The purple hair infection was, sadly, terminal. They had to bury Liz in a bath of acetate.
The Mirror Crack’d (1980) is another Miss Marple special from Agatha Christie, and recounts a murder on a movie set, as Hollywood invades a small British town. Suffice it to say that, while quite twisty, the storytelling is also a little brittle, perhaps brought on by the abrupt segues that seemed characteristic of the 1970s moviemakers, or perhaps the rather large cast. The lesson of this tale is somewhat atypical for Christie, as an unfortunate transmission of a virus by the murder victim, who did not know she was infected, results in the birth of a retarded baby.
A sad commentary on the realities of a world. Let not innocence stand in the way of sudden death, Agatha might be heard to mutter.
But, for completists, this is a bonanza, crowned by Tony Curtis and Elizabeth Taylor, bringing the glamor of a, by then, bygone age – and its seamy underside.
Enjoy, but you may have to work at it.
