Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		3.0

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman July 23, 2020

Phryne Fisher certainly has one of the more unusual first names in the annals of fiction, and fans of the source novels by Kerry Greenwood that gave birth first to the television series Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries and then to this feature film may remember that the name was actually a bit of an “error” at her christening, when her “planned on” name of Psyche was misremembered and she was dubbed Phryne instead. For those unaware, Phryne (pronounced “Fry knee”) was an ancient Greek courtesan whose forward ways evidently repeatedly got her into trouble, and so the name might be more appropriate for Greenwood’s character one way or the other. Miss Fisher (Essie Davis) is what might be termed a proto-feminist, wreaking havoc with men’s egos in the late twenties in some globe trotting adventures. Miss Fisher is more than able to take care of herself, as she almost delights in telling males who show up to putatively “save” her from time to time, and that self reliance certainly plays into Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears, though this story may want to figuratively have its cake and eat it, too, by also exploring more traditional star-crossed romantic aspects with regard to the character.

While the film works perfectly well as a standalone property, it does rely on character developments that occurred through the three seasons of the series. Those interested in such back stories may want to peruse Michael Reuben's reviews:

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries: Series 1 Blu-ray review

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries: Series 2 Blu-ray review

Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries: Series 3 Blu-ray review

Fans of the series will probably already know that if there's a scene with an unidentified woman scurrying to escape some sort of "official" presence like the police, it's probably going to end up being Miss Fisher. With that in mind, while the film ostensibly opens in Palestine in 1929 (Morocco evidently filled in for some of the "Middle East" locations), and the unidentified woman seen in the opening sequence is wearing something akin to a burka, you can still rest assured that once the "outer layer" is discarded, it is indeed Miss Fisher. Miss Fisher is on a quest to free a Bedouin princess named Shirin Abbas (Izabella Yena), who is being held in a prison by British authorities for reasons which are frankly never made overly clear. Of course Miss Fisher succeeds in her quest, but not before making the local British official apopleptic with her interference. In just one of several almost "cliffhangers" whose resolutions are completely avoided within the film, the daring escape of Miss Fisher and Shirin on top of a train presumably ends badly when Miss Fisher, unable to get down off the top off the car after having gotten Shirin to safety, supposedly meets her fate when the train enters a tunnel. Unsurprisingly, Miss Fisher of course survives without any clear explanation about how she managed to, but a much later sequence also sees her dangling off a second or third story outside ledge of a building, another spot of danger which the film just moves past without explaining how she got herself to safety.

While there are murders (of course) in this mystery, the actual underlying plot verges more on what almost be thought of as Indiana Jones territory, with Miss Fisher trying to get to the bottom of a memory Shirin has of her entire tribe being wiped out a decade previously when Shirin was just a little girl, and with a subplot that involves a supposedly cursed stolen emerald. Shirin’s Uncle, Sheikh Kahlil Abbas (Kal Naga), has become a “player” in London society, and he’s trying desperately to get his niece accepted there, urging her to forget what the Sheikh insists are invented memories. In the meantime, while a bunch of Miss Fisher’s friends have gathered to eulogize her, in the wake (no pun intended) of her presumed death atop the train, when she makes one of her patented entrances during the funeral, her relationship with Detective Inspector Jack Robinson (Nathan Page) is unsurprisingly on rocky ground, not necessarily only because Miss Fisher has married a Maharajah.

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears may frankly be too confusing to ever really register as a mystery, but its action elements are well handled as Miss Fisher, Jack, Shirin, and a supporting character named Lofthouse (Rupert Penry-Jones) return to the deserts of the Middle East to figure out what happened to Shirin's tribe, and also to discover the secret behind the immense emerald that Miss Fisher discovers after one of the murders. It's patently silly, of course, but the film has a certain visual sweep, despite some perhaps ill considered CGI and green screen work. But the chaotic "Moishe the Explainer" sequence toward the end which supposedly wraps everything up in one neat package made next to no sense to me personally, despite me going back and watching sections of the film again. Suffice it to say that in true "Agatha Christie" fashion, there's a "hidden relationship" between a couple of the characters, but I have to say any even cursory exploration of what that relationship means puts several other relationships detailed in the film into completely illogical territory.

Still, the film offers what has been elements of the series' greatest strengths, namely a very handsome production design and some fun, energetic performances. The closing credits offer a long list of participants in what was a crowdfunding effort for this film, and the fact that Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears has a wrap up obviously designed to get the heroine on to her next adventure may mean that requests for more moolah from fans may be forthcoming.

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Acorn TV and RLJ Entertainment with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.00:1. I haven't been able to dredge up any authoritative information on the shoot's technical data, but the fact that Roger Lanser, who lensed the series, is back as cinematographer, may (may) indicate this was shot with the same Sony CineAlta that Michael mentions in his reviews of the series. One way or the other, this is a really beautifully detailed presentation almost all of the time, especially with regard to some of the finery seen on costumes, upholstery and props. The palette is often beautifully vivid, especially in little bursts of color like the bright yellow biplane Miss Fisher makes her entrance in during her own funeral (it's an outdoor funeral, fear not). As mentioned above, some of the CGI looks pretty soft and not very well detailed, and there are selected moments that sure looked to me like they were shot in front of a green screen, where the backgrounds just look almost hazy and kind of Impressionistic. There are also several brief but noticeable bouts of banding during sudden light changes.

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears features a nicely boisterous DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track that gets good mileage (in more ways than one) out of "vehicular" scenes like the escape on the train or the later entrance via biplane (even later scenes have a pair of biplanes soaring over the desert). Several crowded scenes in both Palestine and England also offer good engagement of the surround channels. The fun score, which features plenty of era appropriate music, also wafts through the side and rear channels winningly. Dialogue is offered cleanly and clearly throughout this problem free presentation.

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Behind the Scenes (1080p; 19:38) offers some decent interviews with cast and crew, but relatively little candid footage (there's quite a bit of interstitial material from the actual film, albeit often in short snippets).


• Cast & Crew Q & A (1080p; 17:50) has many of the same folks seen in the above featurette gathered together on chairs answering various questions.


• Essie Davis Interview (1080p; 12:06) looks like it was done in tandem with the Cast & Crew Q & A.

Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

A slight spoiler in the form of a joke is about to be disclosed, so those averse to such things are best advised to stop reading now. There's an old joke in the "mystery biz" that goes something like "the butler did it", and if Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears comes perilously close to riffing on that idea, it does so without any clear contextualization of what exactly is the backstory of the ultimate culprit (there are of course several "intervening culprits" in the form of red herrings). This mystery may not ultimately make much sense, but the physical production here is quite winning, and the performances are similarly energetic and fun. Technical merits are generally solid for those considering a purchase.