I’m shamefully unfamiliar with Agatha Christie’s works – and their adaptations – but on the other hand, it meant I could view Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express with fresh eyes. The trailer promised a classic locked-room murder mystery – the sort of story we don’t see on the big screen nowadays. Safe to say, I was on board.

Murder on the Orient Express follows famous Belgian detective Poirot. His holiday plans are de-railed and he is forced to journey back to London aboard the luxurious Orient Express train along with a bunch of other A-list actors. When a guest of the Express is murdered, it’s up to him to solve the case.

Orient Express will get you feeling nostalgic about old-school crime drama. In the age of grittiness, it’s refreshing to retreat to a cut-and-dry murder mystery story, albeit a somewhat formulaic one. Yes, there are interviews with the suspects, and yes, all survivors are gathered together at the end while the detective talks through his entire deductive process. But none of that detracts from the story – as soon as you see Poirot’s absurd moustache, you know what you’re in for.

This is what happens when nobody tells you no.

What does detract from the story is the structure. The murder happens too late and the solution is revealed too early. Indeed, the excitement of a good mystery is in attempting to solve it, only to kick yourself once you’re told the answer. But the setup is stretched beyond inefficient and just when you’re forming your own solutions – bam here’s the answer. A shame, because I was gobsmacked at the conclusion – I only wish I could have played along a little longer.

The film does a competent job of juggling its cast of characters, and the cast on the whole embody their exaggerated stock characters well. That’s not to say it’s perfect. This kind of balancing act is the most challenging part of writing a decent mystery, but it’s also the most imperative. Much of the cast’s involvement is too limited – another shame, given the talent involved.

Some ought to have had better introductions. Other times, as with Poirot himself, elements of their introductions were ignored. An early moment has Poirot step in poo. He feels compelled to step in it with his other foot for the sake of balance. Crude, but effective. It perfectly illustrates how his compulsion to see balance, and therefore how he can notice details others miss, can manifest in undesirable ticks. And none of this is ever explored or mentioned again.

From a technical standpoint, I didn’t care for Branagh’s direction. Distracting overhead shots are confusing given the myriad characters present. An explicable walk-and-talk scene shot from outside the train, offering only momentary glimpses of the characters through the intermittent windows, is a choice I can’t comprehend. Couple that with the bad CGI environments and the stop-and-start editing, and you’re left with a story that never gains momentum. It never picks up steam and instead chugs along to the finale. Sorry, let me get back on track.

All that said, I enjoyed Orient Express for what it was. I’m not sure it did anything new or pushed any boundaries, but if you’re a fan of classic crime mysteries, I’ve no doubt you’ll have fun with it. Great for a lazy Sunday or when you’ve nothing better to do. Maybe watch it on your next train journey.

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To my surprise, I really enjoyed Thor: Ragnarok last week. Here’s my review.

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Thanks for reading! Don’t forget to check out my other reviews, including my breakdowns of every episode of Game of Thrones season 7.

Image credit: Allstar/20th Century Fox