As I’m still taking a break, away from the bustle of the city and normal life, I have the luxury of sitting in front of the fireplace, re-watching my favorite Miss Marple DVD’s.
One of the first I popped in was Ordeal of Innocence.
I’ve already written a post titled Richards Ordeal on it a while back, but something else jumped out this time around.
Philip Durrant is not the nicest of characters.
He’s a womanizer, philanderer and all around sleazeball.
What is interesting is how he manages to influence the ladies unlucky enough to fall under his spell.
Then I realised it was all about the touch.
His power comes from his ability to exude his control over the women in his life with a physical superiority.
The strained relationship of Durrant and his wife is complicated by his disability, caused by polio. After being the one in control, he is forced to accept her help in basic matters and his movement his limited by the wheelchair.
Money played a huge role, especially that Durrant has none, but wants plenty.
There is a chilly atmosphere between husband and wife, but the touch seems intimate.
After the gentle kiss placed on her wrist, he follows it up by saying she has a frozen heart.
His wife isn’t the only woman he charms.
He controls his ex-lover and plays on her fears.
By placing his hand on her shoulder, he tries to remind her that after the time that has passed, he can still influence her.
This is powerful, as she is already under significant strain and shudders under his touch.
The physical contact seems to remind her of the sins of the past and how much influence Durrant had on her.
This is the moment Philip’s wife realizes that she is not the only woman in the household that has fallen prey to Durrant.
It is a powerful moment that could have had significant consequences.
Like any jealous woman, she decides to have her revenge and points to her sister as a possible murder suspect.
Hell hath no fury…
I Want to be a Pin Up 
One more character for my ‘wish list’!!!
As Miss Marple films go, it’s not the best, RA looks OK in it, but it doesn’t really give him an opportunity to shine. Having said that, it’s a good little piece to pass the time and there is a charming clip of RA as Durrant picking up the phone to call the police to inform them them there’s been a murder.
I adore how you have an Armitage ‘wish list’! Don’t we all 🙂
As my options here are very limited…my wish list is getting big… lol
I bought this DVD as part of my Miss Marple collection and it was pure luck that RA was in it. That meant I didn’t have to invest in yet another RA DVD 😉
Having said that I will be buying Strike Back when I get my hands on it. Hmmm I’ll pay to get my hands on Porter 😉 Has a nice ring to it LOL!
He does have the touch 🙂 I’ve only seen this one multiple times on YouTube. I’m not as big a fan of masterpiece mystery versus their classic aka period drama hence no need to actually own the DVD you’ve got his best bits lined up here without the audio … 🙂
LOL! I love a good murder mystery and should be thankful that Armitage isn’t killed in the first scene, or at all for that matter 😉 I wouldn’t mind it if he turned out to be the naughty killer. I believe that would be quite intense. Then again it’s not like RA hasn’t played a character who goes from good to bad in a heartbeat…
Have you read the book? I purchased it after watching the Ordeal by Innocence DVD. The onscreen Philip Durrant bears no resemblance to the Philip Durrant character of the book. Complete opposites, actually! I was surprised, but didn’t really mind – RA plays the bad boy so well! One of my favorite scenes is when he realizes he has been caught by the housekeeper after his tryst with Hester.
I’m actually a huge Agatha Christie fan and have read and re-read her books an alarming amount of times 😉 I love this Miss Marple and Poirot TV series because they twist the stories and they bare little resmblence to the original. That way knowing the book doesn’t mean I know whodunnit in the TV series.
RA would make a brilliant murderer! The reveal would be amazing!