Death on the Nile (2022)

Written by Per Gunnar Jonsson on June 19, 2022

I honestly did not expect much out of this movie given how Branagh’s Murder on the Orient Express turned out.

Now, Hercule Poirot together with Sherlock Holmes are my two favourite fictional detectives and I’m obviously having strong opinions about the subject. If you liked the movie then fine but this is my personal opinions so… here we go.

Just as with Murder on the Orient Express it could have been a decent mystery/crime movie if it had not pretended to be a Hercule Poirot movie but again this was a miserable attempt to make a Americanized version of Hercule Poirot.

The movie starts off with black and white scenes from World War I trying to make him out to be some war hero. There was no reason for that and it is not Hercule Poirot.

One good thing I can write about the movie is that there are some lovely scenery, especially at the beginning. Unfortunately that is about it as far as the good parts go from my point of view.

Apart from the good scenery the film goes overboard trying to get fancy with the camera. Like the ridiculous revolving scenes on the boat, bizarre perspectives and quite a few too dark and gloomy scenes.

The worst part of the movie is that it is totally disrespectful of the Hercule Poirot that Agatha Christie created. Poirot does NOT run after criminals while shots are being fired, Poirot may scream but with dignity, not soap opera like outbursts. He was not the only one having unbecoming outbursts by the way. And do not get me started about how the movie ruined the famous end scene where Poirot traditionally exposes the criminal by having Poirot waving a gun and appearing totally dishevelled. Even the hideously large moustache is just all wrong.

Death on the Nile is a British mystery novel by one of the most famous mystery writers ever, not some pulp fiction that you can put your own spin on but Kenneth Branagh does not seem to realize this.