A Haunting in Venice (2023)

[BetterButter]

 

[starri]

Wait, Tina Fey is playing Ariadne Oliver?  Are they making her an American?

[krankydoodle]

I thought Murder on the Orient Express was ok and gave up on Death on the Nile 20 minutes in, but the horror vibe in the trailer has me interested dammit. I wonder if we'll get a story behind the return of the mustache or if this is meant to take place before Death on the Nile.

[starri]

I unexpectedly loved Death on the Nile, so I’m definitely onboard with this, at least conditionally.  But it’s weird that they turned one of Christie’s country-house murders (Hallowe’en Party, in this case) into a travelogue one.

I approve of them adapting one of her lesser-known books, but if they wanted big set pieces and exotic locales, I don’t know why this over Death in the Clouds or Murder in Mesopotamia.  

[AgathaC]

1 hour ago, starri said:

I unexpectedly loved Death on the Nile, so I’m definitely onboard with this, at least conditionally.  But it’s weird that they turned one of Christie’s country-house murders (Hallowe’en Party, in this case) into a travelogue one.

I approve of them adapting one of her lesser-known books, but if they wanted big set pieces and exotic locales, I don’t know why this over Death in the Clouds or Murder in Mesopotamia.  

Yeah, it seems like an odd choice. The fact that it takes place in an English village is very important to the story, as I recall (it’s been a few years). And it’s not like there aren’t other “travel” ones to choose from.

Anyway, I’m torn. The trailer is intriguing. I adore Tina Fey. It could be good. But I was raised on Agatha Christie books (see username) and I can get a little “antsy” when adaptations go too far…

[starri]

5 hours ago, AgathaC said:

I adore Tina Fey

I like her a lot too, and it's definitely fun to see her do something dramatic.

But then you've got an American actress cast as Christie's authorial avatar.  She doesn't seem to be doing an accent, so she's not playing British.

[AgathaC]

1 hour ago, starri said:

I like her a lot too, and it's definitely fun to see her do something dramatic.

But then you've got an American actress cast as Christie's authorial avatar.  She doesn't seem to be doing an accent, so she's not playing British.

Yes, I’m kind of struggling with that myself.

[blackwing]

On 4/27/2023 at 4:09 PM, starri said:

I like her a lot too, and it's definitely fun to see her do something dramatic.

But then you've got an American actress cast as Christie's authorial avatar.  She doesn't seem to be doing an accent, so she's not playing British.

I agree.  I like Tina Fey but I worry that she's miscast here.  She's a comedic actor, why cast her as Ariadne Oliver?  And why cast an American in this role?

Still, I'm looking forward to this movie.  Jamie Dornan, the luminous Michelle Yeoh, Kelly Reilly, Jude Hill.  Good cast.

[peridot]

I thought this was a horror movie when they showed the preview before Indiana Jones!  I was surprised to see Michelle Yeoh in a random horror movie.  I didn't realize it was a Poirot movie until I saw Kenneth Branagh.  I'm not sure if my audience realized that it was a Poirot movie.

I never heard of the story before, but I'm going to try to avoid a synopsis. 

Edited July 1, 2023 by peridot

[BetterButter]

 

[MissAlmond]

I'm here for Barbie this summer and A Haunting in Venice in fall. Sorry Oppenheimer. 

Edited July 20, 2023 by MissAlmond

[BetterButter]

 

[AngieBee1]

I keep watching Branagh's Hercule Poirot films hoping that they would get better to me and they just don't.   I am able to enjoy bits of them - the first one had a great score, the second had great camera work, but the story falls flat. At least with this one the acting blows the other entries out of the canal.

It is the loosest adaptation and I think that worked wonders for it because they could essentially create a brand new story and not be hemmed in by the established work.     It is definitely a better story than the previous two films but it still doesn't have what it takes to be a great film.  

[AimingforYoko]

I especially enjoyed the parrot's line delivery of "Holy Shit!"

[SomeTameGazelle]

On 9/15/2023 at 5:51 PM, AngieBee1 said:

I keep watching Branagh's Hercule Poirot films hoping that they would get better to me and they just don't.   I am able to enjoy bits of them - the first one had a great score, the second had great camera work, but the story falls flat. At least with this one the acting blows the other entries out of the canal.

It is the loosest adaptation and I think that worked wonders for it because they could essentially create a brand new story and not be hemmed in by the established work.     It is definitely a better story than the previous two films but it still doesn't have what it takes to be a great film.  

It doesn't really give me what I want from Christie or Poirot. I also spent too much time wondering what had become of Alicia's father, Leopold's mother, and why there were so many Anglophone orphans in Venice.

I am glad I saw it in the cinema because otherwise I might have wandered off. I didn't mind Tina Fey as Ariadne Oliver because it was clear that they were not adapting Agatha Christie really. I was disappointed there wasn't more Michelle Yeoh. 

[annzeepark914]

Was "Ariadne" munching on apples in this film?

Edited September 24, 2023 by annzeepark914

[kiddo82]

This was the perfect movie to A-list.  I was invested enough that I'm not mad that I spent my time with it, but I'm also really happy I didn't spend any extra money on it.  I haven't read any Christie so as someone going in without knowledge or expectations, I thought the movie was perfectly fine without blowing me away.  The reveal wasn't the most shocking but it was still fun looking for the clues to confirm or refute my suspicions throughout.  The house was cool and atmospheric.  I would soft recommend this to anyone in my boat (no foreknowledge/neutral expectations) with the caveat to rent or wait for a streamer.  There are worse ways to spend an evening.

[Spartan Girl]

Somebody BETTER be taking care of the parrot.

So I thought it was fun. I’m not an avid Christie fan, so I had no idea about the differences and they don’t bother me. It was just a fun spooky movie for Halloween. The jump scares sure got me.

Branagh is entertaining as Poirot if nothing else. It’s a shame Tina Fey’s character turned out to be a bitch because they were fun together.

I swear to God I thought the actress playing Rowena was Vera Farmiga. She totally gave off smothering mother vibes so I was able to figure out she was the culprit before the end..

[krankydoodle]

I caught this on Hulu today and was pleasantly surprised. The movie doesn't bear much resemblance to the book and I was disappointed by the turn that Ariadne Oliver's character took, but it was atmospheric and entertaining. This was more low-key than the previous two movies, which worked in its favor. It also had fewer big names, but I thought all the actors did well even if many seemed underutilized.

On 9/24/2023 at 12:23 AM, annzeepark914 said:

Was "Ariadne" munching on apples in this film?

Not that I remember seeing, though she does use an apple as a calling card when she first drops in on Poirot and apples come up a few more times.

[Sandman]

"The Unholy Ms. Reynolds"? In 1947? Nnnnope. (Mind you, it is Michelle Yeoh we're talking about, so maybe she's also a time traveller?)

I thought it was properly atmospheric, and I liked Tina Fey in this dramatic role (although her Midatlantic accent comes and goes more than Alicia's ghost). I was sorry to see Michelle Yeoh peg out so early.

Edited January 23 by Sandman
Actually, what's with the "Ms." anachronisms everywhere?

[jah1986]

Finally caught this over the weekend and I didn't love it. I'm tolerating KB's Poirot better but I still see the actor and not the character. I was able to figure out the murderer and motive pretty quickly. Maybe my enjoyment was dulled because I was so disappointed with the turn of character for Ariadne. The sets were beautiful though, reigniting my desire to one day visit Venice.