Murder on the Orient Express
- Episode aired Jul 11, 2010
- Not Rated
- 1h 29m
Poirot investigates the murder of a shady American businessman stabbed in his compartment on the Orient Express when it is blocked by a blizzard in Croatia.Poirot investigates the murder of a shady American businessman stabbed in his compartment on the Orient Express when it is blocked by a blizzard in Croatia.Poirot investigates the murder of a shady American businessman stabbed in his compartment on the Orient Express when it is blocked by a blizzard in Croatia.
- Lieutenant Morris
- (as Tristan Shepherd)
- Hector MacQueen
- (as Brian J Smith)
- Pierre Michel
- (as Denis Menochet)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe majority of the episode was filmed at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, where the design team built a believable replica of an Orient Express carriage.
- GoofsMr. Bouc compares one of the characters to the "Bismark" battleship. The Bismark was laid down in 1936 only, launched in 1939 and commissioned in 1940.
- Quotes
Hercule Poirot: [furious] You people! With your kangaroo jury, your kangaroo justice! You had no right to take the law into your own hands!
Hildegarde Schmidt: M-m-monsieur Poirot, she was *five years old*!
Caroline Hubbard: We were good civilized people, and then evil got over the wall, and we looked to the law for justice, and the law let us down.
Hercule Poirot: No! No, you behave like this and we become just... savages in the street! The juries and executioners, they elect themselves! No, it is medieval! The rule of law, it must be held high and if it falls you pick it up and hold it even higher! For all of society, all civilized people will have nothing to shelter them if it is destroyed!
- ConnectionsFeatured in David Suchet on the Orient Express (2010)
It was now 3½ decades since the original defining "Orient Express" of 1974. Albert Finney in the lead role and more than a dozen big name screen stars of the day had presented a masterpiece on film. But in between, a 2001 modernized version of the story was made for TV and aired on CBS. To say that that version was forgettable would be the kindest thing one could say about it.
So, with movie rights in hand, ITV took another look at Christie's story. The writers returned to the original story and considered the darker overtones of the novel. They made one change in the plot toward the end that added an aspect of intrigue. And this time, they looked more deeply into Poirot's character, which, by now, had become so familiar to many millions of people through the British TV series and many individual films.
Christie wrote a background for her 1934 mystery based on a real event. In March 1932, a kidnapper took the one-year old baby boy of the Charles Lindbergh's from their home in New Jersey. Two months later, the boy's body was found in the woods not far from the home. This movie is set in 1938, as war loomed in Europe, so the fictional kidnapping and killing in the story would have been in 1933.
By 2010, the millions of viewers and fans of the previous two decades would be very much aware of Hercule Poirot's strong views on types of crimes. He vehemently disapproved of murder. No one could ever be justified in killing another human being in cold blood. Poirot believed strongly in justice under the law. And, with this new film, viewers get a further look into Poirot. He cannot tolerate revenge that leads to vigilante justice. This differs from the book though, where Poirot was a little empathetic toward those who wanted to right a miscarriage of justice.
The producers did many things to capture the time of the story. The train cars were rebuilt to resemble those of the 1930s, down to the decorations, art works and frills. The costumes, dress, makeup and grooming condiments were authentic for the period. Much research went into the planning of this new film. The script, direction and acting meticulously followed the manners, mannerisms and customs of the time. The 1974 film was true to the book and met with Christie's approval. Yet it didn't explore the dark side of murder as deeply as does this 2010 film. In this film, the script and cast play it just slightly more somberly. And Greta Ohlssen iterates how the avengers justify their form of vigilante justice. It's when God has not seen that justice was done. The contrast with Poirot and his serious moral convictions (when he prays the rosary), is striking. Poirot's strong abhorrence for anyone killing another person remains.
This film is every bit as good as the 1974 movie. Each has its own appeal, with a slightly different approach. The preferred roles of the casts vary between the films. Suchet's Poirot is slightly better than Finney's. But most of the rest of the cast in the 1974 film outshine the performances of the 2010 film. Richard Widmark's Rathchett is much better than that of Toby Jones who seems to be overacting at times. Sean Connery's Col Arbuthnot is much better than David Morrisey's role. And, Ingrid Bergman is for superior to Marie Croz at Greta Ohlsson.