Murder on the Orient Express Review
For some reason, I have always been drawn to murder
mysteries. I especially like the set-up of the “house party murder” mystery
movie. A bunch of people go to a house or mansion and they start dying
one-by-one, or one person dies and the rest have to figure out who the killer
is. I have always found much joy in the set up. I love “House of Haunted Hill”
and I love watching it every Halloween. I have enjoyed all versions of “And
Then There Were None.” One of my favorite Family Guy episodes is the two-part
parody “And Then There Were Fewer.” There is something intriguing about the
murder being in the same vicinity as all the innocence and how they must figure
out who the killer is. I find great fun in the premise.
“Murder on the Orient Express” is pretty much like “And
Then There Were None” except on a train. Sort of. People aren’t dying left and
right. You will have to forgive my ignorance, but until tonight, I had no idea
that both the “And Then There Were None” and “Murder on the Orient Express”
were books written by Agatha Christie. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised though,
both stories are clearly born from the same wheelhouse. Christie’s “Murder on
the Orient Express” is one of many Hercule Poirot novels she wrote, which
revolved around a Belgian detective of the same name, who self-proclaimed
himself as the best detective in the world.
“Murder on the Orient Express” has been adapted four
times, including this 2017 version, and now I am curious in tracking down the
other versions in watching them, simply to see how they differ from this
version. In the 2017 version, we have Kenneth Branagh playing Poirot. He’s got
his mustache twirled at both sides, he’s got stylized hair and a stylized
costume, and he speaks with a peculiar accent. It’s clear why Poirot
self-proclaims himself the best detective in the world, he sees things the
average commentator would easily miss. He’s like Shaun from USA’s “Psych”
except with a wild accent, and wilder appearance and living in the 1930’s.
We meet Poirot at the tail-end of a job, and now he’s
ready to go home for a quick vacation before signing onto another case. A
friend gets him on the Orient Express to travel across from Jerusalem to
Europe. The trip seems to be going normally until the train derails from an
avalanche, and there is also the death of Samuel Ratchett (Johnny Depp) a slimy
American businessman Poirot encounters on the train. Everyone is a suspect and
Poirot has to solve the case before the train gets put back on the rails and
before they skid back into the station, where the police will just bag anybody
they see fit, apparently.
The train features an all-star cast; including
Michelle Pfeiffer, Daisy Ridley, Josh Gad, Willem Dafoe, Derek Jacobi, Leslie
Odom Jr, Judi Dench, Penelope Cruz, and Tom Bateman. That cast right there is
enough to get anybody excited, but I was bit nervous. When literally every
character, supporting or lead, is occupied by a star-studded actor, it can lead
to “The Departed” or it can lead to “Bonfire of the Vanities.” Sometimes all
those egos get in the way, the director doesn’t manage them, and it can run the
risk of failure. Kenneth Branagh has already made his share of films, and
managing several personalities is something he has mastered. The result is a
well-acted, fun mystery movie. It’s definitely a hyper-stylized take on the
material, where all the details are almost otherworldly and there is a ton of
CGI. I won’t say that it overly- relied on the CGI, but more natural scenes may
have fit the story better.
All the actors do incredible work here, all pushing
towards a collaborative goal of telling a good story and telling it well. I can’t
honestly say that anybody sticks out in particular, and I think the entire cast
hits some strong strides throughout the film. No doubt, the character that will
keep your eyes glued to the television will be Branagh’s Poirot. It’s such a
strange performance that you will either like him or detest him. There may not
be any middle ground. I will admit that I was entertained by Branagh’s
performance, even if it’s a little hammy and overreaching at times.
No doubt the biggest problem with the film, and this
has been a problem in a number of Branagh’s earlier films, is the guy is
completely devoid of shooting action. When things get action-packed, no matter
however so slightly, everything seems hard to follow. Branagh makes confusing
action scenes, even in Marvel’s “Thor,” that it takes you out of the experience
all together. There are only mere moments when things absurdly break out into
action, and those are the moments that fail hardest in the movie. If Branagh is
going to continue to put action sequences in his movies, he is going to have to
get better at directing them.
The film is more dreamy than realistic, but there is a
grandeur feeling throughout the whole running time. Haris Zambarloukos’
cinematography makes each scene absolutely luminous, like you just woke up and
took a plunge into your wildest dreams. The music by Patrick Doyle is operatic
in a powerful way. The screenplay by Michael Green works in a fairy formulaic
way according to other movies like these, but keep in mind I never read
Christie’s book before seeing this, I never saw the other versions before
seeing this, this is my first exposure to this story. There are definitely some
tropes that Green abides by, but the film plays fun overall. The film is a
technical marvel and the all-star cast definitely came to play, and everyone
delivers a memorable performance.
FINAL GRADE: B
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