Surprisingly incoherent and boring

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

I may not be able to bring much new to this discussion. People here have already been heaping praise on this episode, and they are completely justified. It is one of the best. I watched this the same day as "Cat Among the Pigeons" and I think I marginally prefer the latter, but both of these are masterful and very different plots, with dramatic integrity and unique styles. "After the Funeral" takes place appropriately after the funeral of one Richard Abernethie (John Carson) as his dysfunctional family gathers at Enderby Hall. They're an interesting lot: less loopy than the Serrocolds from "They Do It With Mirrors" but not as vicious as the Cloades from "Taken at the Flood". Initially all of the characters seem rather unpleasant, but as the story progresses we come to see the good in them. All the characterizations are fully drawn, and even though there are many, I felt as though they had all had an ark of sorts. The best characterization of all is the murderer. Monica Dolan absolutely makes this episode in her dual role as Miss Gilchrist and her victim Cora Gallacio. The performance is simply superb, character, motivation, and one of the ingenious plots in the series all seem inextricably linked. The reveal at the end comes courtesy of an extra chilling detail, which I won't spoil here. I'm sorry I gave away the murderer's identity but I think many of the other reviews already have. The cinematography in this episode is also stunning. Very bright colors particularly greens at Enderby Hall, where there is also a stark contrast with the jet black cars from the funeral procession, and the smart suits of the guests. Then in the final drawing room scene, there is an aura which seems almost as if fog was floating through the room. David Suchet is fantastic as usual but I think Dolan actually manages to take his spotlight in the last third. Robert Bathurst makes for a good sidekick, his demeanor and his crush on Helen Abernethie (Geraldine James) are very endearing. Michael Fassbender who would go on to be nominated for two Oscars, turns in a very early performance yet he already shows great potential. (Suchet claims to have anticipated a great career for him and several others.) If you like the Poirot series, see this episode, but, let's face it, you probably have already.

After the funeral of a wealthy old fellow, a dotty great aunt makes the announcement that he was murdered. No one pays her much mind until she's done in, more brutally, with an axe. The family solicitor decides this is a job for Poirot, before the whole family is done it.Not only is there the double murder, Poirot has to deal with a drastically changed will -- or is it a fake? Or can it be that the whole family is lying? In Agatha Christie's world, characters only exist to have something to hide.Later "Poirot" episodes can go off the rails. While the show never strived for the fidelity of, say, the Jeremy Brett's Sherlock Holmes, "Poirot" shows after the turn of the century occasionally leave Agatha Christie in their dust while they pursue ridiculous little stories of their own.One change that has helped the "Poirot" series as a whole is keeping it in an ideal 1930s. The music is invariably good, the sets and clothes are fabulous (and look like they've never been lived in). The Great Depression might be referred to, but no one actually suffers from it.Keeping the setting in the 1930s has been a positive boon to some episodes (such as "Third Girl" and "Cat Among the Pigeons" both lesser and later Christie books but which rank among the better late "Poirot" episodes). "After the Funeral" originally had characters facing post-Second World War shortages. These characters, however, still live in a sort of "Downton Abbey" mindset.Also welcome in "After the Funeral" is the element of humor often shoehorned into the earlier "Poirot" episodes. The later, feature-length "Poirot" episodes often forget that murder can be a heavy subject and a spoon full of sugar will help the medicine go down.While this episode (unlike others in the series, such as the abysmal "Appointment with Death") does show fidelity to the source, at least where the murderer and the victims are concerned, some characters have been altered, and I think for the better. Most notably, one character has been changed to an aspiring missionary, leading to tough and ultimately touching lifestyle decisions. It's probably another case where certain people will come down hard on "Poirot" for "religious overtones" stating, without foundation, that Poirot was not a religious characters in the books. I can only say they have not read the books very carefully. Christie might disguise it in Poirot's pidgin-French phrases like "le Bon Dieu" but it's a rich mine to be excavated. The religious overtones in this episode are not at all preachy in the way of shows who shoehorn in environmentalist messages about saving the planet and the coming "Global Warming" apocalypse. I, for one, think it's healthy to see characters wrestling realistically with the problems of faith that are so dear to so many people. For people whose faith is unfaith, Christians are either Elmer Gantry or Ned Flanders. People without faith in their lives, especially in the entertainment industry, can often stereotype people of faith as driven by guilt, or mindlessly cheerful, or utter hypocrites. It's nice to see the rare television episode where the vast middle ground is explored, however slightly. On the whole, despite (and perhaps because of) the changes from the original book, "After the Funeral" is a quite good later "Poirot" episode, not nearly as dark as gloomy as usual. Kudos. It's a keeper.

Some less than inspired opening string music notwithstanding, we somehow know that from the word go this is heading straight for the "big fun" drawer. By the time we observe Monica Dolan (in a truly genius bit of casting) delightfully goofing it up as Cora early on we're already hooked, but it is only later on when she reveals herself in her marvellous screen creation, that deranged, scheming, desperate queen of murder and deceit posing in the guise of the uptight Miss Gilchrist, that she not only effortlessly steals the entire telemovie for herself but quite simply blows off screen anyone who comes near her, including the ever well measured David Suchet who himself seems to be somewhat bedazzled by her acting talents and, very gentlemanly, allows her to take centre stage. Dolan is the true engine of the film and her Miss Gilchrist a genuinely well rounded character in this Christie rendition, helped by a zesty script and the sprightly paced direction - and also by the rest of the cast led by Geraldine James and Robert Bathurst, who all display signs of sympathy for the given material and play with relish accordingly.The production values are spot on as usual, and if there are any weaker links they might be located in the comparatively substandard music score to the majority of later Poirots, and also perhaps in the lacking of a genuine Italian-born actor for the role of Cora's husband. Other than that, this is an hour and a half of pure televisual delight which is as self indulgent and entertaining as it is lovingly put together.

David Suchet is Agatha Christie's mustached detective Hercule Poirot in "After the Funeral," produced in 2005. Anyone who has heard David Suchet speak with his own British accent knows what a shock it is, because his accent as Poirot is so perfect and organic to the character. Suchet is the Poirot of Agatha Christie's books, and although I confess a love for Peter Ustinov in the role, his portrayal doesn't have that much to do with what Christie wrote.In this episode, Poirot is asked by a solicitor friend to investigate the possible murder of one of his clients. Enroute on the train, the solicitor recounts the events after the death - a strange will disinheriting the expected heir and the pronouncement of the man's sister that he was murdered. When Poirot meets the family, he discovers adultery, lots of secrets, another will and murder.The story is excellent with rich production values and a wonderful, detailed depiction of the time period. All of the acting is superb, particularly from Monica Dolan, who plays Miss Gilchrist. Poirot here is without Hastings, his beautiful office, or Miss Lemon but he's effective nonetheless.I had the privilege of seeing David Suchet on Broadway in "Amadeus." Breathtaking. What an actor - when he's playing Poirot, all I see IS Poirot.