Murder on the Orient Express - 4K Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Murder on the Orient Express

Movie:
4K Video:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

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Movie
The problem when pulling from a source material as rich and popular as Agatha Christie is that her popular detective personas (like Hercule Poirot) have already had a myriad of different representations and the fans have already created their own “favorite” presentation in their mind. Not to mention that adapting a mystery novel to film can be VERY difficult just due to the fact that so much detail is involved in an Agatha Christie novel, that making a movie that can encompass all of the facts and scenarios going on in under 3 hours is just about nigh impossible! However, I was more than intrigued with Kenneth Branagh’s take on Murder on the Orient Express due to the large love I have for Branagh, and the all star cast that just REEKED of quality performances (Willem DaFoe, Josh Gad, Branagh himself, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dame Judi Dench, Penelope Cruz etc), but the end result was something that tried so VEEEEEEEEEERY hard, but someone managed to just miss the mark of greatness.

We’re thrown right into the film by introducing the audience to the brilliance of inspector Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) as he is retiring from the business and going on holiday. However, he is given an assignment he can’t resist and ends up traveling to his destination via the famed Orient Express train, run by an acquaintance of his. As fate would have it, Poirot’s skills are going to be utilized a lot quicker than he expects, when his comfortable little trip of reading Charles Dickens and dining in peace is interrupted by an avalanche that freezes the train right in its tracks. To make matters worse, a man named Edward Ratchett (Johnny Depp) is found dead, and ONE of the passengers on is the murderer (as they’re kind of snowed in).

Agreeing to take the case, Poirot begins to utilize his finely honed detective skills to sniff out the predator on the train. Each and every one of the guests on the train fall under his scrutiny, and as the movie unfolds a common thread ties them all together in ways that create an all together new villain for the inspector to uncover. We have an Austrian engineer (Willem DaFoe), a pretty little governess (Daisy Ridley), a black doctor named Dr. Arbuthnot (Leslie Odom Jr.), a rich princess (Dame Judi Dench), a snobby rich husband seeker (Michelle Pfeiffer), a sour butler (Derek Jacobi), the deceased’s accountant (Josh Gad) and a snobby dancing couple (played by Lucy Boynton and Sergei Polunin). Each of them tying each other to a mystery much larger, and more insidious than a simple murderer

I really wanted to like Murder on the Orient Express more than I did. The thing is, I didn’t DISLIKE it. I just felt that Branagh couldn’t quite grasp the nuances of Hercule Poirot, and subsequently couldn’t fit in enough of the original novel to make it actually work. It’s one of those situations where the book has a hard time translating to screen, or the translator had a hard time translating the source material to film. Things that worked in the book didn’t always work on film, and things that should have been incorporated from the book weren’t (or were truncated a bit too much for comfort). Branagh seems to push Poirot’s character to the front of the screen (which is a magnificent portrayal at times, and Branagh does him amazingly well), which leaves so few moments on screen for all of the other characters (something which wasn’t done in the novel). This creates a sense of lacking for most characters, with Poirot being the only fleshed out character.

Everyone does wonderfully in their roles (besides Daisy Ridley, who just can’t act to saver her life), but there’s just not ENOUGH of them on screen. Johnny Depp is remarkable restrained as the soon to be murdered Ratchett, and DaFoe is also incredibly toned down (both of whom revel in the “Gary Oldman” style of over the top performances), but the stand out characters are actually Josh Gad and Kenneth Branagh. I have been remarkably impressed with Gad over the years, and recently he has been turning in one good performance after the other. Branagh puts himself center stage, and naturally becomes the belle of the ball. Sporting his trademark mustache (which has been exaggerated to almost comical, as the mustache deserves its own billing in the film), the French accented detective is exuberant and highly infectious with his personality. My only complaint is that Poirot was never THAT much in your face, and it feels like they tried to model him after the Benedict Cumberbatch rendition of Sherlock Holmes. Giving the man almost godlike powers of deduction, and a certain quirky “charm” that feels a bit more modern than I would have liked.




