Murder on the Orient Express

Based on the book by Agatha Christie, Murder on the Orient Express follows ace detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) as he’s tasked with solving a murder aboard the title locomotive. Filmmaker Branagh delivers a slick and mostly entertaining adaptation that benefits substantially from the efforts of an all-star cast, with Branagh’s superb turn as the iconic Poirot matched by an eclectic roster of periphery players that includes Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Judi Dench. And although Branagh does a nice job of immediately capturing the viewer’s interest – the picture boasts an agreeably frenetic opening stretch – Murder on the Orient Express settles into a midsection devoted predominantly to Poirot’s meticulous investigation and his efforts at uncovering various clues. It’s somewhat interesting stuff that admittedly does grow fairly repetitive as time progresses, and there reaches a point at which one can’t help but wish that Branagh would hurry things along already. The effective climactic stretch ultimately does cement Murder on the Orient Express‘ place as a perfectly watchable mystery, however, with possible future installments of Poirot’s storied adventures certainly not an unwelcome proposition.

**1/2 out of ****