The genre of Murder Mysteries have varied from dramatic tales to comedic and satire pieces, these are two themes that the detective author Agatha Christie works with. The Crooked House is a murder mystery novel written by Agatha Christie in 1949. The book was one of Agatha Christie’s favourite to write with her expressing “writing Crooked House was pure pleasure and I feel justified in my belief that it is one of my best”. The ending of the book was apparently so shocking that Christie's publishers asked her to rewrite the ending, in which Christie refused. The Crooked House does not feature Christie’s iconic character inspector Poirot but instead a ruthless and quirky array of characters. The novel features classic characteristics of the author such as an unsuspected murderer and a bunch of complex characters. Christie creates a feeling of satire within the novel through the unrealistic and darkly comedic actions that take place. The novel was adapted in 2017 into a film, featuring a well-known and awarded cast, however the film was not well received. 

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There are many themes that Agatha Christie explores within the mystery such as loneliness, failed artistic ambitions, insanity and family being the most dominant. The family featured in the novel are all intertwined with each other, relying heavily on Aristide Leonides for security and luxury.  The family is described by one character as being unable to grow up independently, from this the reader gets an unsettling sense that the family is not as they seem. Through the underlying issues within the family, Agatha Christie imposes the question to the reader as to whether insanity is an inherited trait, this is an idea in which the reader can determine themselves.

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My intention is to adapt the Crooked House into a film that accurately explores the themes Christie highlights as well as making it an unsettling comedic watch for the audience. Unlike the less well received film adaptation in 2017, my version intends to exaggerate the characters and expand on their weird and disturbing characteristics. Set in an ambiguous era combing elements from the 1930s and 40’s as well as modern dress, the audience should be unaware of where and when the film is set further adding to the mystery of the plot. The aim of the film is to create a fresh and quirky dark comedy mystery that audiences will find aesthetically pleasing as well as humorously disturbing. The aesthetic of the film should appear overly inviting and sickly with bright and oversaturated colours and prints. The welcoming atmosphere from the set and costumes should keep the audience on edge as they are reminded that a murder has taken place, it will be almost as if the aesthetic is juxtaposing the genre. With the story being made comedic, the audience should be unsettled with whether to laugh or be worried about the events taking place. 

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Using the line “Curious thing, rooms. Tell you quite a lot about the people who live in them”, from the novel, the costumes will be inspired by the house and furnishings. This will require costumes to feature 1930’s and 40’s textile and wallpaper prints, carpets, tile designs as well as prints of stained glass. The characters will appear as though they have morphed into the house, having become intertwined with each other and their surroundings. The theme of distortion and crooked will play an important part within the costumes, the prints and fabrics will be made distorted further adding to the audience's unsettlement when watching the film. Size will play a key role within the idea of distortion, with garments and setting appearing out of proportion. Dark colours and textiles will be used for the characters undergarments and linings in order to present the ongoing theme of murder and to remind the audience that the characters are not as funny and helpless as they seem. Overall, the costumes should work alongside the dark comedy of the film creating an unsettling environment for the audience.