Review of Murder on the Orient Express (1974) by Eric F — 26 Mar 2009

"Murder on the Orient Express" is one of those tedious whodunit's that ends with a nearly half hour monologue by a detective putting all the clues together and thus providing an answer to an intricate case. Said monologue includes yelling, sweating, and flashbacks as the onlookers in the room all gasp when the detective begins to decipher connections between the suspected culprits and the victims. It's like "Clue" without the, well, intentional laughs.

Five years before the story takes place, we learn the details of a gruesome kidnapping that had occurred in Long Island. A young girl, Daisy Armstrong, was taken and killed after the culprit had already received the ransom money. Following her murder were another four deaths, all related to Daisy, including her family and the maid.

Now, we fast forward to a train station where a group of people are boarding the Orient Express, a train that goes from Istanbul to London. On the train is the renowned Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Albert Finney), a guest of the railroad's director, Bianchi (Martin Balsam). Sure enough, his services are soon required - an old business man, Ratchett (Richard Widmark), is found stabbed to death in his bed. Eventually, puzzle pieces are put together and it's deciphered that Ratchett is actually the alias of the man who murdered the Armstrong girl.

Thus begins the series of cross-examinations with Hercule and the 12 culprits on the train. Ingrid Bergman, who won an Oscar for her performance (perhaps not deservedly so), plays a Swedish missionary worker, Sean Connery is an English officer on his way home from India with a companion played by Vanessa Redgrave, and Anthony Perkins plays the secretary of Ratchett. Of course, i'm only glazing over the supporting cast - but in reality, the majority of them are simply a blur. It's a challenge to create twelve distinctive characters that we could find ourselves caring for in the span of two hours, and the film doesn't succeed. And, well, you may want to have a notepad handy to keep all of the intricacies in check.

The film is largely a cartoon, which becomes incredibly prominent in the scenes dominated by Albert Finney, who gives an absurd, but mostly good, performance. For what it is, it's fairly enjoyable - however, by the time Hercule is dishing out the intricate plot to the confused men and women, you'll find yourself growing restless. A story led by a protagonist like this would be more fit for a television program, not a two hour plus film.

I didn't feel cheated out of two hours of my life when "Murder on the Orient Express" was over, however two days later my memory is already fuzzy on the details. It's certainly disposable and forgettable entertainment, however there are much worse things to do with your time. Don't go out of your way to see it, but if there's nothing else on television you might as well give it a shot.