Thirteen at Dinner

TV Movie
1985
Not Rated
1h 27m

IMDb RATING

6.2/10

2.8K

YOUR RATING

Peter Ustinov in Thirteen at Dinner (1985)

Whodunnit Crime Mystery Thriller

An American movie actress, best known for playing dumb blondes, is Scotland Yard's prime suspect when her husband, Lord Edgware, is murdered. The great detective, Hercule Poirot, digs deeper... Read allAn American movie actress, best known for playing dumb blondes, is Scotland Yard's prime suspect when her husband, Lord Edgware, is murdered. The great detective, Hercule Poirot, digs deeper into the case.An American movie actress, best known for playing dumb blondes, is Scotland Yard's prime suspect when her husband, Lord Edgware, is murdered. The great detective, Hercule Poirot, digs deeper into the case.

Director
- Lou Antonio
Writers
- Agatha Christie
- Rod Browning
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.2/10

2.8K

YOUR RATING

Director
- Lou Antonio
Writers
- Agatha Christie
- Rod Browning
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Photos7

Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Appearing here as Inspector Japp, David Suchet played Hercule Poirot in the television series Poirot (1989), including Lord Edgware Dies (2000), another version of this story. In later years, Suchet has often said that his performance as Japp was the worst of his entire career.

Goofs
During Poirot's solution the long tracking shot of the dinner party during the flashback has been reversed as evidenced by one of the maid's walking backwards behind the seated characters.

Quotes
Inspector Japp: Poirot - buzz off like a good chap, will you? I've got bigger fish to fry.
Hercule Poirot: In a good bouillabaisse the little fish are often tastier than the big ones.
Inspector Japp: What are you talking about?
Hercule Poirot: Add poison, however, and the whole soup is polluted. Then the size of the fish are immaterial.
Inspector Japp: What's fish got to do with it?
Hercule Poirot: It was your own metaphor; I didn't bring the fish...
Inspector Japp: I didn't either!
Hercule Poirot: Stop fish then! Let's leave it out!

Connections
Followed by Dead Man's Folly (1986)

Soundtracks
Die Walküre: Ride of the Valkyries
(uncredited)
Composed by Richard Wagner

User reviews36

Review

Featured review

7/10

Not the best of the Peter Ustinov Poirot outings but still enjoyable

I do much prefer Death on the Nile and Evil Under The Sun, but this is still enjoyable, adapted from the brilliant book Lord Edgeware Dies. Considering it was made for TV, it is glossily made, with some nice camera-work and lovely period detail, and is entertaining. Of course it isn't completely faithful to the book, the final solution scene while a very nice touch is a departure from the book. The script is fine, and so is the acting. Peter Ustinov, while bearing little resemblance in terms of looks to his novelistic counterpart, is thoroughly entertaining as Poirot, and is clearly enjoying himself. Faye Dunnaway is highly commendable in the duel roles of Jane Wilkinson and Carlotta Adams, and David Suchet(the present Poirot, who is actually truer to the Poirot in the books) is impressive as Japp. Bill Nighy is fairly good as Ronald, though he has done better work since. All in all, very good made for TV whodunit, not as good as Death on the Nile, but an improvement on Appointment With Death, which I still think is the weakest of the Ustinov outings. 7/10 Bethany Cox