The Witness For The Prosecution (2016)

Fans of the 1957 film starring Charles Laughton, which was thrilling and funny, will be wary of the changes made to Agatha Christie's plot in this grim 2016 BBC TV miniseries (for example the inclusion of two grubby sex scenes, the absence of Laughton's cantakerous, cigar-chomping Sir Wilfrid Robarts who is replaced by Toby Jones's poor, unhappily married solicitor with a tragic backstory, not to mention a very unexpected second trial for the murder of Kim Cattral's Emily French), but as things proceed it becomes clear these deviations are not simply changes for the sake of change - this is not an update but a tv miniseries adaptation and purists will come to appreciate and will be kept on their toes by the clever embellishments.

★★★★☆

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