Kenneth Branagh directs and stars in this latest adaptation of the Agatha Christie classic, Death of the Nile. This is a sequel to the 2017 Murder on the Orient Express, but you do not need to have seen that to watch this. Although, that is a damn fine movie so I would still recommend that you check it out.
How to Stream or Download Death on the Nile (2022 film)
It is possible that Death on the Nile will be available on HBO Max and Disney+ about 45-days after its theatrical release. Click on the Download button at the end of the review to check the current availability.
The Movie Review
I have to say that Death on the Nile is a movie of two halves. The first half of the movie that is there to set things up, get us connected to the characters, and set the scene, in theory, should be great. However, I found that it dragged and took too long to get to the good stuff, the second half of the movie with the actual investigation and murder is great and very entertaining.
Kenneth Branagh once again plays the master detective Hercule Poirot. We get a strange new backstory for Poirot that is not bad, but at the same time, it was not great and felt kind of unnecessary, to be honest with you. Look, Branagh is awesome in this role and clearly, this is his own take on it. In Murder on the Orient Express, he was great, here he is just good.
Well at first, he is just good, but when the movie does get going and he is in full detective mode he is as entertaining as he was in the last movie. The plot of the movie is the same as it always has been in each incarnation. There are a bunch of very wealthy people on a cruise on the Nile and a wealthy woman ends up murdered! Even if you are familiar with the story, they do at least try and present it differently.
There is a great cast here with the likes of Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Emma Mackey, and the guy who stole the show for me, Russel Brand. I think that there are many interesting characters here and the way they are each introduced to Poirot is done well enough and we do get to know each one a little bit.
As I said, the movie does take a while to get going, but once it does, I found it to be a fun time. The way that the movie is shot is very interesting, it is hard to explain, but you can clearly tell that there is a lot of CG used here, but it has a very unique look to it. I know that some people are not keen on this, but I thought it was pretty cool.
Speaking of cool, the set designs in this movie are great, the interiors have a real classic, elegant and affluent design that perfectly fits these people who are from the upper class of society perfectly. Add to this some great costume design and you have one of the most interesting-looking movies of the year so far.
I know that it sounds like I am pretty down on Death on the Nile, but I did enjoy it. I give them credit for trying something new, but it was the already established stuff of Poirot doing his detective thing that made this movie. I do still recommend that you give this a watch and I hope it does well as I would not be against seeing Kenneth Branagh strut his stuff as Hercule Poirot once again.
