8.3 | / 10 |
Users | 4.0 | |
Reviewer | 3.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
While traveling from Istanbul to London aboard the luxurious Orient Express, Hercule Poirot encounters a ruthless businessman who offers him a large sum to expose the person threatening his life. Poirot declines, not caring for the man or his money. But when he is stabbed to death, the detective is determined to find the killer. With the help of an amateur sleuth, Poirot begins to piece together the chain of events leading up to the murder.
Starring: David Suchet, Hugh Fraser (I), Philip Jackson (II), Pauline Moran, David YellandMystery | 100% |
Period | 95% |
Crime | Insignificant |
Drama | Insignificant |
Thriller | Insignificant |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1, 1.33:1
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English SDH
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Slipcover in original pressing
Region A (locked)
Movie | 3.0 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 2.0 | |
Overall | 3.0 |
The queen of the whodunit, the matriarch of mystery novels, Agatha Christie is also the best selling book writer of all time, with only the Bible beating her out for total volumes sold. Understandably, her work has been regularly adapted for the stage and the silver screen, but recently, it has been television that has most often played host to Christie’s meticulously orchestrated murder mysteries. Agatha Christie’s Poirot, a production of Britain’s ITV channel, has been bringing tales of Christie’s fictional Belgian detective—a kind of latter-day Sherlock Holmes—to the small screen since 1989. While the phrase “made-for-TV movie” may cause Americans to shirk away, British television has a long history of commissioning quality feature-length adaptations, and the Poirot series is among the best. Acorn Media has previously released several DVD sets of Agatha Christie’s Poirot, but this particular installment—an adaptation of one of Christie’s most famous stories, Murder on the Orient Express— marks the series’ introduction to Blu-ray. It may not be flashy or even particularly dramatic, but if you enjoy conventional, old-fashioned mysteries with spring-loaded, clue-based narratives that run like Swiss clockwork, Murder on the Orient Express is just the ticket.
"A man without a mustache is like a cup of tea without sugar." - English proverb
Agatha Christie's Poirot makes its Blu-ray debut with Murder on the Orient Express, and the results are mixed. The production was apparently shot on 35mm, but you could've fooled me—the 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer has a distinctly video-ish appearance. A good deal of filtering has been used to wipe out the natural texture of the film, resulting in an image that's fairly soft and lacking in fine detail. Don't get me wrong, this is definitely a step up from standard definition DVD quality, but not drastically so. Color is also somewhat dull and restrained, although this seems more intentional. Daylight scenes fare best, as both clarity and color are more pronounced, but dim candlelit interiors present numerous problems, from grayish black levels and crushed shadow detail to noisiness that clutters the darker portions of the frame. Could it look better? Probably, but I'm willing to cut the series some slack since this is its first foray into high definition.
On the sound front, Murder on the Orient Express features a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 stereo track that leaves little to discuss. Is the dialogue clean, well-mixed, and discernable? Almost always. Does composer Christian Henson's score add appropriate unease? Absolutely. Does the music have dynamic heft? Well, bass is lacking, but the mid-range is strong and the highs are never brittle or clipped. Other than that, there's not much more to say here. A full 5.1 presentation could've afforded the program some immersive ambience—the hush of snowfall, the clatter of silverware in the dining car, whispered voices, etc.—but the stereo mix is good for what it is. Just don't expect anything particularly immersive or engaging.
David Suchet on The Orient Express (1080i, 47:01)
Host David Suchet takes a real life ride on the Orient Express in this nearly hour-long documentary, which explores the train's history throughout the
20th century. Don't stone me, but I enjoyed this bonus feature more than the film itself!
120 Years with Agatha Christie (text only)
A profile of Christie, with info about festivals around the world celebrating her novels in 2010.
The Poirot Books (text only)
A scrolling list of the many, many Poirot novels that Agatha Christie published.
Cast Filmographies (text only)
Murder on the Orient Express is a rather conventional whodunit from the woman who invented many of the detective story conventions herself, Agatha Christie. This release marks the first appearance of the Poirot series in high definition—courtesy of Acorn Media—and it'll make a nice addition to the Blu-ray libraries of U.S. fans who have been following the show on PBS.
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