Rating:

Rated PG-13 for violence and thematic elements




4K Video: Video:

Oh boy, are you in for a treat. Murder on the Orient Express was filmed in 65mm and then transferred to a 4K digital intermediate for home video, and the results are SPECTACULAR! I originally started watching the film in 1080p Blu-ray, and was amazed at the level of details I was seeing. The movie is sumptuously shot, and the different styling choices of blue, gold and soft reds was something to truly behold, but the 4K UHD disc is just THAT much better. I don’t care if you don’t have a 4K player yet, it’s worth getting the UHD combo pack just to future proof as this is one film you WILL want in your 4K library. The difference between the already amazing Blu-ray and the 4K UHD disc is staggering, with sharp details that allow you to see every facial pore, every bit of clothing and fiber, and each snowflake falling from the wintery sky. Blacks are deep and inky, with no signs of crush or banding anywhere, and the lavish use of HDR allows the colors to just pop off the screen. I was actually shocked at the difference, because usually 5/5 rated Blu-ray titles that upgrade to 4K are usually just a “nice” improvement. But the use of a full 4K master sourced from ACTUAL 65mm film stock gives us the kind of difference we’re craving when shifting from one format to the other.







Audio:

The Blu-ray for the film came with an INCREDIBLE 7.1 DTS-HD MA track (I had to rate it a 5/5 as well), but the Blu-ray gets the needed boost to Atmos, which is the same incredible 7.1 track with all the glorious sonic joys that it entails. Just with a little more directinality and a few overhead goodies (I’ve personally found that the difference between well mixed 7.1 tracks and full Atmos tracks are never THAT big of a difference). While I guess I could say that the 7.1 track is a 4.5/5 I would be doing so only to show a difference. I will say that they are both 5/5 experiences, just with the Atmos track being a BETTER 5/5 mix. While we have a few action shots, and some great weather related filling out of the low end, it’s really the subtle cues that give this mix its 5/5 status. Listen to the train as it creaks and groans, shifting differing rattles from one end of the room to another. The avalanche that snows them all in throbs with intense LFE, and you can actually hear the snow falling from above you and then to rear and sides as well. It’s absolutely breathtaking, with razor sharp dialog and a sense of sonic immersion that leaves you breathless.







Extras:

• • Agatha Christie: An Intimate Portrait
  • Let's Talk About Hercule Poirot
  • Unusual Suspects (Part One, Two and Three)
  • The Art of Murder
  • All Aboard: Filming Murder on the Orient Express
  • Music of Murder
  • Deleted Scenes (with and without Commentary by Kenneth Branagh and Michael Green)
    • Alternate Opening
    • Newsreel (Extended)
    • Breakfast
    • Hotel Check-In
    • Arasta Bazaar (Extended)
    • Train Montage
    • Departure
    • Poirot Bedtime Rituals (with two alternates)
    • Pierre Michel Interview
    • Luggage
    • Dreamscape
  • Director commentary by Kenneth Branagh and Michael Green
  • Theatrical Trailers
  • Gallery

Final Score: ​

For the THIRD iteration of the film (yes, this is the third adaptation of the famous novel of the same name), your enjoyment will rest solely on your perceptions on what the greatest detective in the world should be like. Those of you who have read the book may be more severely disappointed than those who have not, but the movie is an entertaining (if not slightly flawed) romp by its own merits. The Blu-ray and 4K UHD technical specifications are absolutely magnificent (extras could use some work, but still rather good), and I HIGHLY recommend grabbing the 4K UHD version if you can. It is just that perfect of a demo disc and those without the equipment will want this in their collection, as they will be double dipping if they pick up the Blu-ray, in my humble opinion.






Technical Specifications:

Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Daisy Ridley, Penelope Cruz, Willem DaFoe, Johnny Depp
Directed by: Kenneth Branagh
Written by: Michael Green (Screenplay), Agatha Christie (Novel)
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 HEVC
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Core), Spanish, Czech, Polish DD 5.1, French, Spanish, German, Italian DTS 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Mandarin (Simplified), Norwegian, Polish, Swedish
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 114 minutes
Blu-Ray Release Date: February 27th, 2018

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• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Decent Watch

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I was going to catch this in the theater but was not able to.. Will keep an eye out for this on amazon prime/netflix.

 

[Todd Anderson]

This looks like a Redbox rental to me... on the fence.