Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Emma Mackey, Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders & Russell Brand
Directed by: Kenneth Branagh

Distributed by: 20^th Century Studios
Release Date: February 2022
Running Time: 127 mins

Synopsis: Although Belgium’s premiere sleuth Hercule Poirot plans a spectacular Egyptian vacation aboard a glamorous river steamer, the trip turns into a terrifying search for a murderer after a picture-perfect couple’s honeymoon is cut tragically short.

A sequel to 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile is the second Agatha Christie novel that Kenneth Branagh has adapted to the big screen, with the actor-director once again starring in the lead role of Hercule Poirot. As before, Branagh has assembled a cast of recognisable veteran actors to fill out the extensive roll call of murder suspects, although not quite reaching the heights of Johnny Depp, Willem Dafoe and Michelle Pfeiffer from his previous film. This time around, the ensemble cast includes an eclectic mix of recent Hollywood stars (Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer) and British TV actors such as Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders and Russell Brand. It is a curious mix of household names, of various levels of talent and popularity, but it suits this type of murder-mystery where there is limited time to flesh out the characters and it is more effective to cast familiar faces in the roles.

Branagh opens the film with a black and white flashback to Poirot’s time during World War I, establishing the character’s knack for thinking outside of the box, whilst providing an (unnecessary) reason for his outlandish moustache. I was struck by how expansive and dynamic the trenches of Ypres looked in this brief prologue to the film, and this would become a recurring theme throughout the film as Branagh continually makes use of CGI backdrops to establish the grandeur of his Egyptian settings – all without stepping foot on a grain of sand. As with Murder on the Orient Express, most of the story takes place in an enclosed setting – this time, a cruise ship on the Nile – but Branagh does not allow this to restrict his visuals – often showcasing the surroundings with the latest CGI technology. As a result, some elements feel artificial and “sound-stagey” but when it does work, it adds a tremendous sense of scale to the adventure.

The film is a relatively accurate recreation of Christie’s 1937 novel, albeit with some modern reworkings and a change to one of the murders near the ending. Branagh offers some surface-level characterisation of his Poirot, retaining his OCD quirks and touching upon his tragic love life through his connection with Sophie Okonedo’s character, Salome Otterbourne. Ultimately, these films are more plot-driven than character-driven, so much of the film is spent developing the mystery and dropping the hints – in fact, the entire first-hour of the film is devoted to setting the scene, with the titular murder taking place at the halfway point. This allows for better pacing and a more natural introduction of all the characters – something that was lacking in Murder on the Orient Express, which felt somewhat rushed and exposition-heavy at times.

Branagh’s Hercule Poirot remains an enjoyable lead character – although he seems rather ineffectual at times, failing multiple times to prevent deaths. I like the understated way that Branagh plays the character, opting to stand in the background as opposed to grandiose pantomime. I’m unfamiliar with how other actors have played the role, so I don’t know whether this is an accurate portrayal of the character or not, but I found him to be rather charming. Gal Gadot gets a lot of criticism for her acting in this film – with plenty of memes featuring some of her line readings – but I think she does an okay job here. She isn’t the greatest actress in the world, but I feel like she captures the essence of an air-headed heiress quite well. Armie Hammer is also less than perfect, and I think his wooden performance telegraphs much of the film’s twists. In contrast, Emma Mackey shines as his jilted ex-lover, Jackie de Bellefort, bringing a raw emotion to the part that seems lacking in the other two sides of the love triangle.

Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders feel like a gimmick casting as the pair seem to basically play themselves – or at least, the version of themselves from their TV show – but with the added (and unnecessary) twist that they are secret lovers. Sophie Okonedo brings an unexpected chemistry with Poirot that deserved more focus, and she is the most enigmatic and interesting of the suspects. The biggest surprise came from Russell Brand – whom I had immediate preconceptions about when I saw his name on the cast list – I was expecting him to indulge in his “cockney Buddha” schtick, but instead he actually plays his character of Dr. Windlesham extremely low-key and serious.

Delving into SPOILER territory now, this part of the review will discuss the actual mystery and the conclusion of the film, so please do not read on if you haven’t seen the film, or read the original novel.

Tom Bateman returns to the role of Bouc, Poirot’s wisecracking friend and socialite, and unfortunately meets his end as he is silenced by the murderer. I was fully expecting a twist at the end to reveal that it had been a ruse by Poirot to discover the truth, but instead, it was real and he was killed off in a shocking twist to the original novel. This was an effective bait-and-switch, and gave the film some genuine stakes by killing off someone who I thought was legitimately untouchable. Unfortunately, this was the only surprise in the film as I figured out who killed Linnet Ridgeway almost immediately. This was due to Armie Hammer’s oaken performance during the crucial scene setting up his alibi, and Branagh’s awkward editing during the scene to almost emphasize his “injury”. As soon as I saw the added focus on it, I suspected that we’d be revisiting that scene at the end to reveal that all was not what it seemed. It wasn’t difficult to figure out the motivations, accomplices and the method after that. Even though the core mystery was relatively predictable, I still found plenty to enjoy in Branagh’s telling of the story and how he established the mood and tone of the era. The biggest issue with the film would have to be the lack of chemistry between Armie Hammer and Gal Gadot’s characters – it is the main driving force of the film, and it felt like Hammer was going through the motions – ironically, betraying his character’s own indifference to the woman. A more compelling central couple would have made the final twist much more effective, as I would have believed that the two were actually in love.

As with its predecessor, Death on the Nile is a curious juxtaposition of the modern and the traditional as director Kenneth Branagh utilizes cutting edge CGI backdrops and stylish camera movements to enliven a classic 1930s murder-mystery novel. The calibre of acting amongst his ensemble cast is definitely uneven with some actors phoning it in as others provide an engaging performance, to the detriment of the film’s central mystery which relies on character/actor chemistry. While it might be unnecessarily lavish with its impressive visuals of 1930s Egypt, Branagh does spend more time on establishing his line-up of suspects this time around, resulting in a better paced movie overall – even if its twist reveal fails to land as effectively as it could have. A solid murder-mystery with added bells and whistles, Death on the Nile is a worthy modern adaptation of a classic whodunnit.

Death on the Nile is available on DVD & Blu-Ray from Amazon UK and can also be streamed on Amazon Prime Video.