Murder On The Orient Express Review (2017)

This is quite a good whodunit based on of Agatha Christi’s characters Hercule Poirot, played by a flamboyant and somewhat over the top Kenneth Branagh, who also directs the film in perfectly good manner. The story involves Poirot investigating a murder on the titular Oriental Express while he is on a holiday to stretch his legs. I somehow, while typing this review, can’t ignore writing about Thupparivalan, which directed and importantly, skilfully written by Mysskin, may probably be a better film in the same genre. Why can’t I not talk about the film? Certainly due to the focus of both films on the central character i.e. the Detective. Both films do deal primarily more on their oddities and their methods. Except that with Murder…., Poirot does come somewhat as an irritating and showy guy and he is not quite a guy you can 100% side with due to what I said above. Also it isn’t helped by the fact that many of his discoveries or the “Detective breaking down a character in front of themselves” scene takes place without letting us know how he found them. All the more that you feel distanced from him. The characters themselves are not a necessarily odd bunch of people. They are acted necessarily enough by the ensemble cast except for the murdered victim, Mr.Hanratty played by a kickass Johnny Depp, who we clearly could have seen more of and also which I felt prevented us feeling the tension that one would feel in such situations. The very mystery- tension we feel comes from the genre itself, by the human curiosity of knowing who did what and how. It is also something the film deals with. The distinction between right and good which Poirot is so clear about in the beginning seems to fade by the end, wherein he is faced by a crime with intentions not so simple. The thing is we feel none of this as all is said out and also because the reason for the murder itself not something so mind-blowingly new. It still is revenge and it seems that they wished to include a philosophical musing for the sake of it. And many of Poirot's discoveries do come out of the accidental blurting of information by the victims so that does make us judge Poirot's self declaration of "World's greatest Detective'.

Thupparivalan made us root for Kaniyan as it made his oddities appear in a grounded way whereas Poirot irritates some part of you with his oddities while hogging the limelight from others especially noticeable in the climax.

We have a character giving an emotional confession after which Poirot tells that they can escape by commiting another sin which is killing Poirot. The dialogue by another character and the camera both take away the moment from the character and selfishly gives it to Poirot which is again why we don’t feel for the supporting characters or the murder itself.

And I hope movies can stop this trope of character’s talking lovingly about a 3rd character whence that 3rd character is mentioned. It feels so stupid and melodramatic which you can notice in this movie’s climax.