Better Than I Thought It Would Be

Rating: 7/10 (15 November 2017)

I was pleasantly surprised by Kenneth Branagh's performance. When he first appeared on screen, I thought that he would quickly become tedious and annoying. However, as time went on, I found myself really getting into his character. Branagh plays him with such ridiculous eccentricity that he actually became rather charming and relatable. Now, it's not an Oscar worthy performance by any stretch of the imagination, but I do think it does say something about his ability as an actor to take these idiosyncrasies that normally would have annoyed me and in turn make them charming, as well as fulfilling his other duties as the director. The film is also very well shot. I was surprised by how much I was getting into the cinematography. Branagh works with long-time collaborator Haris Zambarloukos in order to make perfect use of the cramped quarters of the train. Whether its panning shots outside of the train looking in, or overhead shots looking down on the actors, Zambarloukos makes very distinct and interesting choices that allow for Murder on the Orient Express to come to life in a rather unique way, one that I wasn't expecting from the looks of the trailers.