Any film that opens with a origin story for a moustache has got to be worth your time as Kenneth Brannagh brings us the next movie in his Hercule Poirot series Death On The Nile.
Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot’s Egyptian vacation aboard a glamorous river steamer turns into a terrifying search for a murderer when a picture-perfect couple’s idyllic honeymoon is tragically cut short.
Brannagh knows how to put a film together and here he really brings Agatha Christie’s book to life with sumptuous locales in Egypt and neatly wound together adaptation of the famous novel. Returning himself as Poirot once again, he travails us with his meticulous investigation whirling around the starry cast that he has put together much like Murder On The Orient Express previously.

Among the false starts, red herrings and slight of hand throughout, if you have never read the book then you will be led on a merry dance as the plot thickens and unfolds around you, leading you to dead ends and possible murderers.
Branagh’s cast includes the likes of British comedy royalty in DawnFrench and Jennifer Saunders, for once playing things as straight as they can. Annette Benning, Letitia Wright, Rose Leslie, Sophie Okonedo, Emma Mackey and Russel Brand amongst the rogues gallery. Also, leading the way and Death On The Nile’s real shortcoming is the presence of Armie Hammer and Gal Gadot, who for the most part are as wooden as the river boat they are on. Fortunately the rest of the cast is so enticing you don’t have to linger on the two performances that suck the life out of proceedings for that long.
When things are said and done, Death On The Nile, despite it’s many Covid delays and unfortunate press surrounding Hammer, it will hopefully lead onto another one of Poirot’s movie outings for Brannagh as there is certainly life in this series of books from Christie. Although which one is settled on next remains to be seen. Death On The Nile looks amazing for the most part, and the mystery is handled expertly by Brannagh, one you may not return to and the cast of characters aren’t as endearing as Murder On The Orient Express, but the glossy whodunnit is definitely worth your time and murder buffs will no doubt enjoy it. Christies novels for now are in safe hands with Brannagh, so hopefully it isn’t the last we see of his Poirot and the legend of the moustache.

Death On The Nile Is Streaming On Disney+ Now