52
Metascore
51 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75IndieWireDavid EhrlichIndieWireDavid EhrlichExpensive but never fancy, and solid enough to emit a faint whiff of sophistication, this entire project is powered by the same eccentric confidence that allows Branagh to play Hercule Poirot like a neutered Pepé le Pew.
- 75ConsequenceLiz Shannon MillerConsequenceLiz Shannon MillerA far more intimate portrait of the detective than one might expect.
- 70IGNSiddhant AdlakhaIGNSiddhant AdlakhaIt takes Death on the Nile far longer than it should to reach its most impactful moments, but actor-director Kenneth Branagh cares deeply enough about Detective Poirot to make it work.
- 63Slant MagazineDan RubinsSlant MagazineDan RubinsOnce things get moving, it’s smooth sailing to the double-shocker of a denouement.
- 60TheWrapRobert AbeleTheWrapRobert AbeleBranagh’s indulgences can grate, but you also sense how much he loves it all, which helps. It also helps that production designer Jim Clay’s elaborate recreations (of an age-specific steamer and Aswan’s Cataract Hotel) and Paco Delgado’s stylish period clothing make for steadily appealing visuals, and that the story is one of Christie’s more tantalizing, hot-tempered mysteries.
- 60EmpireDan JolinEmpireDan JolinAn improvement on Murder On The Orient Express, with the increased focus on Branagh’s Poirot (even with its strange moustache obsession) welcome enough to distract from the problems with some of its ensemble and its too-obvious reliance on VFX.
- 50Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreA Death on the Nile that never lets us forget its quality and attention to detail, but forgets to be much in the way of fun.
- 50Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangLos Angeles TimesJustin ChangChristie’s story, one of her finest, is hard to screw up, even when Branagh and his returning screenwriter, Michael Green, seem bent on proving otherwise. Their movie is an often fussy, hectic confusion of old-timey pleasures and 21st century sensibilities, a mash-up that makes for some especially incongruous visual choices.
- 42The A.V. ClubA.A. DowdThe A.V. ClubA.A. DowdDeath On The Nile feels chintzier in every respect, with a much lower-wattage cast of potential murderers and a digitally summoned exotic locale about as immersive as a screensaver. If a viewer didn’t know better, they might assume they were seeing the fourth or fifth entry in a sputtering franchise, not the direct follow-up to a global box-office hit.
- 40The GuardianPeter BradshawThe GuardianPeter BradshawBranagh brings something spirited and good-humoured to the role of Poirot, but the film’s attempt to create some romantic stirrings to go with the activities of those little grey cells is not very convincing.