Famed Belgian investigator Hercule Poirot (Tony Randall) is in London having quitted smoking and gaining a few pounds. British secret agent Hastings (Robert Morley) has been assigned to be his protection. Amanda Beatrice Cross (Anita Ekberg) confronts him claiming to have already killed starting with AA, a clown named Albert Aachen.
This Poirot is played with much more comedy. It's like they mixed him up with a bit of Clouseau. The Pink Panther was pretty successful at the time and I can see the reason for the attempt. It's definitely stuck in the middle. It's not funny despite the effort. Tony Randall is a comedic great but Peter Sellers' Clouseau is an icon. When the jokes fail, the pacing becomes off and the story drags. I'm still interested in the central mystery. I don't hate Randall's performance although I have no stakes in the character. I'm not an obsessive Poirot fan or even a big Agatha Christie fan. As for the central question with every comedy, I did not laugh once although Miss Marple came close. That scene needs to expand into where the two investigators get into an argument over their cases. The comedy never quite gets there.
This Poirot is played with much more comedy. It's like they mixed him up with a bit of Clouseau. The Pink Panther was pretty successful at the time and I can see the reason for the attempt. It's definitely stuck in the middle. It's not funny despite the effort. Tony Randall is a comedic great but Peter Sellers' Clouseau is an icon. When the jokes fail, the pacing becomes off and the story drags. I'm still interested in the central mystery. I don't hate Randall's performance although I have no stakes in the character. I'm not an obsessive Poirot fan or even a big Agatha Christie fan. As for the central question with every comedy, I did not laugh once although Miss Marple came close. That scene needs to expand into where the two investigators get into an argument over their cases. The comedy never quite gets there.