Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		3.0
Audio		3.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.0

Poirot: Murder on the Orient Express Blu-ray Movie Review

Agatha Christie finally hitches her train to Blu-ray.

Reviewed by Casey Broadwater October 29, 2010

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 most prolific character, Hercule Poirot—a fastidious private investigator whose mustache is nearly as sharp as his deductive reasoning skills—was the star of 54 of the author’s short stories and 33 novels, the most famous of which is probably Murder on the Orient Express. The story has been adapted numerous times—most notably, Sidney Lumet directed an widely acclaimed version of the tale, starring Albert Finney, in 1974—but this new made-for-TV iteration makes some slight changes to the formula, not so much to keep old fans on their toes, but rather, to give the story a more serious vibe. The basics, however, are unchanged:

During what was supposed to be a three-day journey from Istanbul to Calais—on the legendary Orient Express—paranoid businessman Samuel Ratchett (Toby Jones) is brutally stabbed to death in the middle of the night. In the next compartment over sleeps our brilliant deducer, Poirot (David Suchet), whose presence on the train is an unfortunate coincidence—for the murderer, anyway. When the Express is stopped by snow the next morning, and the body discovered, Poirot is called upon to solve the crime, which had to have been perpetrated by one of the twelve passengers in the sleeping compartment. (He knows so because the doors to the other compartments remained locked through the night and there are no tracks in the snow outside.) Who could it be? The willowy Princess Dragomiroff (Eileen Atkins) or her attendant handmaiden? Loud mouth American seductress Caroline Hubbard (Barbara Hershey)? What of the Swedish religious zealot or the potential Mafioso? As always, Poirot—hands folded behind his back, eyes inquisitively scanning—follows the clues, interviews the subjects, and arrives at a perfectly pieced together conclusion. But it’s not quite that simple, as there are also some sticky moral dilemmas at play: What if the victim deserved his death? If the courts fail, and God is silent, who should step in to be judge, jury, and executioner? What is justice?

Heavy questions, all. This new 2010 adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express, written by Stewart Harcourt, is generally faithful to the plot of the novel, but it definitely differs in tone, playing down the humor and spry wit of the 1974 film in favor of a weightier, meatier sense of drama, including a religious subtext that never appeared in the original story. Does it work? This will largely be dependent on the viewer—and how familiar you are with Agatha Christie’s Poirot—but personally, I felt this version was a bit too stuffy. These kinds of mysteries are buttoned up to the chin as it is, so it’s mildly disappointing that there’s no outlet here for any relief, comic or otherwise. Director Philip Martin plays it relatively straight, but at least, in doing so, he succeeds in capturing the moody atmosphere of a snowbound train—the aching cold, the dimly flickering candles, the frozen water pipes and chattering teeth. The mystery itself is formulaic—with the expected red herring misleads, flashbacks to “the night in question,” and a purely expository reveal—but then again, Christie’s stories always were and detective fiction usually is; the formula is part and parcel of the genre. (Pre-postmodern genre fiction, anyway. Writers like Paul Auster completely upend what’s expected of the detective novel.)

It may be traditionally told and slightly stodgy, but Murder on the Orient Express is in no way predictable; this is a whodunit that—providing you haven’t read the novel, of course—will have you guessing until the final ah-ha-didn’t-see-that-coming twist of an ending. It should also be said that David Suchet is considered, by most fans, to be the definitive embodiment of Hercules Poirot, and although I’m admittedly no follower of the series—this is my maiden voyage, so to speak—I can see how that’s the common consensus. His Poirot is finicky and severe, almost OCD about details, but he conveys empathy and sheer genius as well. Few actors can communicate a great mind at work, but through Suchet’s owlish eyes, you can practically see the gears turning. Don’t look too closely, though—half the fun of Murder on the Orient Express is trying to figure it out on your own.

Poirot: Murder on the Orient Express Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

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.

Poirot: Murder on the Orient Express Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

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.

Poirot: Murder on the Orient Express Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

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)

Poirot: Murder on the Orient Express Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

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.