When talking about detectives in English literature, Hercule Poirot is considered the second most famous detective of all time.
Agatha Christie’s widely popular detective novel series has been portrayed in many forms of media like stage plays, TV series, films, even in anime. The 2022 film adaptation of the Death of the Nile is the latest portrayal of this character, although it disappointed Poirot fans on many levels.
Death on the Nile follows the story of Hercule Poirot, the world’s best detective, invited to a river cruise in the Nile by wealthy heiress Linnet Ridgeway on her honeymoon.
But he isn’t invited just for the party, also to protect Linnet and her husband Simon from her jealous stalking friend Jackie.
Things get awry when she is found dead in her ship and her jewel necklace stolen. Like the previous Murder at the Orient Express, Poirot gets embroiled in a murder mystery that involves more murders, suspicion and mistrust.
Kenneth Branagh reprises the role of Hercule Poirot since the 2017 Murder at the Orient Express, while also being the director of this film. Branagh’s affection for the Agatha Christie novels can be seen from his dedication to the film, but that doesn’t cover its shortcomings.
The relationship between Linnet and Simon is heavily criticised by critics. Played by Gal Gadot and Armie Hammer respectively, the couple characters show no chemistry between them, questioning the reason behind abandoning their previous lovers to make this wedding happen.
Besides the acting, Armie Hammer also has off-screen controversies with severe allegations that question this film's casting process.
Branagh tried to portray the environment around the Nile with CGI technology but failed to depict the scenery realistically; thus, making the ambiance of the CGI-rendered scenes dull and unnatural.
This film has a great cast of actors and actresses like Ali Fazal, Emma Mackey, and Letitia Wright, apart from Gadot and Armie. Yet the star-studded cast doesn’t meet the fans’ expectations, which reached its height after the 1978 film adaptation of the same novel directed by John Guillermin.
Branagh’s film is also criticised for adding no unique elements to make it stand out from the other adaptations; the complaint was also stated about his previous film.
Nevertheless, Death on the Nile may still be watchable for Agatha Christie fans who don’t mind only seeing their favourite detective Poirot in action.
