‘A Haunting in Venice’ film overview: Kenneth Branagh crafts a sumptuously spooky

By Associated Press

Kenneth Branagh indulges within the form of macabre theatricality that solely a crumbling Venetian palazzo on a stormy Halloween evening can present in “A Haunting in Venice”.

Moviegoers in all probability way back made up their minds a technique or one other about Branagh’s stately and flawed Hercule Poirot franchise, however ought to there be any curiosity left for this third instalment is value it. It is spooky, and enjoyable and options Tina Fey, trying good and smooth in post-war fits because the fast-talking writer of wildly profitable whodunnits who says issues like “I’m the smartest person I know” in a mid-Atlantic accent.

Set in 1947 on a very foggy evening within the metropolis of canals, “A Haunting in Venice” is gorgeous to take a look at, with costumes by Sammy Sheldon, manufacturing design by John Paul Kelly and cinematography by Haris Zambarloukos. And it’s embellished with moody however palatable scares that really feel paying homage to classics like “The Innocents” and “The Others,” that are enhanced by Hildur Guðnadóttir’s rating. In different phrases, this may not excite a “Saw” fanatic, however for the extra simply scared and skittish it hits simply the appropriate notes.

Agatha Christie takes a little bit of a backseat right here, as Branagh and screenwriter Michael Green take solely the loosest inspiration from her 1969 e book “The Hallowe’en Party” for his or her haunting, firstly by transferring it to Venice. It’s the place Poirot has chosen to stay out his self-imposed retirement (an enviable exile if there ever was one). His whereabouts are hardly a secret although — determined of us line up exterior of his picturesque condominium hoping he’ll take a stab at their instances. But for now, a good-looking Italian bodyguard (Riccardo Scamarcio) is there to verify they don’t get shut sufficient to ask.

Fey’s Ariadne Oliver will get by the gates, although, with a unique form of provide: She desires Poirot to accompany her to a séance. This medium, she says, seems to be the actual deal and solely he’ll be capable of determine if it’s all a trick. Soon he, reluctantly, finds himself at a Halloween celebration for the town’s orphans, held by a well-known opera singer, Rowena, (Kelly Reilly) with a famously lifeless daughter whom they hope to contact later that night when the youngsters depart.

Branagh recruited just a few of his “Belfast” stars into this ensemble, together with Jamie Dornan as a health care provider nonetheless haunted by the battle and Jude Hill as his precocious son Leopold. Camille Cottin is a housekeeper, Kyle Allen is the lifeless lady’s ex-fiancé, and Michelle Yeoh is the theatrical medium Mrs. Reynolds, who appears to be having a grand time chewing the surroundings as a attainable femme fatale.

It is a definite shift in tone from the earlier movies — sadder and extra critical, with grief and demise in all places. Even earlier than Alicia’s mysterious demise (off a balcony, into the canal with a horrific scrape on her again), the grand palazzo had a physique depend: It’s the place docs are mentioned to have locked up youngsters to die in the course of the plague.

And this crew is in for a protracted, stormy, claustrophobic evening with finger-pointing, extra deaths and a few inexplicable phenomena at play. Poirot’s existential disaster might be the least fascinating facet of the entire thing, regardless of its centrality to the plot, however Branagh doesn’t waste an excessive amount of of his time diving into these self-indulgent waters.

Maybe Branagh ought to have been leaning extra into horror this entire time with this franchise. Or possibly it’s a case of underestimating a director whose work is prolific and never all the time private. It may be exhausting to take inventory of a filmmaker’s profession after they’ve made nice Shakespeare and Cinderella diversifications in addition to “Thor” and “Artemis Fowl.” But it’s all the time a nice shock when it really works as “A Haunting in Venice” very a lot does.

Kenneth Branagh indulges within the form of macabre theatricality that solely a crumbling Venetian palazzo on a stormy Halloween evening can present in “A Haunting in Venice”.

Moviegoers in all probability way back made up their minds a technique or one other about Branagh’s stately and flawed Hercule Poirot franchise, however ought to there be any curiosity left for this third instalment is value it. It is spooky, and enjoyable and options Tina Fey, trying good and smooth in post-war fits because the fast-talking writer of wildly profitable whodunnits who says issues like “I’m the smartest person I know” in a mid-Atlantic accent.

Set in 1947 on a very foggy evening within the metropolis of canals, “A Haunting in Venice” is gorgeous to take a look at, with costumes by Sammy Sheldon, manufacturing design by John Paul Kelly and cinematography by Haris Zambarloukos. And it’s embellished with moody however palatable scares that really feel paying homage to classics like “The Innocents” and “The Others,” that are enhanced by Hildur Guðnadóttir’s rating. In different phrases, this may not excite a “Saw” fanatic, however for the extra simply scared and skittish it hits simply the appropriate notes.googletag.cmd.push(operate() googletag.show(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); );

Agatha Christie takes a little bit of a backseat right here, as Branagh and screenwriter Michael Green take solely the loosest inspiration from her 1969 e book “The Hallowe’en Party” for his or her haunting, firstly by transferring it to Venice. It’s the place Poirot has chosen to stay out his self-imposed retirement (an enviable exile if there ever was one). His whereabouts are hardly a secret although — determined of us line up exterior of his picturesque condominium hoping he’ll take a stab at their instances. But for now, a good-looking Italian bodyguard (Riccardo Scamarcio) is there to verify they don’t get shut sufficient to ask.

Fey’s Ariadne Oliver will get by the gates, although, with a unique form of provide: She desires Poirot to accompany her to a séance. This medium, she says, seems to be the actual deal and solely he’ll be capable of determine if it’s all a trick. Soon he, reluctantly, finds himself at a Halloween celebration for the town’s orphans, held by a well-known opera singer, Rowena, (Kelly Reilly) with a famously lifeless daughter whom they hope to contact later that night when the youngsters depart.

Branagh recruited just a few of his “Belfast” stars into this ensemble, together with Jamie Dornan as a health care provider nonetheless haunted by the battle and Jude Hill as his precocious son Leopold. Camille Cottin is a housekeeper, Kyle Allen is the lifeless lady’s ex-fiancé, and Michelle Yeoh is the theatrical medium Mrs. Reynolds, who appears to be having a grand time chewing the surroundings as a attainable femme fatale.

It is a definite shift in tone from the earlier movies — sadder and extra critical, with grief and demise in all places. Even earlier than Alicia’s mysterious demise (off a balcony, into the canal with a horrific scrape on her again), the grand palazzo had a physique depend: It’s the place docs are mentioned to have locked up youngsters to die in the course of the plague.

And this crew is in for a protracted, stormy, claustrophobic evening with finger-pointing, extra deaths and a few inexplicable phenomena at play. Poirot’s existential disaster might be the least fascinating facet of the entire thing, regardless of its centrality to the plot, however Branagh doesn’t waste an excessive amount of of his time diving into these self-indulgent waters.

Maybe Branagh ought to have been leaning extra into horror this entire time with this franchise. Or possibly it’s a case of underestimating a director whose work is prolific and never all the time private. It may be exhausting to take inventory of a filmmaker’s profession after they’ve made nice Shakespeare and Cinderella diversifications in addition to “Thor” and “Artemis Fowl.” But it’s all the time a nice shock when it really works as “A Haunting in Venice” very a lot does.