Sleuth

Format read: paperback
Reading time: 2 hours
Tags: theatre, satire, modern, detective fiction, mystery, drama, comedy, dark humour
Own a copy: yes
Reread likelihood: 7/10

Summary
Andrew, a detective fiction novelist, is an aging gentleman who is at risk of losing his wife to a younger man, Milo. To test Milo's mettle, Andrew decides to play a dangerous game of burglary, murder, and mayhem, and invites young Milo to his house where a series of events take the test of courage to new levels as Milo decides to play the game, too.

Review
I used this play in class in the context of detective fiction writing. The play is a satirical take on the genre as the playwright, Shaffer, mocks the genre's traditions through his characters. Andrew is a man who is bent on playing games, the same way that great literary detectives spend their idle time in between crime-solving. Milo, on the other hand, is much more down-to-earth and realistic. His view of detective fiction is negative as he associates it with class and gender issues, a false sense of superiority, and an all around pompous activity for the rich.

Milo is constantly picked on by Andrew for being ‘foreign' (of Italian and Jewish descent), which is a nod at Shaffer's main inspiration, Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot. Though Poirot is neither Italian nor Jewish, he is also regularly judged on the basis of his non-Englishness. Contrary to Milo, Andrew is more of a Sherlock Holmes kind of character as he sees himself as incredibly clever, more so than Milo, and he comes up with hare-brained ideas and theories worthy of the great detective.


Andrew (Laurence Olivier) and Milo (Michael Caine) in ‘Sleuth' (1972).

I also watched the 1972 movie version of the play in conjunction with the text, and the screen adaptation does a marvelous job at capturing Milo and Andrew's personalities and quirks. The play is a high-paced, action-driven story with many twists and turns that are hard to predict. I would recommend watching the movie after the play as I think they compliment one another very well.