A HAUNTING IN VENICE REVIEW

 *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Following on from his adaptations of Agatha Christie’s best selling novels, Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile, Kenneth Branagh returns to the role of the famous detective Hercule Poirot and the director’s chair with A Haunting in Venice, which is loosely based on Christie’s 1969 novel, Hallowe’en Party. Although I can understand the mixed responses to both Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile, I was one of the few people who enjoyed both films and, because I hadn’t read Christie’s novels, I knew little about the plot and found it to be a mostly unpredictable watch. Because of this, I was looking forward to seeing what Branagh had created with A Haunting in Venice.

In post-World War II Venice, Poirot, now retired and living in his own exile, reluctantly attends a seance. But when one of the guests is murdered, it is up to the former detective to once again uncover the killer.

Like Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile, A Haunting in Venice features a talented ensemble cast and surrounds a murder mystery plot. However, unlike the previous two films, A Haunting in Venice feels more suspenseful and the plot is is unpredictable as it’s based on one of Christie’s lesser known books. The problem with Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile was that most people watching them knew about the revelations and twists and, as a result, were left disappointed by the adaptations. A Haunting in Venice succeeds at keeping its viewers guessing throughout. 

The highlight of both Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile is the star studded cast. The former featured the likes of Michelle Pfeiffer, Judi Dench, Willem Dafoe, Derek Jacobi, Daisy Ridley, Josh Gad and Olivia Colman. The latter’s cast was less impressive mainly as a result of the controversies surrounding several of the actors involved in the film including Gal Gadot and Armie Hammer. While it’s fun seeing a talented ensemble cast working together, the issue is that most of the actors are lacking in screen time and struggle to leave much of a lasting impression. I didn’t find this to be the case with A Haunting in Venice which features a smaller number of familiar names, including Tina Fey, Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Dornan. Fey portrays mystery writer Ariadne Oliver who convinces Poirot to attend a séance at the palazzo of famed opera singer Rowena Drake (Rowena Drake) and expose Joyce Reynolds (Yeoh), a World War I army nurse turned medium, as a fraud. Following her Oscar winning performance in the mind bending multiverse comedy, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Yeoh is perfectly creepy as Joyce. After appearing as father and son in Branagh’s Oscar winning drama, Belfast, Jamie Dornan and Jude Hill reunite, with the former portraying Leslie Ferrier, a doctor suffering from psychological trauma, and the latter cast as his son, Leopold. Kelly Reilly delivers the most impressive performance as Rowena Drake who is haunted by the mysterious death of her young daughter, Alicia. As usual, Branagh’s Poirot is front and centre, however, he is less confident than in the previous films as a result of the Second World War and is himself still haunted by his wife’s death. Poirot’s uncertainty around the mystery adds to the increasing suspense. 

Since its release, while the main plot has been criticised, most of the praise for A Haunting in Venice has gone towards the tone. A flaw a lot of people found with Murder and Death was that the performances were melodramatic and camp and, as a result, made it hard for viewers to take the films seriously. That’s not the case with Haunting which, while not a horror film, comes close with its dark and suspenseful tone. It keeps viewers on the edge of their seats with the occasional jump scare. There’s also a sense of unease with Poirot frequently seeing the ghost of Alicia. The revelation is also quite disturbing as it involves her death. Because of this, most people may enjoy A Haunting in Venice more than Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile.  

7/10