The fastest way there: The Orient Express, one of those first class sleeper that America dumped in favor of Amtrak. The world is between wars, winter is settling in, and famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Branagh) is being summoned back to Britain for his next case. You know the plot, even if you’ve forgotten the twist. Or, more accurately, how refreshing it would have felt had Branagh understood why Christie’s story has stood the test of time. Indeed, it’s hard to overstate just how refreshing it feels to see a snug, gilded piece of studio entertainment that doesn’t involve any spandex. Arrestingly sumptuous from the very first shot (and filmed in glorious 65mm), this cozy new riff on Agatha Christie’s classic mystery is such an old-fashioned yarn that it could have been made back in 1934 if not for all the terrible CGI snow and a late-career, post-disgrace Johnny Depp performance that reeks of 21st century fatigue.

Fox movies launched on the Riviera have included How To Train Your Dragon 2 in 2014 and further back Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.A movie about how much of a royal pain in the ass it was to kill someone before civilians had easy access to AR-15s, Kenneth Branagh’s “ Murder on the Orient Express” is an undercooked Christmas ham of a movie, the kind of flamboyant holiday feast that Hollywood doesn’t really serve anymore. While A-list festival launches aren’t the norm for big Disney movies there is precedent: among movies to debut at Cannes for the studio in the last decade were Solo: A Star Wars Story, The BFG and Inside Out. Searchlight is a regular at the festival. 20th Century and Disney were last on the Lido in 2021 with Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel.Īmong other studio movies to have been speculated for a Lido launch this year are Denis Villeneuve’s anticipated Dune: Part Two and one of the Yorgos Lanthimos/Searchlight duo Poor Things or And (though Lanthimos’s movies could also potentially find their way to Cannes). It’s the third film in this franchise after 2017’s Murder On The Orient Express and 2022’s Death On The Nile. Michael Green adapted the script, which is based on Christie’s story Hallowe’en Party. As ever with such a starry ensemble, cost and logistics of getting everyone to Venice would be an important factor. Branagh reprises his role as Poirot and directs. Branagh pulled in another A-list ensemble for his third Agatha Christie adaptation with cast including Kyle Allen, Camille Cottin, Jamie Dornan, Tina Fey, Jude Hill, Ali Khan, Emma Laird, Kelly Reilly, Michelle Yeoh and Italian star Riccardo Scamarcio.

Kenneth branagh agatha christie