Death on the Nile (2022)

Death on the Nile (2022)

4/10

 Starring

Kenneth Branagh

Tom Bateman

Annette Bening

Russell Brand

Ali Fazal

Dawn French

Gal Gadot

 

Directed by Kenneth Branagh

The claustrophobic setting of Murder on the Orient Express made it very appealing to see Poirot solve the case in such tight circumstances. Kenneth Branagh’s adaption of the film in 2017 was a joyful ride, even though it felt a tard dull at times. He as Poirot didn’t feel the same as seeing Albert Finney play it or Ustinov’s 1978 adaptation of this movie of the same name. Even though I believe these two trump Branagh portrayal none trumps all three like that of David Suchet, which he did for like two decades.

This new take on another Agatha Christie masterpiece with Branagh working both in front and behind the camera is just similar in take to his first role as Poirot.

There is something about this movie’s plot that makes me mad at the way Branagh decided to adapt it. The movie is also overlay-ed with needless CGI too obvious to miss that I just wonder why. He wanted to be smarter than Christie in his additions here and there, and upstage her in her own novel. Where Christie takes the very complicated and makes it so simple for everyone to follow with no needed addition to where Poirot started. Branagh did the opposite. Christie’s book didn’t look at the past of Poirot, his time in the war or how he got his mustache. The book and the last two adaptions for screen went straight to the matter at hand no needed for overly annoying sexual dramatizing of an two characters. It was obvious there was something off between Gadot (Linnet) and Hammer (Simon), so the whole sexual drama by the Egyptian statue seemed planned to help show their love, but for me it was so unneeded. Another Branagh addition to the story that did not aid the plot.

The book and the previous two adaptions if you have no idea how it will end can drive you up the wall with the minute matters coming to play with twin guns, nail polish, jewellery, theft, blackmail, and murder all happening at once. The case takes place on a luxury steam liner voyaging across the Nile, where Linnet and Simon were having their honeymoon. Linnet stole Simon from her best friend and the two had a hasty marriage and ran away together. Simon poor and penniless, Linnet rich and an heiress boarded the cruise to get away from the jilted ex-lover and ex-best friend Jacqueline.

On the cruise a murder happens as Linnet has her brain blown off. All possible suspects (including Jacqueline) were onboard as we discover that everyone who is anyone on the cruise has a connection to Linnet and will benefit from her death. The whole setup seemed so well crafted that even Poirot had to dig deep to be able to uncover who the killer or killers are.

I prefer the 1978 adaption of Death on the Nile, but the David Suchet version on 2004 in the ITV TV series Poirot was the best. One thing is David Suchet himself. If you ever get the chance to watch the show, do so.

With a cast of A-list actors you will be expecting to be blown away by the chemistry and the fantastic work. But there seem to be some independent claps instead of an ensemble praise. The main power for this plot is Linnet and Simon falling for one another. Well, Gal Gadot and Armie Hammer did not have such chemistry (physically, mentally, or emotionally) their union felt forced with Gal acting ike she rather be anywhere else and it was too obvious to slip by unnoticed.

To note, the plot has been tweaked much enough to add some diversity to the film, some tweaks were worth it. And as I have mentioned in earlier posts, this new desire for every movie to be two hours long sometimes kill the motion. Half way into the movie Linnet was still alive and i could not wait for someone to kill her already. The poor pacing and the length I had to wait for the ball to get going, is a thing of wonder that I did not doze off while watching this.