Revisiting Rewatchables, week 25: “Death on the Nile”
Summertime is upon us. Time to think about where we want to spend “les vacances”, as Hercule Poirot would say, or at least a pleasant summer evening. How about embarking on a leisurely cruise on the Nile with a dozen or so colourful characters who for various reasons harbour murderous thoughts? What a joy to watch them look daggers at each other and exchange barbed comments while the splendours of Egypt pass by. And what exciting company we will have: Linnet Ridgeway, young, beautiful, spoiled and very rich; Jacqueline De Bellefort, mad with jealousy, in pursuit of Linnet who has stolen Jacqueline’s fiancé; Salome Otterbourne, constantly inebriated either by alcohol or erotic fantasies (“My world is the world of grand love and passionate romance, not grubby murders”); Mrs. Van Schuyler who lives for jewels and loves to chide her maid/companion Bowers (“Temper, temper, Bowers!”), and others. Everyone has reason to hate Linnet Ridgeway or to want her out of the way. And in the middle of these assorted passengers there is Hercule Poirot, or Hercules Porridge, as Mrs. Otterbourne calls him.
Inevitably, there is a murder and we get to watch how the subsequent events unfold. It's an ingenious crime, but the way Hercule Poirot collects the clues and uses his little grey cells is equally ingenious.
The actors are wonderful. Angela Lansbury is a hoot as Salome Otterbourne and Bette Davis and Maggie Smith are priceless as Mrs. Van Schuyler and Bowers:
Mrs. Van Schuyler: Keep a civil tongue in your head, Bowers, or you'll be out of a job.
Miss Bowers: What do I care? This town is filled with rich old widows willing to pay for a little groveling and a body massage. You go ahead and fire me.
Mia Farrow is both vulnerable and consumed by her thoughts of revenge. And Peter Ustinov is perfectly cast as Poirot. The costumes are fantastic and stunning, especially the headwear, the production design is superb (they rebuilt the steamship in a tank in England), and Nino Rota's score is majestic. What more can you ask for?
The film is surprisingly funny, filled with lovingly created little details. For instance, there is a short scene in an English classroom, where the children watch excitedly how Linnet Ridgeway makes her way to her stately home. It is just a few seconds long, but rewatching the film I thought to myself, “I know this face” and I recognized the actress playing the teacher in this scene, Barbara Hicks. We will meet her again later this year. There are lots of little nuggets like this, as the film isn’t in a rush to reach its goal.
Where “Murder on the Orient Express” was a somewhat claustrophobic experience, since it took place in the cramped confines of train carriages, “Death on the Nile” is more spacious and lighter, because several important scenes take place off the steamer. Of course, one wonders how they managed to clear the various archaeological sites of tourists. I’ve never seen Giza or the temple of Karnak so empty.
It is a glorious film, with a great script by Anthony Shaffer and excellent direction by John Guillermin. John Guillermin may not be a household name but he directed among other things some very important films, for Irving Allen and Dino de Laurentiis respectively: “Towering Inferno” and “King Kong”. He was described by people he worked with as imaginative, skillful and meticulous, however he also had a bad temper.
As I rewatched the film the other day a small detail caught my attention. There is a scene near the beginning of the film where some of the main characters dance tango in the hotel. Three couples are on the floor: Poirot and young Miss Otterbourne, Colonel Race and Salome Otterbourne and Linnet Ridgeway and her husband. We watch as the camera follows Poirot and Miss Otterbourne when suddenly Salome Otterbourne gets into the shot from the right. It looks like a mistake, and you’re startled. But I think this little scene shows exactly what Salome Otterbourne is like: dramatic, over the top and lurching all over the place. She would intrude. It’s a clever piece of direction.
So, I really recommend “Death on the Nile”. It’s almost perfect. Go and watch it. Below are links to the trailer, the tango scene and an interview with Angela Lansbury.