Ten Little Indians (1959 TV Movie) User Reviews

not bad but not the best version

[scott-palmer2 · 7/10 · 31 August 2009]

This TV version of Agatha Christie's best-selling novel was filmed in 1945 and shown on TV in England in 1949, as well as 1959. In fact, the 1959 TV version aired in the U.K. a mere five days before this one was shown in the U.S.

The story remains faithful to Christie's original work for the most part; action is set on Indian Island where ten strangers have been invited for a weekend by an unknown host. They are all accused of past crimes, and are murdered on by one, according to the nursery rhyme.

The difference in the ending here is that Lombard, who has apparently been shot by Miss Claythorne, is actually NOT dead and arrives on time to shoot the real murderer to death, just before he attempts to hang the final victim.

The technical credits and direction are very good, as is the acting from the superb Barry Jones and Romney Brent. Kenneth Haigh, James Kenney and Peter Bathurst are also good. The one poor acting job comes from Nina Foch as Miss Claythorne, often overacting. It doesn't help that she's close to 10 years older than Kenneth Haigh, as she is supposed to be the "love" interest here-she seems more like his mother! All in all, a quite good production-unfortunately however it was done in slightly under an hour-some times we have one body discovered within seconds of another-it should have really been at least 90 minutes long.

Easy to overlook, so don't.

[ksdilauri · 7/10 · 20 June 2023]

When you're in the mood for a quick Christie fix, and don't mind getting it from an old, very low-budget made-for-tv quickie flick, consider this rarity. Surfing thru the offerings on streaming this evening, I happened upon it, and normally would have given it a pass--especially considering its faded, technical antiquity and the only recognizable name being reliable Nina Foch (among other roles, the Egyptian princess who adopts baby Moses in the 1956 "Ten Commandments".) The other players, while capable, seemed like they'd all blur together, and the faded black-and-white print looked to have been made on a shoestring. But with its brief running time, I gave it a look and was glad I did. It moves along and tells the tale briskly enough that you don't have time to be bored (closed-captioning helps a lot with the accents too.) I'm glad I checked it out.

And Then There Were None.......

[Steven H. Price · 10/10 · 8 March 2001]

This is a rare, live television Presentation of one of Agatha Christie's most famous mysteries. First aired on NBC on January 18th, 1959. Quite well done, with great performances from it's cast, Most notably Jones as the Judge and Brent as the Doctor. The movie only runs about an hour, which makes some of the plot appear rushed, but it doesn't make the movie any less enjoyable. This version actually follows the story more closely than you would expect. It is the only other version, (besides 1945's And Then There Were None) to keep the location at the secluded Indian Island Mansion. And it is in glorious black and white, which also makes viewing entertaining.

Those who don't know the story,(and those who do) will probably not be let down. The plot is: ten people are invited to a remote mansion on an island. When they arrive their missing host (via phonograph) accuses them of crimes he believes they have gotten away with. Soon the group begins to grow smaller, as their "Host" begins to kill them off one by one, according to the TEN LITTLE INDIANS (of course) nursery rhyme. Soon they realize their "Host" is among them, and they have to figure out who it is.

This is a highly entertaining flick. I have seen every version of this movie That I can find, the only version I haven't seen is the russian version, Desyat Negrityat, And this is one of my favorites. It doesn't surpass Rene Clair's "And Then There Were None" but for that matter, none of the remakes have. But the performance of the killer (I won't say who) is quite good. And for those who don't know the story, you will probably not be able to figure out who the killer is until he reveals himself (or herself) at the end. The only two places that I have seen it available are Videoflicks (Where I got my copy) and EBAY. If you like the story(Or just a good mystery) view it if you get a chance.

*****/*****

One of the better adaptations of one of Agatha Christie's masterpieces

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 27 May 2013]

And Then There Were None has been one of my favourite books of all time since I was 12, it was my first Agatha Christie book actually and made me a huge fan of her work very shortly after. This 1959 adaptation is one of the better ones of this truly great book, surpassed only by the Russian version- the most faithful- and the Rene Clair version. The worst one is the 1989 film and in my opinion the only one that didn't do anything for me(the one 1974 has its issues but to me it wasn't that bad). This adaptation could have been 20 minutes longer(it's just under an hour and I think that's too short), some of it read of one murder after murder and not quite enough of the suspenseful interplay between the characters and Nina Foch overdoes it as Vera. However, it is beautifully filmed with a location that suits the mystery very well. The dialogue is witty in a subtle way, and also thoughtful and intelligently written, while the story is true to the book, surprisingly well-paced for a film as short as it is and has a good amount of suspense and tension. And yes you are kept guessing until the end, which is different from the book(in all fairness the book ending is very difficult and until I saw the Russian version I'd cited it as unfilmable) but doesn't feel too disappointing or contrived, like I used to think this particular ending did. The version I feel that does this alternate ending best is the 1965 version though. Expecting Foch, the acting is very good especially from Barry Jones and Romney Brent, a good thing as I have always considered Wargrave and Armstrong the most interesting characters of the book. To conclude, nicely done and while not the best version of a masterpiece it is one of the better ones. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Pretty Good

[dac87 · 28 November 2003]

This rare version of Agatha Christie's book/play TEN LITTLE INDIANS is probably the movie version that is the closest to the actual book. The movie starts with ten strangers arriving at an island. After a strange voice accuses each character of murder, the people start dying off one by one. The movie only lasts an hour, so all the event happening in the movie happen in one night. Nina Foch plays the heroine, Vera Claythorne, very well, though she seems a little old for her part. TEN LITTLE INDIANS also contains rare 50's commercial clips. The movie is highly enjoyable and pretty thrilling compared to the other versions, for example:

SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER!

In the other film versions, when the killer is reavealed, He merely explains his motive, tells Vera to hang herself and kills himself. In this version, however, the killer chases Vera around the room and cries, "I must have my hanging!" Then the hero, shoots the killer and saves the girl. The one problem with this picture is that EVERYBODY was supposed to die! Oh well, none of the other versions have this ending either(except the Russian version, which I have not seen.) so we'll just let that detail slip by. I'm not saying this is the best version of TEN LITTLE INDIANS, but it's not bad!

NOT BAD.....A MUST FOR FANS OF THE STORY

[marseilletarot · 13 July 2003]

I really enjoyed this one, and it moves along quite nicely. Yes, it is only an hour long, but it is cohesive and well-done. I have seen every version save for the 1949 TV version, and I must say that this is one of the better ones. My ranking would probably go 1.Desyat Negrityat, 2.And Then There Were None, 3.Ten Little Indians (1959), 4.Ten Little Indians (1966), 5.Ten Little Indians (1989), 6.Ten Little Indians (1975). You can find a copy from "Movies Unlimited." It's an old TV print, but it's not so bad. I am keeping my fingers crossed for a digital remaster one day.