Ten Little Indians

Original title: Desyat negrityat

1987
2h 17m

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

3.3K

YOUR RATING

Psychological Thriller Serial Killer Suspense Mystery Whodunnit Crime Drama Mystery Thriller

A psychological thriller based on the novel by Agatha Christie. Ten strangers are forced to come face to face with their dark pasts after receiving invitation to an isolated island off the c... Read allA psychological thriller based on the novel by Agatha Christie. Ten strangers are forced to come face to face with their dark pasts after receiving invitation to an isolated island off the coast of England.A psychological thriller based on the novel by Agatha Christie. Ten strangers are forced to come face to face with their dark pasts after receiving invitation to an isolated island off the coast of England.

Director
- Stanislav Govorukhin
Writers
- Agatha Christie
- Stanislav Govorukhin
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

3.3K

YOUR RATING

Director
- Stanislav Govorukhin
Writers
- Agatha Christie
- Stanislav Govorukhin
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Trivia
This is the first adaptation of Agatha Christie's story which follows the novel's original ending.

Goofs
After the first murder, when we see Mr. Owen enter the dining room in the middle of the night and remove the first of the ten china figures (leaving nine), the dining table is clean and set up for breakfast. However, later, Rogers says that he noticed there were only nine figures on the table while he was cleaning up the dining room.

Quotes
Anthony James Marston: [while dancing with Vera, translated from the Russian] Ten minutes ago, I regretted that I came here.

Crazy credits
The credits roll in absolute silence.

Alternate versions
The television print includes a brief interlude right after Vera and Rogers discover there are only seven Nigger statuettes left after General Macarthur's murder. This was done for a separate two night broadcast, with an inter-title simply stating "Agatha Christie's Ten Little Niggers, part two." Curiously, this is the version that was released on home video.

Connections
Featured in Exploitation Cinema (2009)

Soundtracks
Stardust
Music by Hoagy Carmichael

User reviews27

Featured review

8/10

Well worth watching

I won't rehash the storyline which everyone knows but just a few comments:

Plus points: -the first film adaptation which sticks to the ending as outlined in the novel

-dialogue is very much as per the novel. If you know the book well, the subtitles are almost superfluous as you will know what the characters are saying

-the choice of location for filming was inspired. Oddly, the external shots feel more claustrophobic than those inside the house. The crucial scene at the end between Vera and Lombard is powerfully shot with the sea almost a background character on its own.

Minus points: -At times it can be difficult to distinguish Lombard from Blore. Facially, they are very alike.

-The actress playing Emily Brent is too young...equally, the character playing Anthony Marston is some 10 years too old.

-There's something lacking with the interior shots which fail, at times, to convey the cloying claustrophobia so evident in the book. It may be that there are simply too many daylight scenes.

While I prefer the 2015 BBC adaptation, this 1987 Soviet version is in second place, well ahead of any of the previous adaptations.

However, no film version will ever beat the novel itself and the imagery those words conjure up in the reader's imagination. It's still the only book I can pick up and read from start to finish without a break.