mystery mondays: Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle

Jeremy Brett

Jeremy Brett is by far my all-time favorite actor to portray Sherlock Holmes (one of my all-time favorite characters). between his performance, the fine work of the BBC, the gorgeous sets, and the quality of the rest of the cast, you end up with mystery perfection. in The Blue Carbuncle we get an extra fun dose of Sherlockisms thanks to Brett who keeps his snark a little bit playful, perhaps because it's Christmas time, but his wit and sleuthing are still sharp as ever.

this mystery is a more light-hearted one as it's not based on a murder, but a theft. it's chock-full of charismatic characters from the valet to the royalty. I highly recommend this episode, and actually the entire series. (except for the full length features. for some reason those aren't as well executed as the episodes.)

mystery mondays: To Catch A Thief

Alfred Hitchcock. Cary Grant. Grace Kelly. need I say more?

in one of my favorite Hitchcock movies we follow the story of a  former jewel thief. a rash of new robberies imitating 'The Cat's' techniques has ensued and the odds are stacked against Grant. the community, the police, and even his friends don't believe him that he's retired. who is framing him and why?

our Cat gains some unusual allies: two stinkin' rich Americans on holiday and a jewelry insurer from Loyd's of London.

the French Riviera, the late 1950s, cheeky sarcasm, reckless mountain car chases - what's not to love? 

mystery mondays: Murder on the Orient Express

a despised billionaire, a famous detective, a train who's tracks get blocked from an avalanche, a murder, and multiple motives: in this 1974 Agatha Christie adaptation you get to know many characters quickly, in tight quarters, and somehow it works. I won't provide a spoiler, even though this movie has been out for over 40 years.

it's one of those a-crime-within-a-crime stories really, featuring an all-star cast, with Albert Finney as our dear Poirot. he does a fine job, albeit a little over the top, of portraying our eccentric detective, who he himself is a little over the top. (personally, David Suchet will always be my ideal Poirot.)

the film stars Lauren Bacall, an overbearing chatterbox, Anthony Perkins, Jacqueline Bisset, Vanessa Redgrave, Michael York, Ingrid Bergman who won best supporting actress, and who doesn't love Sean Connery (or a good mustache for that matter). I highly recommend this movie for a great fall or winter whodunnit if you haven't already seen it.

Jake and I are huge mystery fans, especially Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie stories. so weekly I  plan to share details of some of our favorites, as well as some we have yet to discover.