'Murder on the Orient Express (2017)' REVIEW: A talented cast goes to waste in this average

'Murder on the Orient Express (2017)' is brought to us by Sir. Kenneth Branagh, the director of films such as Henry V (1989), Much Ado About Nothing (1993), Hamlet (1996), Thor (2011) and the latest Disney live-action Cinderella (2015). Clearly this man has made plenty of very good films as director and as an actor as well. This film is based on the 1936 novel of the same name by Agatha Christie. Since then this story has been an influence on a lot of forms of media such as films like Clue (1985) and has been remade plenty of times originating with a 1974 film and a 2001 television film of the same name. I personally have never read this book or have seen the previous films. I was excited for this not only because it's starring and directed by Sir. Kenneth Branagh, but it has an ensemble of great talent in front of the camera. Plus, it's also a murder-mystery. They can be fun and engaging, especially with a setting as claustrophobic as a express train. Sadly, this is kind of a bummer.

If you can't tell from the film's title, 'Murder on the Orient Express' is obviously about a murder on the Orient Express. Hercule Poirot (played by Kenneth Branagh), a world famous detective boards on the Orient Express in between working on cases along with 13 other strangers. While on this trip, an avalanche derails the train, someone gets murdered and Hercule Poirot is the only one who can solve the case. It's a standard murder-mystery plot, but I can roll with it as long as the film can keep me in suspense of who's the killer and why he/she did it.

Like most films directed by Kenneth Branagh, the production value here is astounding. There's plenty of beautiful scenery from outside the train as well as inside the train, even though some of it is CGI it still looks great. Once again Kenneth Branagh shows off his love for period-piece detail from the setting to the costumes so it looks and feels very authentic. The performances all around are really good. I think Kenneth Branagh is really good as the main lead detective. He was believable as the world's most famous detective and he had an accent that he had to maintain for 100% of the film which I was afraid he wouldn't from the trailers, but in the end I think he pulled it off. As for Daisy Ridley, this is the second time I've seen her in a film in theaters since Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) and in that film I thought she was amazing and I was excited to see what she can bring in another film. Here, I'm glad that she still comes off as massively charismatic and engaging as an actress and she is by far one of the bright spots of this film. Josh Gad gives a very good performance other than his comedic or musical roles. There was a scene where his character gives a confession which showed me that he definitely is capable of doing dramatic roles, good job there. With this film being a murder-mystery, the resolution must be at least satisfying, right? Here, I would describe the resolution as different and I was genuinely surprised. I didn't see it coming and it was understandable.

While there are things that I think this film does well, there are aspects to this film that fall short in comparison to Kenneth Branagh's previous films. The biggest issues that I have with this film is the storytelling, script and the direction. For starters, the film takes way too long to get going during the set-up to the murder. It felt like an hour before the actual murder happens. For a film that's called 'Murder on the Orient Express' we'd be expecting a dead body much sooner than later. I understand that the set-up of this film should be reserved for character development, but the problem is that there's little to none here. The film does kick-off with Hercule Poirot resolving a separate case, then you are just watching things happen and finally the murder occurs. While I say that everyone gives a good performance, most of their characters didn't bring much to the table. I thought that Penelope Cruz, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer and William Dafoe were given roles that really could've been played by anybody. I also say that the script is a problematic to this film is because while I do believe that Hercule Poirot is the world's greatest detective, the script doesn't delve deep into his thinking process on how he solves these cases. So in the end, I found him to not be very engaging and that's why I found myself bored quite often throughout the film. The thing that I was most excited about is that it's set in a restraining location that should keep audiences on the edge of their seats and biting their nails to see if anyone else gets murdered. Due to the direction on display, I was sadly mistaken. That claustrophobic feeling and tension just wasn't there and I sadly didn't fear for any of their lives at all throughout.

In the end, I was mostly disappointed with this film. The film shows Kenneth Branagh's impeccable attention to detail and gives a good performance and so does everybody else, but it seems like a complete waste of them to me. While I didn't mind that the story is very standard, it's unfortunately blandly told. The film doesn't do that much different to separate itself from other mysteries except for with the ending. I will remember the ending, but the journey to get there just wasn't enough to warrant it.

'Murder on the Orient Express (2017)' gets a C+