Death on the Nile 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.0

Death on the Nile 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov November 23, 2025

John Guillermin's "Death on the Nile" (1978) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of StudioCanal. The supplemental features on the release include new video essay by critic David Cairns; various archival cast and crew interviews; archival audio commentary by critics Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell, and Nathaniel Thomson; promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH, French, and German subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The killer is somewhere around us, mon ami.

In the prologue, the wealthy heiress Linnet Ridgeway (Lois Chiles, Broadcast News) meets her good friend Jacqueline de Bellefort (Mia Farrow, Rosemary's Baby), and promptly steals her fiancé, Simon Doyle (Simon MacCorkindale, The Riddle of the Sands). Before they marry, the lovers choose Egypt as their honeymoon destination.

On board the paddle steamer S.S. Karnak, however, someone kills the wealthy heiress. Luckily, the famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Peter Ustinov, Lola Montes) happens to be there together with his good friend Colonel Race (David Niven, The Guns of Navarone). Armed with patience, the two begin searching for the killer.

The tone and atmosphere of John Guillermin’s Death on the Nile seem a lot more appropriate for a classic film about the extravagant Belgian detective. There is still plenty of the exotic flavor that is present in Sidney Lumet's Murder on the Orient Express, but the murder case is approached with a degree of seriousness that makes the many different characters look a lot more credible.

While Poirot and his friend speculate about the identity of the killer, the murder case is examined from a variety of different angles, and the viewer is led to believe that everyone on board the S.S. Karnak had a good reason to want the wealthy heiress dead. However, when Poirot begins studying these reasons, the viewer is forced to reevaluate various conflicts that are introduced earlier in the film. In other words, the ‘logical explanations’ are frequently adjusted, as more and more information becomes available.

The case is solved without the pomposity from Murder on the Orient Express. Here, Poirot’s reconstruction of the events leading to the murder is shorter and better balanced, making it easier to believe that he is a real human being. Only the seemingly mandatory fake French/Belgian accent remains quite distracting.

The large supporting cast is predictably good. Bette Davis is the somewhat annoying Mrs. Van Schuyler, Maggie Smith is Miss Bowers, Jane Birkin plays the rather unusually elegant and madly in love maid Louise Bourget, the beautiful Olivia Hussey is Rosalie Otterbourne, Jon Finch is the anarchist Mr. Ferguson, Andrew Pennington is an American lawyer on a mission, Jack Warden is the German doctor Ludwig Bessner, and Angela Lansbury is the slightly mysterious novelist Mrs. Salome Otterbourne.

Death on the Nile was lensed by the legendary cinematographer Jack Cardiff (Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s The Red Shoes, John Huston’s The African Queen). There are many notably beautiful panoramic sequences throughout it, but the one where Linnet and Simon climb the pyramid looks truly extraordinary. The various terrific costumes were designed by Anthony Powell (Roman Polanski’s Tess, Franklin J. Schaffner’s Papillon), who won an Oscar Award for his work in 1979.

The lush soundtrack was created by the great Italian maestro Nino Rota (Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, Federico Fellini’s Amarcord).

Death on the Nile 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

StudioCanal's new 4K Blu-ray release of Death on the Nile does not have a Blu-ray copy of the film. If you need one, you will have to consider this release.

Please note that all screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray and downsampled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray.

StudioCanal have produced a couple of different Blu-ray releases of Death on the Nile. Until now, the best was this Blu-ray release, which was sourced from a strong organic remaster. This new release introduces a new 4K 16-bit restoration, completed at Silver Salt Restoration in London.

I liked how the entire film looked on my system a lot. Its overall appearance is extremely similar to the one that the previous remaster produced. However, the framing is adjusted, density levels are more consistent in several places now, and color reproduction and balance are even more satisfying than before. Also, the dynamic range of the visuals is better, with and without HDR enabled. When HDR is enabled, indoor and darker material looks either very good or excellent, though I would be curious to see the entire presentation in 1080p as well, because some of the desert footage, for instance, tends to have slightly lusher primaries on the previous presentation. All supporting nuances are set properly and look very good. I did not encounter any traces of problematic degraining adjustments. Image stability is excellent. The entire film looks immaculate as well. My score is 4.75/5.00.

Death on the Nile 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are three standard audio tracks on this release: English: LPCM 2.0, French: LPCM 2.0, and French: LPCM 2.0. A descriptive audio track, presented as DTS 2.0, is included as well. Optional English SDH, French, and German subtitles are provided.

The lossless track is outstanding. I assume it is the same track that was included on the previous release of Death on the Nile, but if something new was done to enhance parts of it, I could not tell. Nino Rota's music sounds fantastic, and all exchanges are exceptionally clear and easy to follow. I did not encounter any encoding anomalies to report. This said, I wonder whether a new 5.1 track, like the one that was created for Murder on the Orient Express, would have opened up some parts of the film better.

Death on the Nile 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Sparkling Homicide - this new video essay was created by critic David Cairns. In English, with optional French and German subtitles. (18 min).

• Making of - this archival program contains raw footage from the shooting of Death of the Nile, as well as clips from archival interviews with director John Guillermin and cast members. In English, with optional French and German subtitles. (24 min).

• Commentary - this archival audio commentary was recorded by critics Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell, and Nathaniel Thomson. It initially appeared on Kino Lorber's Blu-ray release of Death of the Nile.

• Interview with Peter Ustinov - in this archival interview, Peter Ustinov discusses his contribution to Death of the Nile and his famous character, Monsieur Poirot. In Spanish and English, with printed English subtitles where necessary, and optional French and German subtitles. (9 min).

• Interview with Jane Birkin - in this archival interview, conducted by a Spanish TV reporter, Jane Birkin quickly addresses her involvement with Death on the Nile. In English, with optional French and German subtitles. (5 min).

• Interviews - presented here are three recent interviews in which the interviewees recall their contributions to Death on the Nile and discuss John Guillermin's vision for it and working methods. In English, with optional French and German subtitles.
  
  1. Costume designer Anthony Powell (21 min).
  2. Angela Lansbury (7 min).
  3. Producer Richard Goodwin (12 min).

• Gallery One - a collection of behind-the-scenes black-and-white stills. (2 min).

• Gallery Two - a collection of drawn costume designs. (2 min).

• Trailer - presented here is a vintage trailer for Death on the Nile. In English, with optional French and German subtitles. (3 min).

Death on the Nile 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I find John Guillermin's Death on the Nile to be better balanced than Sidney Lumet's Murder on the Orient Express. Both films have the appropriate exotic flavor, but Peter Ustinov's Hercule Poirot is far more convincing, and as a result, the supporting cast also looks better. This 4K Blu-ray release brings a new 4K restoration that gives Death on the Nile its most attractive appearance to date. It will also be included in The Agatha Christie Collection, a lavish four-disc box set, which will be available for purchase next week as well. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.