Review: Branagh's gorgeous 'Death on the Nile' is more quaint than it is thrilling

Death on the Nile
3.5 out of 5 Stars
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Writers: Michael Green, Agatha Christie (based upon the novel by)
Starring: Gal Gadot, Annette Bening, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Bateman
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Crime
Rated: PG-13 for violence, some bloody images, and sexual material

Scene from 20th Century Studios’ DEATH ON THE NILE, a mystery-thriller directed by Kenneth Branagh based on Agatha Christie’s 1937 novel. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

SALT LAKE CITY (KUTV) – Synopsis: Hercule Poirot finds himself a guest on a lavish riverboat honeymoon celebration that is quickly undone by a series of murders.

Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway Doyle in 20th Century Studios' DEATH ON THE NILE. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2022 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Review: Intended to be released in December of 2019, “Death on the Nile,” the hotly anticipated follow up to 2017’s “Murder on the Orient Express,” finally arrives in theaters.

Initially, the audience is treated to an early look at Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) as a young soldier fighting in World War I. This scene is followed by an older, accomplished Poirot visiting a nightclub to watch jazz singer Salome Otterbourne (Sophie Okonedo) perform. It is here that we are also introduced to friends Linnet Ridgeway (Gal Godot) and Jacqueline de Bellefort (Emma Mackey), and Bellefort’s boyfriend Simon Doyle (Armie Hammer).

Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway, Emma Mackey as Jacqueline De Bellefort and Armie Hammer as Simon Doyle in 20th Century Studios’ DEATH ON THE NILE, a mystery-thriller directed by Kenneth Branagh based on Agatha Christie’s 1937 novel. Photo by Rob Youngson. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

We next find Poirot vacationing in Egypt. By chance he finds his friend Bouc (Tom Bateman) flying a kite on a pyramid. This leads to Poirot being invited to attend the wedding celebration for Ridgeway and Doyle who have fallen madly in love. Bellefort has been discarded. She isn’t pleased.

Kenneth Branagh as Hercule Poirot in 20th Century Studios' DEATH ON THE NILE. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2022 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Eventually the party boards a riverboat where they will spend the following week slowly navigating the Nile River and visiting a handful of historically significant sites. Poirot is asked by Ridgeway to come along and keep his eye on her guests.

In director Kenneth Branagh’s mystery-thriller “Death on the Nile” based on the 1937 novel by Agatha Christie, Simon Doyle (ARMIE HAMMER) and Linnet Ridgeway (GAL GADOT) are a picture-perfect couple on a honeymoon voyage down the Nile River which is tragically cut short. Wedding guests aboard the glamorous river steamer in this daring tale about the emotional chaos and deadly consequences triggered by obsessive love include Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot (KENNETH BRANAGH) and an all-star cast of suspects. Twentieth Century Studios’ “Death on the Nile” opens in U.S. theaters October 23, 2020. Photo by Rob Youngson. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

And then there is a murder. And another. And another. And so, it goes.

Kenneth Branagh as Hercule Poirot in 20th Century Studios’ DEATH ON THE NILE, a mystery-thriller directed by Kenneth Branagh based on Agatha Christie’s 1937 novel. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

“Death on the Nile” is a beautiful, exotic film with a fantastic cast that also includes Russell Brand, Ali Fazal, Dawn French, Rose Leslie, Jennifer Saunders, Ann Turkel, and Letitia Wright. The performances range from good to exceptional. There’s a little more depth to this version of Poirot. The opening and closing scenes are particularly poignant. Not that you’d expect anything less from Branagh in front of the camera or behind it. That said, Michael Green's script feels a bit thin when it comes to character development. Outside of Poirot, there's not much here. This keeps the audience at a safe distance. I'd rather feel a sense of danger.

(clockwise from top left) Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway, Jennifer Saunders as Marie Van Schuyler, Ali Fazal as Andrew Katchadourian, Dawn French as Bowers, Tom Bateman as Bouc and Armie Hammer as Simon Doyle in 20th Century Studios’ DEATH ON THE NILE, a mystery-thriller directed by Kenneth Branagh based on Agatha Christie’s 1937 novel. Photo by Rob Youngson. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Nevertheless, If you like Agatha Christie, pulp fiction, or murderous vacations, I don’t see why you won’t enjoy this adaptation of “Death on the Nile.”

Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway and Ali Fazal as Andrew Katchadourian in 20th Century Studios’ DEATH ON THE NILE, a mystery-thriller directed by Kenneth Branagh based on Agatha Christie’s 1937 novel. Photo by Rob Youngson. © 2020 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Unfortunately, Hammer is a distraction. This has little to do with his performance (which isn’t anything special) and more to do with his off-screen behavior. Recasting the role would have required that most of the film be reshot. With a cast of this size and in-demand actors, that option was not feasible.