Riot’s Reviews: A Haunting in Venice
As far as murder mysteries go, there is likely no more recognizable name than Agatha Christie. After publishing her first book in 1920, Christie went on to write 130 different publications including 74 novels (66 of which are of the detective persuasion), 28 short story collections, and 16 stage plays. Being credited as a master of suspense, it makes perfect sense that her works would be adapted into film not once or twice, but over 30 times. With Kenneth Branagh directing and Michael Green writing the most recent adaptations, Christie’s work has been brought to the attention of a whole new generation who are now aching to see what new mystery the great Hercule Poirot can deconstruct.
If we check out what review sites like Rotten Tomatoes says, Branagh’s first run at Christie’s work, Murder on the Orient Express didn’t fare very well with critics or audiences. His second, Death on the Nile received a similar lashing from the critics but was bolstered by a better audience rating. I find myself as an outlier on both, having really enjoyed both films but giving a favorable rating to the Orient Express. Death on the Nile, while entertaining, ended up being more predictable than I would have liked from a murder mystery (but if they stuck to the source material, who am I to judge? It’s a complicated feeling). But the acting was good and it brought a little more action/suspense to the story that I thought was missing from the Orient Express. The common thread I found between the first two iterations was incredible cinematography and top-notch acting, particularly from Branagh who has what is sure to be a difficult job of directing andperforming.
A Haunting in Venice, being marketed more as a horror film than anything else, had me more torn than the first two adventures of Hercule Poirot. It’s premise, of an old friend pulling the skeptical Poirot out of retirement to try to debunk the supernatural abilities of a gifted medium, has all the makings of a standard (but still interesting) horror movie. The problem with that is, the film doesn’t do a good job of picking a lane and inevitably proves that it is absolutely not a horror film and also isn’t as intriguingly suspenseful as the previous two adaptations. The movie vacillates too much between jump scares, comedic banter, and the murder mystery storytelling elements, often getting a bit lost in long, drawn-out dialogue. Pacing certainly is this film’s worst enemy and it unfortunately suffers the same fate as Death on the Nile in its predictability factor. Coupled with a finale that kind of doesn’t make sense yet is certainly poetic justice, the payoff at the end wasn’t as impactful as the hours of setup.
That being said, there were a ton of positives to this film as well. Once again, I thought that the acting was pretty great. Branagh turned in the best portrayal, but was supported by great performances from Emma Laird, Jude Hill,Camille Cottin, and Riccardo Scamarcio. I’d have to give honorable mentions to Tina Fey, Michelle Yeoh, and Kelly Reilly because while I enjoyed their characters, there were elements in the script that I think were a detriment to their performance and it ended up making their acting feel uneven at times. What really stole the show for this one was Venice itself, along with the intricately recreated Palazzo architecture. Having visited Venice, I can affirm that there is certainly a haunted feeling you get from that place. The architecture is breathtakingly beautiful, but when the sunlight starts to dim and the cold sea breeze starts to move through the canals, Venice takes on an entirely different façade. The stunning set design, along with the very low light filter of the camera (sometimes too low to be honest) helps draw the audience into the supernatural feeling of the location.
Full transparency here, there are a couple outside elements that I think impacted my viewing of this film and skewed it towards the negative. First, this was a solo trip. Having done this a couple times now, I’ve noticed my focus and attitude aren’t necessarily the same when I’m alone in the theater, especially when the theater is mostly empty like it was for this one. Seems counter-intuitive, but it is what it is. Second, I wasn’t operating on the best night’s rest and a slow paced movie is going to have a sleep-inducing affect. Finally, I went into this one expecting a horror film and I’ve never been the biggest fan of that genre in general. A Haunting in Venice felt like one of those movie adaptations that likely has answers in the book for a lot of the questions I was having, which might influence me to pick up a copy of Hallowe’en Party. It was still entertaining and activated a lot of the nostalgia inside of me with its beautiful scenery, but all in all there are better murder mysteries out there. I appreciate Branagh’s commitment to making these films though and with an incredibly dense library of Hercule Poirot stories to choose from, I hope he keeps on this journey for as long as the studios will let him.
Riot’s Rating: 7.5/10: Endure the pacing, lower the horror expectations, and get a good night’s rest and you’ll likely have a decently spooky time.
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