Yay or Nay: Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears (Film)

So, Olga and I did a watch party to finally get to see “Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears”, and for the first time in a bit, we’re gonna joint review it. For the record, we did our watch party on the app, Kast. We would not recommend it since it caused a lot of problems and trouble-shooting problems for us when we tried it. We settled on Facetiming each other while watching the screen mirror on the Kast app, but that didn’t come without its problems. It involved a lot of sign language, Reddit-thread trouble-shooting, and then finally, it worked! 

Continuing on, however, HOLY SHIT WE FINALLY GOT TO WATCH THIS MOVIE! “Miss Fisher and the Crypt of Tears” was the fan-funded, and fan-wanted movie that was to start off at the cliff-hanger where Season 3 left off, and finish the series in its entirety. I was a little nervous to see it, since it got mixed-reviews in Australia, but did solidly in the U.S. so I wasn’t sure what to expect. What do I (Meghan) think? I loved the movie like I really liked it (as an avid Miss Fisher fan)—but I also am hesitant to say that it got that “Miss Fisher” feel that I was hoping for. There were a few unanswered questions and stylistic choices (mainly plot-related) that I felt were really questionable and deviated from the show’s loveable nature. But more on that in second! 

But this show did deliver the ever-loving hell out of Phryne and Jack shipping and fan-service. And God do I ever live for that. 

Also, there will be spoilers in this review. If you don’t want to see that, skip on down to our rating section of the review!

THE STORY

As taken from IMDB: 

After freeing a young Bedouin girl named Shirin from her unjust imprisonment in Jerusalem, Phryne Fisher begins to unravel a decades-old mystery concerning priceless emeralds, ancient curses, and the truth behind the suspicious disappearance of Shirin's forgotten tribe.

To just give a little more meat to that synopsis, the movie does take place after Season 3’s ending, where Phryne leaves Australia to fly her father back to London, asking Jack to “come after her”. Subsequently, it seems that after those events, Phryne was contracted by a man in London (a friend of a friend) named Sheik Khalil to retrieve his niece, who has been captured and set to hang in Jerusalem. In events not shown, however, during this mission, Phryne has also been wed to a Maharaja (cue some definite drama that shows up later from Jack). Phryne finally rescues Khalil’s niece and sends her safely back to England, only to show up six weeks later and finding out that she was not only pronounced “dead” but that she has flown her plane directly into her funeral service, of which Jack has traveled from Melbourne to deliver a eulogy. 

Out of fear of getting carried away with myself and chronicling the whole movie, basically, Phryne goes on behalf of Shirin to meet her “guardian angel”, who is then murdered at the meeting, leaving behind a mysterious necklace linking to a legend of Alexander the Great, who guarded a sacred tomb, and Shirin’s lost massacred tribe, who died when she was a child. This leads Phryne and Jack to the deserts of Palestine, set to uncover this legend as well as solve a mystery that goes back centuries. 

You can watch the trailer here: https://www.imdb.com/video/vi329563673?playlistId=tt9010738&ref_=vp_rv_ap_0

OUR THOUGHTS

Meghan: So, I will start with the positives. I loved how this movie was able to still keep some of the original banter and dialogue that referred to the show. Phryne is the same as ever, and you never get tired of seeing her on the big screen. There are also character homages to the original cast, Cec and Burt, Aunt Prudence, as well as Dot and Hugh— although if you were expecting them to have a large role in this movie, think again. Other than Jack and Phryne, this movie thrives on introducing a whole new cast of characters as part of the mystery, rather than playing with the original and regular cast (that, say, a regular episode would focus on). 

Olga: Cec and Bert were there??? I did not notice them at all. So that is a negative for me unfortunately. However, I did enjoy the parts that Aunt Prudence, Dot and Collins played. I especially enjoyed the fact that Dot and Collins are gonna have a baby! That said, the original side characters should've been in the movie way more. Their absence took away from the original charm of the show. I would have liked if Dr. Mac or Mr. Butler made an appearance, cause they were some of my favourites. 

Meghan: Second— JACK AND PHRYNE FAN SERVICE! This didn’t disappoint in the least. What the fans have been waiting for, they’ll get, and they even address little subplots we’ve been waiting to get resolved since the season 3 cliffhanger. Although I would’ve loved more one-on-one scenes, the ones we did have were so amazing and left me a squealing mess. Nathan Page and Essie Davis have so much chemistry and they don’t even have to do a lot but say some clever lines in a soft voice! 

Olga: The banter was awesome! Anytime those two speak together, it is pure magic. Watching them feels like a long foreplay when you feel so hot and bothered at the end and yet can never get the release you need. Well... the ending of the movie was like climaxing at last, after your lover has stopped teasing you. And then at the end, you just wanna ride that horse all over. (I have been reading a lot of smutty fanfiction lately cause I am obsessed with #phrack). 

