Murder with Mirrors

Murder with Mirrors is a 1985 TV movie based on the Dame Agatha Christie mystery novel, They Do It with Mirrors, using the novel's US title. The film is set in a youth detention centre run by a charitable American educationalist in England. It stars Helen Hayes as Miss Marple and Bette Davis as her old American friend from their days touring Italy as young ladies. Miss Marple is called on to investigate possible causes of her friend's deteriorating health. However, as Miss Marple keeps her friend company, her attention is soon diverted as she stumbles over a dead body. A murderer is at large in a house of suspects, and a race against time begins. The film marks Helen Hayes' last appearance as Miss Marple; indeed, it was her last film role. The film also stars John Mills, Tim Roth, Leo McKern and Dorothy Tutin. The novel has since been dramatised twice more: first with Joan Hickson as Miss Marple for the 1980s series, and then with Julia McKenzie for Agatha Christie's Marple. Both of these used the novel's original title.