Edward Armstrong: No, Miss Bergen. Not drunk. Just dead.[/box]
Those who have seen And Then There Were None (1945) will find no surprises but it’s pleasant viewing with a cast including some of the best British character actors.
The setting of Christie’s whodunnit has been changed from an island to a snowed-in and isolated Alpine ski resort. A mysterious man named U.N. Owen (get it?) has invited a diverse group of people to a house party. Oddly enough, none, including two servants hired for the occasion, has ever met the man. Before the first evening is over a recording informs the guests that they are all guilty of unpunished crimes and as a result will lose their lives before the weekend is over.
The rest of the film proceeds as one guest after another bites the dust. Eventually, it becomes clear that the killer must also be one of the guests. Will anybody survive? The victims/murderers include: Leo Genn, Wilfred Hyde-White, Dennis Price and Stanley Holloway among others.
This is a good story and relatively well told. It has something of a 60’s TV vibe to it. Just don’t expect anything new if you are already familiar with the plot.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KobbZ8VDI00
