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Rating: 4.5 out of 5
The only Agatha Christie book I have ever read was “And Then There Were None.” That book was pretty good, but I read that way back as a high school senior. Well, fast forward many years, and I was sitting in the theaters watching Knives Out. Such a great murder mystery. It reminded me of an Agatha Christie type mystery with the main character being this brilliant detective. This made me want to read an Agatha Christie book. Last year, I took the time to read Agatha Christie’s all-time great novel, Murder on the Orient Express. I always heard the original movie was great and to watch that one rather than the newest version. Ladies and gentlemen, I have finally watched the 1974 version of this film, and I must say that I genuinely enjoyed it. Let’s take a ride on the Orient Express and see what mystery is afoot.
The film is set in December 1935. Famed Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Finney) has just solved a case for the British Army in Jordan. Hercule travels to London on the famed Orient Express from Istanbul. While waiting, he meets his old friend Signor Bianchi, a director of the company which owns the line. Many interesting characters board the famed train coach compartment as the train loads. With the train so booked, Hercule must sleep in the back of the train. While on the train, Hercule is approached by American businessman Samuel Ratchett (Widmark) for protection. When the train makes an unexpected stop because of the snowdrift, the night becomes wild as Hercule is awoken many times. The next morning, Ratchett is found stabbed to death, and Bianchi asks Hercule to solve the case.
I want to say that for an old-school murder mystery, I was fully invested in the story. Even though I knew what happened at the end, something about seeing it made a big difference for me. For starters, let’s talk about the start of the film. I enjoyed how the film brought up the initial crime with the kidnapping and murder of baby Daisy Armstrong, the baby daughter of a wealthy British Army Colonel and his American-born wife. The film did this by showing significant headlines from the newspaper. You got a sense and timeline of what happened by each article that flashed on the screen. Oh, the epic and mysterious music that played made this montage intense and eerie.
The movie begins five years later, and here we meet Hercule Poirot, who just solved a case and travels to London on the Orient Express. Now first off, when we meet the characters as each one boards the train, and let me tell you, we have a distinct cast of characters. We don’t know anyone’s name just yet, but Count Rudolf Andrenyi and Countess Helena Andrenyi roll up in all white. Don’t spill anything on the clothes. Homegirl was in an all-white coat outfit, and dude had on this silver-type hat. Also, they looked like they had a stick up their ass, but who is judging. Also, we are introduced to Mrs. Hubbard, who also seems to have a stick up her ass. Ingrid states she lost her cross, and all these merchants roll up on her offering pendants. Yet here we see that the train station is an absolutely crazy place. You see every walk of life selling items. People straight hustling in this station from orange carts to pendants. The hustle was real. Also, during this time, we are introduced to Mr. Ratchett, and the ticket man gives him this look and tells the dude who played the villain in Psycho that it’s been arranged. Oh yes, it’s about to go down.
The film starts introducing the characters a little better and their personality on the train. For example, everyone is in the dining car eating, and we see that Mrs. Hubbard is loud and speaks her mind. You might think she is a tad bit annoying. She sits down with Hercule and says some people just want to be alone. Homeboy smiles at her, gets up, and bounces because he doesn’t want to be caught up in that situation. Also, during this period, Ratchett tries to hire Hercule. Homeboy even pulls out a gun and offers up to $15k, but Hercule states he has made enough money and only takes cases he likes.
We got all the set up out of the way, and things go bump in the night. We not talking about Michael Jackson Thriller. Things are very suspicious at night, but things get REAL when the train stops because of snow covering the tracks, and then we find out Ratchett is dead in his bed. The doctor states that he had been stabbed 10-12 times. There are 12 people on board the first-class car. Coincidence? I Think Not!!!
The film really goes into high gear as Hercule investigates each member and searches for clues. Let me tell you, it’s like Kathy Bates’ character from American Horror Story: Coven. Straight-up lies everywhere you turn. I love how Hercule interrogates each person, and they seem to have their story straight until he notices something they said, and then they give that “Oh shit” look. For example, when Hercule is interrogating Colonel Arbuthnott, Arbuthnott states that Ratchett got what he deserved, but he would’ve had a jury and had him tried by 12 good people. The same amount of people in the first car train. Dun dun dunnnnnn!!! What I love and found funny about the interrogation scenes was that Bianchi would state that person did it after each one was done.
With the clues, they seem to just pop up out of nowhere, but with the eagle eye of Hercule, nothing gets pasts him. This was before the tv show CSI. I think that is what is great about this film. The mystery of figuring out all the clues and how they work with each other. Dude was stabbed 12 times, but some of the wound marks were shallow while others were deep. Also, a fragment of a letter that revealed the identity of Ratchett is a big key. The scene that was crazy was when Hercule, the doctor, and Bianchi were interrogating someone, and Hubbard showed up in the background window, holding a dagger with blood on it so nonchalantly. It was crazy!
Switching gears, I need to give a shootout to the cinematography of this film. Damn, was it good and kept you captivated. When the camera needed to get close to draw you in, it did. The camera work kept the suspense up. Playing off of that, the musical score was fantastic. You cant have a mystery film without some intense music. That is what draws in the audience, and some of the music was creepy at times.
Let’s talk about this cast. Back in the day, this film had everyone in it. Some people, I was like, I know you from somewhere. Let’s get the obvious out of the way. Albert Finney as Hercule Poirot was fantastic. Playing the great detective as a short man who always seemed out of breath but intense and a joy to watch.
For the supporting cast, Ingrid Bergman as Greta Ohlsson won the Academy Award for her role. She was excellent in her role as she was a missionary and told people she took care of little brown babies. Yet, I felt like Lauren Bacall as Mrs. Hubbard was far better. To me, she made more of an impact and stole every scene when she spoke. Also, Wendy Hiller as Princess Natalia Dragomiroff was straight-up creepy to me. Homegirl looked like she was straight up from a Dracula film. When Hercule stated that she never smiles, she retorted that her doctors advise against it. Straight gangster right there. Finally, there is Vanessa Redgrave as Mary Debenham. I sat for a second and had the pause the film because I’d seen her before but couldn’t put my finger on it. Then I remember she was in the first Mission Impossible film. Homegirl was and still is beautiful.
For the men’s side, Michael York seemed to be in everything back in the day. His Hungarian accent was terrible, but dude seemed like he was in every old-time film. I ain’t mad at the hustle. Then the film had the GOAT of James Bond films, Sean Connery. He was cool in this role and got a little sassy sometimes. Also, it had Anthony Perkins as Hector McQueen. It was a change for me because I always remember Perkins as Norman Bates from Psycho. Still creeps me out.
Murder on the Orient Express is an excellent murder mystery film. It has all the elements you enjoy in a movie and does the book justice. The cast is fantastic, the atmosphere is terrific, and the musical score hits all the right notes. I am pretty sure that Agatha Christie would be proud of this film. May Hercule Poirot continue to solve all the mysterious cases in the world.
