Barnes & Noble

A stylish whodunit in a class that fondly recalls old Hollywood, this treatment of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express by director Sidney Lumet is a zesty star-fest, jam-packed with big-screen images and memorable star turns. The knockout ensemble cast includes Albert Finney (as master detective Hercule Poirot), Lauren Bacall, John Gielgud, Sean Connery, Vanessa Redgrave, and Ingrid Bergman in an Oscar-winning performance. The tale takes places on a luxurious, snowbound transcontinental passenger train, as Poirot searches for a killer among the passengers. By virtue of its relatively simple plot and underlying morality play, Christie's source novel survives the transfer to film better than many of her more labyrinthine efforts. Finney, too, shines as Poirot, bringing to life to the fussy mannerisms that make the character so easily caricatured. The opening flashback sequences are striking and hauntingly effective, and the entire production is lavish and self-assured. Entertaining and appealingly old-fashioned, Murder on the Orient Express is a gripping tale of murder and retribution that reaffirms one's faith in the inescapable mechanisms of justice. Amy Robinson

All Movie Guide

Like many of Agatha Christie's mysteries, Murder on the Orient Express is predicated on an actual event, in this case the Lindbergh kidnapping. In the movie, everyone on board the Orient Express seems to have concluded that hateful financier Ratchett (Richard Widmark) was behind the abduction and murder of the infant daughter of a famed aviatrix. Thus, when Ratchett is himself found murdered, everyone is suspect. Normally, the police would handle the investigation, but the train has been stalled by a snowslide halfway between Istanbul and Paris. Thus, it's up to the insufferable but brilliant Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (an unrecognizable Albert Finney) to activate his "little grey cells" and determine who's guilty. Among the suspects are colorful characters played by Lauren Bacall, Martin Balsam, Jacqueline Bisset, Sean Connery, Wendy Hiller, John Gielgud, Anthony Perkins, Vanessa Redgrave, and Ingrid Bergman, whose performance won her a third Academy Award. (In her acceptance speech, Bergman apologized for her win, insisting that Day for Night's Valentina Cortese deserved the prize.) The first and best in a long line of contemporary Christie adaptations, the film scores on atmosphere, period detail, and richness of characterization. Hal Erickson

Product Details

• UPC: 097360879049
• Source: PARAMOUNT
• Region Code: 1
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Editions: Subtitled
• Time: 2:07:00
• Sales Rank: 14,788

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