Friday, September 11, 2020 at 9:51AM Please welcome new contributor Josh Bierman...
The trailer for Death on the Nile, Kenneth Branagh’s latest Agatha Christie remake, arrived recently and we haven't discussed. Do we think this will be better than his previous venture Murder on the Orient Express or is it another vanity project? Let’s take a look...
Thursday, June 28, 2018 at 6:22PM Okay, our last dive into 1994! I recently asked readers to send in their '94 related questions (other questions will still be answered but that's for the next Q&A). So here's our final pontifying for that year. You asked, I answer.
JAMES: 1994 was the year of Frankenstein, the movie that led to Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branagh splitting up, due to his affair with HBC. Thoughts on Thompson & Branagh’s (professional) partnership? What projects would they have excelled at if they stayed together?
"IT'S ALIVE!" Or, rather. "IT'S DEAD!" Emma and Kenneth. Kenneth and Emma. Sigh. Insert broken heart emoji. Young Nathaniel was so sad when they split. They were the Definitive Early 90s 'It Couple: UK Edition. That was such an awesome cinematic partnership. I adored their over-the-top genre mashup and reincarnation chutzpah in Dead Again and their luminous Shakespearean comedy in Much Ado About Nothing.
If you think about it Frankenstein, with its pulp grotesqueries, and bodice-ripped lustiness is absolutely the work of the same guy who made Dead Again. I miss that Branagh, still...
Monday, November 20, 2017 at 10:00PM 
Chris here. Has everyone caught up to Murder on the Orient Express yet? For yours truly, it was set exactly in the spot in Europe that Clueless said we might be "whelmed" and our Eric Blume felt the same. But that hasn't stopped audiences from turning it into a modest hit, resulting in a global take of over $150 million - and that's enough for Fox to officially kick off a mini-franchise.
The new Agatha Christie Poirot films are keeping in line with the adaptations of the 70s, so next up will be Death on the Nile - expect Evil Under the Sun afterwards should Nile be a success too. Branagh is expected to return as director and star, and Orient Express's screenwriter Michael Green will be back as well. Get ready for more CGI exotic locales and modes of transportation because this one is set on a steamboat in Egypt. John Guillermin's 1978 version was an Oscar winner for Costume Design (Angela Lansbury headresses!) so let's hope for repeat opulence there as well.
But most importantly it will feature another massive cast! The aforementioned screen adaptation featured Lansbury, Bette Davis, Maggie Smith, Mia Farrow, David Niven, and Peter Ustinov's Poirot to name a few. It wouldn't be too confusing to have Michelle Pfeifer return, would it? What famous faces do you want to see in Branagh's next ensemble mystery?
Wednesday, November 15, 2017 at 5:00PM by Eric Blume
The good news is the bad news: director Kenneth Branagh’s new adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express is exactly what you think it will be. It’s a stylish, corny, enjoyable two hours filled with movie stars and that absurd moustache. It delivers on romantic glamor and old-school moviemaking, but there’s not a surprise to be had.
Out of the gate, Branagh plunges us into a prologue that’s both boring and obvious. He means to establish Hercule Poirot’s philosophy and fastidious nature, which sadly serves only as clunky groundwork which you know will circle back by the finale (which it does). He also tries to bring some levity to the piece with a few lame jokes. At first Branagh seems to be overplaying his hand...
Thursday, June 1, 2017 at 1:30PM 
Chris here. We've been obsessively tracking the developments of Kenneth Branagh's Murder on the Orient Express here at The Film Experience, so of course we have to share the first trailer.
One of the open questions for the film we've had about the film was tone - would this be a campy lighthearted romp full of famous faces or a more morbid serious-minded mystery true to Agatha Christie's text? From the look of this first teaser we'll be served something in between. And with plenty of attention paid to each star of this massive ensemble, even if our eyes naturally wander to Michelle Pfeiffer.
In a nifty bit of character introduction, Branagh takes us through the train car and the various characters in one take before giving the big reveal to his Poirot. We're already sold on the film, so we won't do the full Yes No Maybe So. But TAG YOURSELF as one of the passengers in the comments based on your response to this teaser - I'm Daisy Ridley's mildly concerned Governess (that rock anthem coda has me a little worried, friends).
