The film Murder on the Orient Express was a primer for something better. When it hit right around 2017, there were flashes of brilliance, intrigue, and a chance for Poirot to be revived by Kenneth Branagh. The latter of the bunch is the most successful part of the movie. The issues? The story pacing was all out of whack. We had too much of a beginning because Fox probably thought we all needed to know who everyone was in detail, not enough beef in the middle to stir up the mystery, and too much at the end that it felt a bit crowded when the reveal was on its way.
To say that Knives Out did it better in 2019 would be an understatement.
But three years have passed since the first Branagh release, things were learned, and now we have Death on the Nile, a much tighter, more refined mystery with better pacing. Is it perfect? Not at all, but it’s darn good.
Let’s get into it.
Official Synopsis
Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot’s (Kenneth Branagh) spectacular Egyptian vacation aboard a riverboat becomes a terrifying search for a murderer after a picture-perfect couple’s honeymoon is cut tragically short. Based on Agatha Christie’s novel, this tale of passion and jealousy is filled with wicked twists and turns until its shocking finale.
Going into this film, please note that you’re not going to get a Knives Out set of characters, though the structure of the murder mystery in this film is set in the same way. Agatha Christie novels are classic and set the tone for how murder mysteries should be done for the past 100 years. Having written 80 or so stories on the matter, she is the quintessential modern-day murder mystery pioneer. Please note that I said, ‘modern day’.
Anyway, much like Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile begins by introducing our main characters. First and foremost, we have our leading man Poirot (Kenneth Branagh). While his intro isn’t something that necessary, the setting where the film introduces him is an odd way to start out a film – a steamy jazz club. Odd, yet intriguing, though certainly a change of tempo from how the first movie began.
From this point on, most of the characters are brought to light in the jazz club. We’re first introduced to music manager Rosalie Otterbourne (Letitia Wright), a shrewd and no-nonsense manager that doesn’t let anyone push her around. Her counterpart, Salome Otterbourne (Sophie Okonedo) sings like a beautiful bird during gigs that Rosalie sets up for her. If you haven’t guessed, they are the musical act in this scene, as well as any musical scene in the film.
During the same scene, we’re also introduced to lovers Simon Doyle (Armie Hammer) and Jacqueline de Bellefort (Emma Mackey), who are hot and heavy throughout the scene until Jacqueline’s good friend and respectful millionaire, Linnet Ridgeway, meets up with the pair and offers up a job to Simon…maybe a bit more…maybe a soon-to-be marriage. Most of our characters meet up in this one place and everything we want to know about who they are and what their roles are in this entire story is offered up to us on a silver platter, quickly. This is something that the first movie just absolutely took its sweet time in doing, as it wanted to be a stage play instead of a film. And this film’s approach is appropriate, refreshing, and it gets to where it needs to get to without needing much more explanation.
What about the others, you ask? I mean, this can’t be everyone, right?
Well, this is also something that unfolds quickly as well. While we didn’t get to see the eventual and predictable fallout between Jacqueline and Simon due to an instant ‘love at first sight’ that Linnet and Simon encounter with each other, it’s understood that Jacqueline got hurt and the other pair moved on to marriage. The main body of the film resides post-marriage and honeymoon between Linnet and Simon, certainly a place where murder can occur…and it does.
From this point on, dear readers, there will be spoilers, so beware.
*SPOILERS START*
As act two quickly begins with the marriage and honeymoon of the newlyweds, the true beef of this mystery comes to life. It’s quickly introduced that Jacqueline didn’t take the breakup between her and Simon at all well. It’s also noted that she pretty much hates her best friend, Linnet. I mean, do you blame her? Total ‘surprise’ face. Anyway, the newlyweds decide to take their marriage to the Nile and get on a riverboat with their friends, who are quickly introduced, to do a weeklong celebration. Yeah, it’s awkward that you would take your friends on the honeymoon but give them props for making the post-wedding celebration interesting. Most people would just beg, and probably not receive an open bar. I digress, though. Simon and Linnet’s friends get on the boat with them, and they sail away.
Their friends include:
– The two singers from the jazz club, Salome and Rosalie Otterbourne.
– Poirot’s good friends, Bouc (Tom Bateman), and Bouc’s mom Euphemia Bouc (Annette Bening).
– Linnet’s family, Marie Van Schuyler (Jennifer Saunders), and Marie’s nurse friend Bowers (Dawn French).
– Linnet’s ex-lover and resident doctor, Windlesham (Russell Brand – it honestly took me a while to recognize him, but damn – yep, that’s him – pretty darn good in the movie too).
– Shady lawyer and business manager of Linnet’s, Katchadourian (Alie Fazal).
– Personal manager of Linnet’s, Louise Bourget (Rose Leslie).
– Oh, and Jacqueline when she gets on board the ship while the group is away looking at ancient Egyptian statues. She is the catalyst for what gets the mystery started.
Before the group goes off looking at statues, and before Jacqueline’s arrival, Gadot’s Linnet pulls Poirot aside to let him know that she is concerned about the people she has on the ship with her. She knows none of her friends are sincere and Linnet is unsure who truly cares about her, or who truly cares about her because of her money. In addition, Linnet and Simon are equally concerned about Jacqueline’s state of mind, which is why they chose to bring a group of their closest friends on their honeymoon with them. As you can see from this short description, the mystery structure is forming.
The murder mystery kicks off midway through act two with Jacqueline’s arrival on the boat. She arrives unannounced and makes no bones about wanting Simon back. After a brief confrontation with Linnet and a loud confrontation with Simon, she snaps, pulls a gun, and shoots Simon in the knee. The chaos of the film begins with a literal bang. As chaos and confusion ensue, the act takes a wicked turn, as bodies begin to show up. First, and most brutal, is the death of Linnet. A gunshot wound to the head does her in. Then other fellow shipmates follow. Poirot starts to lock down the ship and starts following the clues, bodies, and pointedly interviews everyone – even people he trusts.
By the end of act two, the film is hard to read. While the death of Linnet as the catalyst for the murder party is no great surprise, how and why she died has no breadcrumbs, which is just brilliant. You want your murder mystery to be so darn confusing (in a good way) that you’re just as in the dark as the characters on the screen. What’s great about Death on the Nile is that it could literally be anyone, though you know that Poirot will know when he knows. It’s a small rush waiting for that moment.
As the second act ends and the third begins the movie really hits a dark note. While murder mysteries certainly have a gloom upon them for obvious reasons, the events leading up to the reveal touch on a very personal note for Poirot. I don’t want to say too much else about the third act, but you feel it a bit. You also feel for Poirot quite a lot in this entire film.
*SPOILER ALERT ENDS*
While there are some unearned and random reveals here and there about certain characters, the movie’s story does enough to add dimension to everyone and to add a drop of suspicion to keep you, the viewer, from turning away. I think Branagh corrected the issues from his first Christie film and hit mostly all the right notes with pacing and character development. I enjoyed this movie quite a bit and felt like it earned my time and attention. It will be something I revisit later, and it might make me want to watch the first film over again, if not only for the epic mustache (which is so much better in this film).
Let’s wrap this sucker up.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a murder mystery to occupy your time while you wait for the summer to get here, then check out Death on the Nile. It’s an upgrade over the first Branagh go around and it gives hope that more Branagh-led Poirot is yet to come.
