#the flat direction and rather stodgy overall shape of the film. and i have to add i think it was pretty brave of Taylor to take a part

[mariocki]

The Mirror Crack'd (1980)

"Lola, dear, you know, there are really only two things I dislike about you."

"Really? What are they?"

"Your face."

[thisbluespirit]

#opens with a fake film within the film‚ a supposed creaky old bw Brit mystery thriller with an old dark house and a thunderous storm#outside and character actors par excellence assembled; it probably says a lot that this slightly wry pastiche is the most fun i had with#this film and I'd genuinely rather watch a full length version of that potboiler than this. the rest of the film is *fine* but almost#aggressively so‚ and a Christie adaptation with a cast this starry should be more than fine. stays true to the book in keeping Marple on#the periphery of the plot (faithful maybe‚ but questionable movie making practice) and gets a little muddled in the later stages#but Hudson is giving a great late stage performance and the witty‚ bitchy dialogue between Taylor and Novak frequently dazzles#Novak in particular is so clearly having an enormous amount of fun playing up the vain‚ backstabbing actor role that it almost overcomes#the flat direction and rather stodgy overall shape of the film. and i have to add i think it was pretty brave of Taylor to take a part#(boozy difficult superstar past her prime and slipping into insignificance) that could easily have been branded autobiographical#by the crueller among the press. this is a bit of a mess all told‚ and certainly underwhelming‚ but there's small joys to be found

The Mirror Crack'd (1980)

"Lola, dear, you know, there are really only two things I dislike about you."

"Really? What are they?"

"Your face."