Death on the Nile

Having seen the adaptations with both Peter Ustinov and David Suchet before, I approached the newest Death on the Nile as a properly described sheet of "papyrus". As a result, I couldn't fully appreciate the detective plot because I knew who was behind it all – but that's my problem. So I focused more on the acting, the visual presentation and any innovations to the source material and previous adaptations. In terms of the acting, Death on the Nile was embarrassing, even within the individual performances. From a visual point of view, however, the film definitely has something to offer, if only due to the setting in Egypt and on a boat, but some scenes seemed too artificial and contrived. Branagh's adaptation differs quite a bit from the book in its conception: the opening sequence depicting the origin of Poirot's moustache I could have easily been shortened or inserted as a flashback to the plot, and I was a bit bothered by the unnecessary sexualisation of the characters (sexual tension can be built up less blatantly). On the other hand, I didn't mind the slight changes to the characters in terms of gender, victims, etc. Death on the Nile is an appealing and modern take on Poirot, albeit set in the 1930s, which will surely be most appreciated by those unfamiliar with the source material and the other films, but I personally felt that it could have been handled differently (and better?). (02/11/2022)

Unusually personal considering the character of Poirot, however the pre-title sequence in the trenches is one of the most powerful. It's actually takes a while to get going, it's just that Kenneth Branagh has the whole thing so beautifully shot and voiced that there’s not so much as a though of boredom. The seemingly drawn-out exposition in particular starts to make very good sense later on, and once the anticipated "whodunit" kicks in, it picks up in a big way. All in all, this is a really well done mainstream piece that respectably draws on its classic source material while being utterly professional and ultra-modern in its portrayal. If Branagh delivers another Poirot case in a similar style a few years from now, I’m definitely on it. [75%] (02/10/2022)

Perhaps I liked this even more than Orient Express. Branagh is excellent as Poirot and his black and white flashback is the most powerful scene of the entire movie. Although your can hear the paper rustling as for the detective crime plot, the acting ensemble gets the very most out of it. Emma Mackey is just fantastic. And we get to see Armie the Cannibal in his last role as well. Really, really good. (09/10/2022)

I enjoyed this movie in the cinema as opposed to the recent Murder on the Orient Express, which left me completely cold because it was simply a pretentious flamboyant parade of stars with no added value. The filmmakers did not shy away from somewhat tweaking the plot of Death on the Nile. So even though I already knew the end of the story quite well, I ended up being slightly surprised by its development, where the tone of the movie became indiscriminate and somewhat pessimistic. Thumbs up for that. (04/18/2022)

At times Death on the Nile looks like a modern theatre play, at times like a largely impressive colouring book, which is inappropriate for a film of this type. The whole thing is a little bit flat, sweaty, going for power, or rather for effect. Branagh's Poirot is OK, but the rest of the cast is mostly jerking and prancing around. What's missing are real visuals, decent camera work, real sets and, most importantly, a better plot. (05/02/2022)