The following review makes reference to the 2017 film Murder on the Orient Express, and does not contain spoilers of any type.

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Year: 2017
Category: Mystery, Thriller.
Director: Kenneth Branagh.
Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Penélope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Josh Gad, Derek Jacobi, Leslie Odom Jr., Michelle Pfeiffer, Daisy Ridley, Olivia Colman.

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Plot

During a trip on the legendary Orient Express, the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot investigates a murder of a passenger committed on the way.

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Opinion

The 1974 version had the advantage that when I saw it, the Agatha Christie novel on which it was based was unknown to me, so the resolution of the mystery, which in turn is the best of the film, was revealed for the first time for me, getting the expected effect, but in turn, my perception of the remake was not only affected by knowing the end but also because I saw the two almost at the same time, causing the second to lose all the mystery.

Although this remake did not have the main attraction of the story for me, thanks to a great picture and a more complex development of the character Poirot, it compensated the work with respect to its predecessor. Although it also has some flaws according to my perception, the way in which interrogations take place on this occasion is much faster, and also includes cuts that mix the dialogues of several characters in the same interrogation, which makes part of the tension and intrigue disappear.

And although the appreciation of the story depends a lot on the mystery that the main character must discover, personally it seems to me that the film was made for the people who knew the ending, or was made in such a way that those who knew it could appreciate the story from another angle.

In this version some modifications are introduced, mainly in the change of nationality and characteristics of some characters, including the relationship between some of them. I also witnessed an excessive predominance of a particular political agenda through the dialogues and some changes with respect to the original version. Not to mention that they try to adapt the film including a little more action instead of relying entirely on dialogues like the original.

The highlight is undoubtedly the photography, which is absolutely great, on the other hand, the direction of Kenneth Branagh, who is also responsible for playing Poirot, was acceptable but not necessarily good, the script is fine but has some flaws, including some introductions of characters that were unnecessary, however, we can appreciate the fact that this version has a brief introduction before Poirot board the train, which allows the viewer to understand a little more the complex personality of the character.

The performances in general are fine, although nothing out of the ordinary, the best is Kenneth Branagh who does an acceptable job, although I still prefer the interpretation made by Albert Finney, even taking into account that Branagh's is more mature and complex.

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Trailer