And Then There Were None

And Then There Were None
by René Clair

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Movie Reviews of And Then There Were None

Movie Review: A delightful and thoroughly entertaining classic film
Summary: 5 Stars

One would have to have lived one's life in a cave not to have heard of the story behind this film, based, as it is, on arguably Agatha Christie's most famous novel. Thankfully, the original title has long since been changed from the inconceivably offensive TEN LITTLE N*GGERS to TEN LITTLE INDIANS (Agatha, what were you thinking?). Actually, there have been a vast number of permutations of the story in various films, both explicitly based on Christie's story, or only derived from it in some fashion or other.

Ten individuals are mysteriously invited to a mansion that sits alone on an isolated island, all with a dark secret to hide. Mysteriously, one after another dies a mysterious death. The plot is excruciatingly simple; the execution by director Rene Clair is phenomenal.

The cast is superb though despite the absence of any leading performers. Louis Hayward is the ostensible lead, but his career was largely that of a supporting player. What the film has instead is a collection of absolutely first-rate character actors. The great Walter Huston (who would win a Best Supporting Actor Oscar three years later in his son's THE TREASURE OF SIERRA MADRE) steals many of the scenes he is in, but one of the talents of a great character actor lies in scene theft. Barry Fitzgerald robs a few of his own, as does the brilliant Mischa Auer, whose early demise robs him of the opportunity for additional larceny. Roland Young was one of the greatest character actors of the thirties, and although he made other films after this one before his death in 1953, this was probably his last great role. I love the vastly underappreciated Richard Haydn, who always looked decades older than he was (only 40 in this film) and who never starred in a film but managed to embellish a large number, my favorite being, perhaps, BALL OF FIRE, where he played Prof. Oddly, the expert on botany (who gives an hysterical account about the birds and the bees). In this film he plays the Butler.

One could make the case that this is one of the most influential films ever made. Parts of the plot have been borrowed for countless other films, but in my opinion, none managed it more successfully than this one. A must see film.

Summary of And Then There Were None