Meghan: As another point, the settings, costumes, and backdrops were superb and definitely within the Miss Fisher series theme. Especially the jaw-dropping location themes— those were definitely a treat. I know that they filmed in Morocco, and it was definitely beautiful to see the desert dunes during a fiery sunset! 

Olga: Settings were awesome! It honestly felt kind of like watching Indiana Jones at times, especially since they were searching for mythical treasures. In other reviews, many people have complained about Phryne's costumes not being as glamorous and fancy as in the show. I have to disagree, cause I still think that they were stunning and chic, albeit in a different way. There was a post on Reddit that I read, that said that Phryne's fashion may have seemed more glamourous in Australia as people typically dressed more plainly there in the 1920s, but in Europe dressed more fancy which would make Phryne blend in a bit more. In any case, I want Phryne's party dress. And also a Jack to waltz me and make me lose all sense. And then come after (or inside) me. (I need to stop reading so much Jack/Phryne fanfiction).

Meghan: However, as with most movies, there were a few shortcomings. Namely, that the story was a little…unexplained, and tried to go beyond the show’s closed “new mystery a week” style. I can’t blame the film for that, but going “bigger” and “brighter” left for a very desirable story, but with missing elements. In terms of this background legend linked with a mystery, there were some parts unexplained— such as all of a sudden magic exists in the Miss Fisher universe, but it’s not explained how or why it works. But it is magic—there is a curse and a sandstorm of doom. That seems to work against the whole premise of the show since, well, it’s a mystery show, not a ghost or fantasy show. It’s about solving mysteries and crime. Not the supernatural. It shouldn’t logically exist in this universe. Also, the motivation for the crime actually isn’t well-explained. They explain it for sure, but I’m still not sure I understand it. That and for all the characters promised— a lot of the main cast was not in it. I was looking forward to the banter of Jack and Phryne, Dot and Hugh, and those two maybe get a minute total on-screen— yet they’re featured as “starring” in the movie. 

Olga: I also get that they wanted something more special and ambitious than what would appear on a regular. However, I kind of missed the familiarity of the regular Melbourne settings. Through watching the shows, I grew attached to the portrayal of 1920s Melbourne, and it felt like that setting was a character itself. So it felt strange mainly seeing the story unfold in England and Palestine. And like Meghan said, the mystery was complicated, unnecessarily supernatural, and I didn't quite get it. Or care about it. I kinda wish that instead of a movie, they did a limited series of new episodes or something, so that they could stick to more sensible murders. 

Meghan: As a caveat, this just didn’t feel like a Miss Fisher mystery. Something that existed in the show, and gave it that charm was missing in this— whether this was the introduction of a new cast or just the sheer length and terrain to cover plot-wise. You’ll feel a bit removed from it as a result. The feeling isn’t the same. It’s still a very enjoyable Miss Fisher feature, but it doesn’t feel the same as the series did, and that’s also something to take note of here. Olga pointed out one interesting thing related to this about Miss Fisher’s character. In one particular scene, she questions why Jack is so angry at her when she shows up at her funeral. She seems very uncaring about the fact that he’s gone through some serious trauma at finding her dead. Now while I agree he probably shouldn’t have avoided her like he began to, Phryne’s “flightiness” over the whole situation is odd. It’s not like her, and she’s in the wrong. In the show, she was always flighty and not “uncaring” but she didn’t let things phase her. She was playful, but she was also empathetic. It seems that the last part was nearly forgotten about in this scene. These were the two main things that I noticed as a result of our viewing. 

Olga: YEAH! That scene felt so out of character for Phryne! Jack thought that she was dead for literally 6 fucking weeks, and she just brushes it off like it was nothing!!!! Does she not remember how back in the show he thought she was dead for like 5 minutes and got so bent out of shape he literally "broke up" with her, nearly became an alcoholic,  and didn't wanna partner on crimes anymore to save his aching heart???? WHAT THE FUCK WERE THE WRITERS THINKING????

MY RATING 

Meghan: Overall, I really enjoyed this movie and I think it did the series justice, even with its shortcomings. ESPECIALLY with Phryne and Jack moments, I swoon for those! If you like the series you’ll enjoy it as well. The only thing is if you live outside of Australia you’ll have to access it through Acorn TV’s streaming services. We recommend getting the 30-day free trial so you can watch the film, and then deleting it if it’s not something you’re willing to continuously subscribe to. 

Olga:The movie was fun to watch, mainly for the Jack/Phryne tension and fan service. Other than that, it didn't really deliver like I hoped it would. But it was still enjoyable and not a complete let down. I STRONGLY urge all of you to check out the show. It's not on Netflix anymore (*cries) but you can get it on Acorn TV (and Youtube has most of the episodes posted). In the show, you can really see the magic of the Lady Detective!

Meghan’s Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐(4 stars) 
Olga's Rating : ⭐⭐⭐(3 stars)