The Literate Kitty

Delightfully bringing to mind all of those effervescent, cinematic comedies of the ‘30s and ‘40s—the ones where witty, rapid-fire banter bounced between the leads like a game of profesh table tennis, and love eventually reigned supreme (but only after a whole lot of satisfying ups/downs and assorted feats of derring do)—BritBox’s new Why Didn’t They Ask Evans? ticks all of the boxes for a modern-day, old-school romp… and maaaaaaan, am I HERE for it! *************** Penned (and directed) by Hugh Laurie [Dr. House, anyone?], this screenplay—based on an Agatha Christie story of the same name—is a bonafide classic, interpreted brilliantly. Instead of completely modernizing it, though, and trying to make some grand statement about… well, whatever … he stays true to the heart of it, complete with intelligent main characters who want nothing so much as to solve a good mystery. _______________ While out caddying for his old doctor-cum-fellow-war-vet-cum-mentor, the recently-back-from...

In the mood for a smart detective yarn that requires neither an epic binge session nor an immense cast of characters of which to keep track? BritBox’s The Tower [I watched via Amazon, which counts the streamer among their slate of add-on subscription options] makes for a fine choice. _______________ When a pair of detectives from the Met’s Special Investigations Division—DS Sarah Collins and her partner, DC Steve Bradshaw—are called to take charge at the scene of a tragic accident, they know it means one thing: a police officer was involved in the incident.   Only after they’ve arrived on the scene do they fully comprehend the nature of the tragedy, which has left two crumpled bodies—that of middle-aged beat cop, PC Hadley Matthews, and a teenage girl, Farrah Mehenni—lying facedown, in spreading pools of their own blood, at the base of a multi-story building. Meanwhile, a rookie cop, PC Lizzie Adama, is still on the roof, in shock, holding the hand of a scared five-year-old boy...