Kenneth Branagh Hits His Stride with Poirot in A Haunting in Venice

A Haunting in Venice is the first Poirot mystery by Kenneth Branagh that feels competent, compelling, and creative with the classic literary detective. It’s a far better film than the stuffy productions of Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile. Even though Branagh is once again the director and star here, it’s a much different movie—it feels like he has finally started to find his footing in this mystery series.

Photo by Rob Youngson/© 2023 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

It helps that this entry is not bound so closely to the books. It is loosely based on Hallowe’en Party, in which Hercule Poirot has to solve a murder that occurs at the titular party, but there are changes in the location, lore, and murder. Poirot (Branagh) is now a retired detective in late-1940s Venice, hoping to settle down after solving so many murders. But as Halloween looms, the mystery novelist Ariadne Oliver (Tina Fey) hopes to stump the detective with a paranormal encounter.

Poirot is invited to a Venice home for a party with ghost summoning to follow. It’s believed that the dark spirits of murdered children haunt this estate and that a specific curse might have caused the death of the young Alicia Drake. Alicia’s mother, Rowena Drake (Kelly Reilly), is hoping to get in contact with Alicia’s spirit with the help of the medium Joyce Reynolds (Michelle Yeoh). For Poirot, this seems like a simple case of dispelling the trickery of a scammer. However, when a murder occurs, the plot thickens, as it usually does.

Tina Fey as Ariadne Oliver and Kenneth Branagh as Hercule Poirot. Photo by Rob Youngson/© 2023 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

The murder plot that unfolds is far different from the one in Hallowe’en Party, adding an extra layer of excitement to this tale for those already familiar with the novel. Poirot feels more present in this mystery, in which his faith is challenged when he starts experiencing paranormal visions and occurrences of his own that he’s unsure how to explain. Of course, we’re sure Poirot will find an explanation for everything, but the journey, not the destination, makes this film work so well.

The many suspects assembled are compelling and full of emotion rather than being stuffily bound by matters of inheritance and decadence. Rowena is distraught about her daughter. Olga Seminoff (Camille Cottin) tries to keep her head low but realizes there’s a darker secret she has yet to unearth. Dr. Leslie Ferrier (Jamie Dornan) is unreliable when assessing murder due to interference from PTSD symptoms, and he seems tense for more reasons than just the death. Caring for Leslie is his younger son, Leopold (Jude Hill), a surprisingly intelligent young kid who manages to keep his emotions in check and his father’s medicine delivered on time, and who has strong feelings about choices in literature (he finds Dickens to be too silly). Every actor delivers a satisfactory performance.

Kelly Reilly as Rowena Drake. © 2023 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

The location change works well for this adaptation. I love the dark setting of the Venetian residence, where the only way out is through the canals and a storm prevents an escape. The churning waters crash against the home as the lightning rages—it’s a great horror setting. I just wish Branagh didn’t feel the need to go the extra mile with his jump scares; two or three is fine, but I grew tired of the trick by the time I got to the fifth one with another fake scare. I get that this is a horror-style mystery, but the atmosphere already establishes that better than any jump scare.

Not only is A Haunting in Venice a trimmer film than the previous two, at roughly 100 minutes, but it’s also far more dynamic. It moves at a quick pace and meshes interrogations together within the investigation. There’s always something happening, and the stakes can be felt in a highly charged situation where the trapped suspects are so emotional over the murder that they nearly kill each other in the same room. Complete with a clever enough plot, it’s an engaging picture throughout.

Michelle Yeoh as Mrs. Reynolds. © 2023 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

A Haunting in Venice is a welcome improvement over Branagh’s previous Poirot movies and a solid enough murder mystery in its own right. Despite getting a bit overblown at times when trying to enhance the spooky setting, it mostly works thanks to better casting, better cinematography, and a more original story for Poirot. Retreading the classic Agatha Christie character can only proceed for so long before there’s a thirst to break out of the norm and take more liberties with him. While not every attempt by Branagh to adapt this material lands solidly, it’s refreshing that he’s at least trying something different. And with this film, he manages to largely stick the landing.