MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Rating: 7.5/10

STARRING: Kenneth Branagh, Tom Bateman, Daisy Ridley, Leslie Odom Jr., Josh Gad, Michelle Pfeiffer, Willem Dafoe, Judi Dench, Derek Jacobi, Penelope Cruz, Olivia Colman and Johnny Depp

RATED PG-13 for emotional content, some bloody/violent images, and brief language 

Well, I finally did it. I saw Murder on the Orient Express.

It’s been a long road to get here. When I first saw the trailers, it seemed all but given that I would see it. Why? Well, mainly because it seemed like surefire Oscarbait. Consider: a sumptuous period piece epic that is also an adaptation of a classic novel (Agatha Christie’s 1934 thriller) brought to life by a cast full of diverse, accomplished actors, several of them previous Oscar winners or nominees…So this was definitely on my list. But then came surprisingly-middling reviews. Critics said it was not long enough, not as good as previous big-screen adaptations of the novel (which I have not seen), and it supposedly paid too little heed to its remarkable cast while focusing all the juicy character development on the main character, Belgian detective Hercule Poriot, played by the film’s director, Kenneth Branagh. The reviews, I must admit, scared me off. But then one of my best friends said it was one of the best movies she’d ever seen. Several other friends reported that they liked it a lot. It became a surprisingly strong contender at the box-office. Several of my family members made plans to see it…the day after I left town to come back home after Thanksgiving. Its very title (let alone the trailers) promised an intriguing murder mystery to which I was itching to know the outcome. And that cast…honestly, in what world would a movie-lover like me not see a movie starring two previous Oscar winners (Judi Dench and Penelope Cruz), the new darling of Star Wars (Daisy Ridley), one of the Tony-winning stars of Broadway’s Hamilton (Leslie Odom Jr.), a couple of reliably-great supporting actors (Willem Dafoe and Josh Gad), arguably the biggest movie star of the 2000s (Johnny Depp), and Branagh, the five-time Oscar nominee who is more responsible than anyone except my seventh grade English teacher for making me a fan of Shakespeare?

            So yeah, I saw it. And I have good news and bad news.

            The good news? Thanks to my Regal Crown Club membership, I had enough “points” to see this movie I had been-iffy-about-but-decided-to-see-anyway for free!

            The bad news? I saw it the same day I returned home from Thanksgiving travels, and, it turns out, I was a little tired. I was literally nodding at several points during the first half, so I may have missed something.      

            I think I still got the finer points, though.

            Murder on the Orient Express is a solid and engaging film, with some dazzling visuals, terrific music, a Sherlock-esque brainteaser of mystery with myriad key details, and that cast, of which several members are appropriately utilized. I liked it. And I absolutely want to see it again, both because I may or may not have been snoozing during some parts and just because it’s a detail-loaded murder mystery, the type of movie that can leave me in the dust with its complexities and seems ripe to reward second viewings. I have some misgivings, though, and I’ll get to those in a moment.

            Murder on the Orient Express centers around the aforementioned person of Poirot (Branagh), a renowned Belgian detective with an equally renowned moustache. After foiling a theft in Jerusalem, Poirot finds himself traveling first-class aboard the famed Orient Express, special guest of his old friend Bouc (Tom Bateman), the train director. Despite a cheeky, charismatic demeanor, Poirot is in great need of some R&R, dealing with shades of guilt after refusing to help with an American crime case that ended in the most horrific manner possible. But the train is luxurious, and Poirot is able to occupy his mind with A Tale of Two Cities and the unique, colorful characteristics of his fellow passengers. Among them are a Russian princess (Dench), a missionary (Cruz), an Austrian scientist (Dafoe), a pretty young Englishwoman (Ridley), a stalwart doctor (Odom Jr.), a boozy middle-aged socialite (Michelle Pfeiffer), and a roughish American art dealer (Depp) and his two assistants (Gad along with Derek Jacobi). But the same night the Orient Express is buffeted and then derailed by an avalanche, one of the passengers is found dead of stab wounds. The compartment window is wide open. Poirot deduces immediately that either the person responsible fled, or the killer is still on the train, which can go nowhere until a work crew from the nearest station can come dig it out. Begged by Bouc to put his great mind to work in the hopes of a speedy resolution, Poirot begins to “interview” his fellow passengers. One by one, they each offer alibis as to where they were at the time of the killing that are only half-convincing. One by one, each somehow slips up, giving Poirot reason to suspect them of the heinous crime. Then another passenger is stabbed. The remainder begin to suspect each other. And Poirot, who failed to answer the call of the American crime case where he was so badly needed, is put to the test.

