Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile reborn: Does the 2022 film do the beloved novel justice?
Holly Fleck
In February 2022, Kenneth Branagh released his cinematic take on Agatha Christie’s notable novel, Death on the Nile, but how does it compare to the 1937 original?
In this film Kenneth Branagh acts as Hercule Poirot, Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway, Armie Hammer as Simon Doyle, and Emma Mackey as Jacqueline de Bellefort. These main characters play a dominant role in the drama that is about to unfold, as the Karnak sails eloquently down the River Nile. Every character is so convincing and confident that viewers are challenged in trying to detect the murderers.
However, as a fan of Agatha Christie’s work and characters within the original novel, it is difficult not to notice Branagh’s shake up of characters. Characters that are axed from Branagh’s version are Cornelia Robson (cousin of Marie Van Schuyler), Mr Ferguson (the communist), Guido Richetti (the Italian archaeologist), and Jim Fanthrop (the solicitor).
Meanwhile, other characters get a change of nationality. For example, in Christie’s novel, Linnet is travelling with her trustee Andrew Pennington, but in the film, he is called Andrew Katchadourian, becoming her cousin and lawyer. As well as Andrew, Dr. Bessner, an Austrian physician, becomes a British doctor called Linus Windlesham and an ex-fiancée of Linnet Doyle. Another character that confused me at first was Bouc, son of Mrs Allerton who replaced the novel’s Tim Allerton. Although I understand that the axing of characters is Branagh’s attempt to simplify the storyline, I believe that some of Christie’s compelling character complexities are being lost.
Speaking of the storyline, Branagh implies that the nurse, Mrs Bowers, and Van Schuyler, are lovers. He also changes the occupation of Salome Otterbourne from a romance novelist to a blues singer, who has some chemistry with Poirot. Casting Salome Otterbourne as an African American blues musician permits the addition of two extra scenes that are set in a jazz club bar. In these scenes, we also see Rosalie Otterbourne, who is Salome’s niece in the film, both played by black actors. This adds some welcomed racial diversity as in the novel the characters are both portrayed as being white.
Branagh’s film version begins in the wartime trenches of north-west Belgium, as viewers discover how the legend of how Hercule Poirot got his moustache. This is unlike Christie’s book, which begins by a pub landlord speculating over an affluent lady’s Rolls Royce. For viewers who have not read the book, or are not aware of the legacy of Poirot, I think this is an intelligent way of introducing his character to a new audience. Perhaps, this is used as a tactful marketing strategy to attract millennials or Gen Z.
As the movie continues, the storyline follows Christie’s outline, however there are some surprises along the way. Branagh tinkers with the actions and attitude of Poirot. For example, in one of the final scenes, he is involved in a shoot-out with one of the murderers and he ends up hurling a meat cleaver at them. In this scene in the book, he is very hesitant, and there is certainly not a battle of any kind.
In one of the final scenes, Poirot takes a macho stance and shoots a gun into the air to grab his audience’s attention so he can reveal the murderers (yet again, this was not the case in the novel). Sticking with the same culprits of the novel, Simon Doyle and Jacqueline de Bellefort are revealed as the murderess duo.They end their lives together to demonstrate how true love prevails. This scene, as the climax of the film, is considerably disappointing when it comes to the special effects and acting in my opinion. I personally thought Branagh would have added some flare to it, perhaps with more bloodshed or a fight.
Overall, Kenneth Branagh’s version of Death on the Nile is a fantastic watch. However, if you are a fan of the 1937 original, you might question whether this version fulfils your expectations of a Christie mystery. On one hand, it is difficult to let the character changes and storyline adaptions go a miss, as if part of Agatha Christie’s legacy and craft is being lost. However, these adaptions have simplified the story and made it an engaging murder mystery for cinema goers, which might just be what you are after.
Holly Fleck is a Culture and Health and Lifestyle reporter for The Scoop and a Journalism student at Ulster University.