Near the end of his successful run playing Agatha Christie's Belgian detective Hercule Poirot on British TV, David Suchet starred in this 2010 feature-length adaptation of the most famous of all Poirot novels. The impressive guest cast includes Toby Jones as the shady murder victim, and Hugh Bonneville, Samuel West, Eileen Atkins, and American actresses Barbara Hershey and Jessica Chastain as a few of the suspects on the titular train where Poirot is investigating the crime. Although one of Christie's most well-known mysteries, this is only the third English-language screen adaptation of the novel, and it follows the same plot as both the Oscar-winning 1974 film version starring Albert Finney and the new adaptation from director/star Kenneth Branagh. The major difference, apart from the subdued British TV style, is the pronounced emphasis on Poirot's dilemma: his belief in law and justice versus the moral justice of the death of a child murderer who has escaped the punishment of law. Suchet makes that quandary—which is put into sharp relief during a conversation with the character played by Chastain—a central aspect here. A handsomely-made, intelligently-produced, and timely release (given the new Branagh film), this will appeal to fans of Christie and British mysteries in general. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)
Murder on the Orient Express
RLJ, 93 min., not rated, DVD: $19.99 Volume 33, Issue 1
Murder on the Orient Express
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