I'm seeing Kenneth Brannagh's oft-delayed Death on the Nile Saturday night. I'm an Agatha Christie fan and very much enjoyed the earlier adaptation with Peter Ustinov as Poirot. Brannagh's prior Poirot outing--Murder on the Orient Express--was pretty good, even if it pales against the 1974 take with Albert Finney as the little Belgian detective. My guess is that this one isn't going to be a big hit. Opening weekend, Saturday night, 9:30, getting my tickets only two days in advance, and in one of my local cineplex's BIG auditoriums...and EVERY seat in the house is available. Ah, well. I'm sure it will be fun. I love the resolution in this one.
Okay, saw it. So, right off the bat, let me say two things: 1. I've read several Agatha Christie novels, but Death on the Nile is not one of them. 2. I have, however, watched the 1978 film (with Peter Ustinov as Poirot) many times and enjoy it very much. This update has a grander boat, snazzier VFX, and a more racially diverse cast. Alas, it's not as good as the '78 take. The basic plot: It's 1937 and wealthy Linette Ridgeway (Gal Gadot) and her new husband Simon (Armie Hammer) are honeymooning in Egypt, surrounded by acquaintances (Russell Brand, Letitia Wright, Rose Leslie, Annette Bening among others) who all harbor grudges against the lady. They're also being harassed by the constant appearances of Linette's former friend and Simon's jilted fiance, Jackie (Emma Mackey). With the characters all closed in together aboard a luxurious riverboat cruising up the Nile, a shocking murder occurs but the obvious suspect has an airtight alibi. Fortunately, the great Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Brannagh) is aboard to sort out the crime. This is Brannagh's second outing (after 2016's marginally better Murder on the Orient Express) and he's in fine form here. The dashes of humor that come straight from his character work well. The rest of the cast is varying shades of fine. But the biggest surprise: Russell Brand! He has a (near) monologue that is splendidly acted. The actor disappeared and the character was speaking. Very nicely done. An opening sequence (in black and white to clue you in that it's a flashback) has Poirot (a convincingly de-aged Brannagh) in the trenches of World War I, and using his powerful intellect to save his regiment from heavy casualties in a forthcoming attack. This sequence provides an origin story for Poirot...'s moustache. It pays off symbolically later in the film, but I think this was a bit far to go for a small benefit. It's overlong, goes overboard with song and dance numbers, and relies too heavily on exposition. Even if the musical bits are long, the blues soundtrack is unexpected and welcome. The characters and events are roughly the same as the earlier film, but the antipathies toward the (initial) victim aren't nearly as strongly portrayed. And several times we're told what a conflict between characters is rather than shown. Also, the resolution of the case is ballistically improbable and not nearly as shocking and impactful as in the 1978 film. If you have an Agatha Christie itch, this will adequately scratch it, but it's not nearly the modern take on a mystery that, say, Knives Out is. 6.5/10.
Without having seen it or Googled it, but having read the novel.... I'm guessing Brand plays Jim Ferguson?
You would've expected that--that's what I expected--but no. There is no Jim Ferguson as such in the new film (however, his communist sympathies are taken up by another character). Brand is a reworked version of Dr. Bessner called Dr. Windlesham, now a former fiancee of Linette. I think the supporting characters are all quite different from the book (which I have yet to read), but the 1978 film seems like it was a more straightforward adaptation.
Just finished this. Did we really need an origin story for the mustache? I like this series of movies and I hope Branagh does another one. I'm not familiar with the books, but I like these movies. I don't love them, but they are decent. I probably should watch the old movies to see if they are any better.