            The critics’ reviews I read were right about one thing: Orient Express starts and ends with the person of Poirot. Featured in nearly every scene, Poirot is arguably the only character explored on multiple levels. As this mustachioed protagonist, Branagh (last seen in July’s Dunkirk) is effective. Yes, he has always been a very theatrical actor (duh, he’s the modern era’s foremost Shakespeare enthusiast), and with the moustache, the accent, and the quips, he veers close to caricature in the early going. Branagh has always had a tendency to overact, sometimes badly (see 1994’s Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, or, even worse, 1999’s Wild Wild West), but the movie is ultimately engaging, meticulous, and serious enough that Poirot’s broadness and accessibility are needed. In the movie’s biggest moments, Branagh does wonders with his eyes, and he suggests a depth to the character that makes us want to learn more.

            As stated, Branagh gets by far the most screen-time of any of the film’s actors, but most of the others who will be familiar to audiences make an impression. Dench does her gruff older woman thing, with a softness in the eyes and a Russian accent to boot. Depp commands the screen in a surprisingly no-frills performance, his most straightforward work in years. Jacobi, Ridley, Pfeiffer and Odom Jr. all make strong impressions. But the one who really jumped out at me among the supporters was Josh Gad. Best known as comic relief in animated classics (he voiced Olaf in Frozen), live-action Disney remakes (this year’s Beauty and the Beast) and a crappy Adam Sandler film (Pixels), Gad is surprisingly effective as an emotional, tormented straight man. He cracks no jokes and gets no laughs, but his expression during his interview with Poirot is an indelible image of emotional anguish.

            The reason I don’t rate Murder on the Orient Express higher is not only that I may have missed something while I was nodding there in the theater. As stated, some early scenes with Poirot are a little too quippy and cartoonish, with gags galore about his moustache and the way he likes his eggs cooked. Branagh the overactor (and, remember, the film’s director) is way too eager to lavish attention on these “amusing” eccentricities. A few early shots of the Orient Express in motion scream CGI, despite some gorgeous backdrops. The episodic nature of Poirot’s interviews with his fellow passengers gets a little repetitive, plus the movie’s not-even-two-hour running time means the audience is bombarded with details during and immediately after each of these episodes, which gets a little wearisome. A story (and a cast) like this would be much better served with a mini-series, at least.  

            But what you’ll probably remember about the movie, apart from the murder investigation’s emotionally-resonant, effective resolution, is that tracking shot of Poirot entering the car in a moment of suspense, while the camera pans across the intrigued/concerned/tense expressions on each of his fellow passengers’ faces. It sums up the film nicely, with the character, the cast, the score, and the lavish look of the dining car. It’s a beaut.

In Summary

Did I literally sleep through parts of Murder on the Orient Express because I saw it in theaters less than 90 minutes after concluding a 4-hour car trip back from my dad’s house for Thanksgiving? I can neither confirm nor deny. Would such a detailed movie be well served by me seeing it a second time at some point, at which time my opinion of it might be improved? Almost certainly. But did I enjoy it? I did. As the trailers suggest, and as people have been telling you, this adaptation of Agatha Christie’s 1934 murder mystery is a lavish production stuffed to the gills with striking visuals, a lovely musical score, constant Sherlockian explosions of eye-opening details, and a strong cast, headed by your favorite Shakespeare enthusiast who was also once a Hogwarts professor, Kenneth Branagh. It’s entertaining, well-acted, and emotionally-satisfying. Yeah, I’m already looking forward to seeing it again (when I’m, you know, awake).

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

Directed by Kenneth Branagh
Screenplay by Michael Green
Based on the novel "Murder on the Orient Express" by Agatha Christie (publ. 1934)

Rated PG-13

Length: 1 hour 54 minutes