Steven Hoang, Staff

On Saturday Sept. 23, I got to see “A Haunting in Venice.” It is the third Agatha Christie murder mystery adaptation where Kenneth Branagh portrays the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot and serves as the film’s director. The film is loosely based on Christie’s 1969 novel “Hallowe’en Party.” I I have watched the previous two movies Branagh has directed  (“Murder on the Orient Express” and “Death on the Nile”), so I was quite excited with a third movie coming out.  

Though I was excited for this movie since murder mysteries happen to be one of my favorite genres, I was also at the same time quite skeptical because I did not enjoy “Death on the Nile” as much as I thought I would. However, this film definitely did not disappoint.

A strong point of this film was its cinematography. There were a variety of different camera angles such as dutch angles and close shots used to help convey the ethereal and creepy atmosphere of a palazzo in Venice where the movie takes place. Also, I enjoyed the shots outside of the palazzo, as it helped to showcase the beauty of Venice and even got the viewer to see what was going on outside the palazzo while Poirot investigates the crime. The visuals were beautiful and one of the things that kept me engaged as the film progressed.

The story is a “whodunnit” within a haunted house setting. Something to keep in mind is that the movie was spooky, not scary. In my opinion, you will get the shivers. The movie does incorporate horror such as the use of supernatural elements. Additionally, it has some subtle comedy, which helps give the viewer some moments of brevity. The story to me overall did not feel rushed and I appreciated that. I do recommend watching the previous two movies as there are some small references from them, but it is optional as the movie is its own separate story.

The characters to me were all interesting in their own ways. I loved getting to know each of them and their own respective connections to each other and to the overall story itself. Once again, Branagh does a great job of portraying Poirot. With that being said, the rest of the cast did just as great. For instance, Tina Fey’s performance as Ariadne Oliver (Poirot’s friend and crime novelist) surprised me. I thought that I would be distracted because of her past works she has been in like “Mean Girls,” but I enjoyed her interactions with Branagh in the movie.

Out of the three films that Branagh has directed, I can say without a doubt that “A Haunting in Venice” is the best one. I came into the theater excited and left it feeling very satisfied. I recommend this film to any fellow murder mystery fan.