beautiful but lacking

Rating: 6/10 (13 February 2018)

After solving a case at the Wailing Wall, famed detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) takes a boat to Istanbul where he boards the Orient Express with various characters. While crossing the Alps, the train is stuck in the snow and a murder occurs. Poirot must find the culprit and its connection to a famous child kidnap-murder case.
Branagh uses his skills to create beautiful stages on which his actors can perform. The only problem is that the characters are little more than facades. They are surfaces without interiors. While it's impressively beautiful, there isn't any blood pumping through this story. It begins with Branagh and his crazy mustache. It's an artifice in place of real character work. It also draws attention away from any real work. There is an artificiality with the whole world although it is a beautiful art world. I do wonder if this is the best way to update the adaptation of this classic.