Agatha Christie's Poirot : The Mysterious Affair At Styles (David Suchet) [DVD]

I am very satisfied with the DVDs.

This collection is great value for money, and in my view these early episodes - series 1 - 3 - are the best of the bunch, very true to the spirit of Christie's writing, even if the glamour of the wonderful sets, costumes, vintage cars and locations are something of an embellishment, but a very welcome one. It's also great that the characters of grumpy Chief Inspector Japp, loyal but rather dim Hastings, and the scarily efficient but stunning Miss Lemon are in nearly all the episodes. Also, unlike another reviewer I found, the second episode of 'Peril at End House' was there on mine, although it wasn't listed separately - just be patient and don't rush back to the menu list - it will continue automatically.There are thirty 50-minute episodes, which ran on TV from 1989 to 1991, with pristine prints which show up the glorious colour to terrific effect, and excellent sound quality. The 9 discs on one spool might annoy some people, but it didn't bother me. They play in English and it's easy to turn off the Dutch subtitles. However, sadly, there are no English subs for the hard of hearing. The aspect is 4.3, with black borders on each side.In a recent interview, David Suchet said that his brief was 'to be Agatha Christie's Poirot' and that's how he played it, remarkably successfully I would add. No wonder his performance has been described as a global phenomenon. He also says that he gets letters from people in hospital, or those who have recently been divorced, saying that it got them through the dark times. I certainly agree with that. So, what do we do now that we've watched them all - easy, just watch them all again, of course.

i got this for xmas as my son knows i like murder mysteries.the whole family played it in 2 teams, it was very easy to follow and the instructions were easy.you get 4 different guesses along the way to pick the write suspect.as there 3 of us we couldnt decide who it was aswe all thought it was as didfferent person LOLits a fairly long game took us about 3 hrs but then we did have my grandaughter around trying to grab the remote.at the end poriot tells you if you have picked the write person and if not as we had not you can conclude the game and see who it was or play again. for some reason we pressed the wrong button and never found out who did it LOLits agame you can come back too if you dont have time as its on 4 acts and you get a number to put in and it will start the game from where you left off.we havnt tried it again yet but it says evety time you play the questions are different not sure if it means the murder suspect is different too.a very entertaining game and hrs of fun

What a pity Granada have withdrawn this Poirot set: not only was it great value, it brings together two of the best adaptations the series has produced. These are two of Agatha Christie's strongest plots, written when she was at he 1940s peak. Five Little Pigs is a wonderfully stylish exercise with strongly drawn characters and a brilliant conclusion, which, in my own opinion, is more shocking when read on the page - but never mind, this is a terrific adaptation with a uniformly excellent cast and very beautiful locations.Sad Cypress is another vintage Agatha, with a sombre, melancholic mood. Another fine cast here, with David Suchet brilliant as a slightly older, slightly sadder Poirot. Together, these DVDs represent a new pinnacle for the Poirot series, and the advances in film technology have the unfortunate habit of making the older episodes seem slightly dreary by comparison (at least visually). If you can find this boxset, it's a bargain on all fronts.

This is excellent Value for money and the video is of high quality. Just switch off the Dutch subtitles and away you go.A few negative points, I can't find any insert that lists the episodes on each disc. There are no English subtitles for anyone with hearing difficulties. The aspect ratio is 16:9 - even though the actual picture display is 4:3 (as the original). What this means is that the black bars on the side of the screen are part of the image, so using your TV's or DVD players display facilities (such as Pan Scan) to fill the screen with the picture will not work. However excellent VFM.

There is no Captain Hastings in this one.Our favourite sleuth finds himself spending Christmas at a country house all because his central heating has broken down. Alas, there is a murder and off he goes to rescue Chief Inspector Japp who is ruefully spending the holiday with his wife's carol singing relations in Wales.There are plots abounding and the odd red herring. Delightful is Poirot's reaction to the Christmas present given him by D.C.I. Japp and so he has to seek out a gift to give Japp in return.One point niggles at me. We see people leaving the church on Christmas morning and the church clock shows 8 o'clock, however, it is broad daylight. Certainly it is not Scotland, but where in this country in December is it daylight at 8 a.m. or 8 p.m.? I suppose that is what is called a goof.This is a first class and thoroughly enjoyable DVD and is one of my favourites.Do watch it.

I ORDERED THIS BECAUSE I REALLY ENJOY "AGATHA CHRISTIE'S POIROT" AND I'VE WATCHED ALL THE FILMS IN MY POSSESSION AT LEAST FOUR TIMES! I LIKED THE TWO EPISODES ON THIS DVD. I'M GLAD I WAS ABLE TO FIND IT!

Bought this for my partner who is Poirot daft! Great fun for a night in and good entertainment for anyone who enjoys a good murder mystery!