Death On The Nile Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES PLOT SUMMARY
Almost everyone on the S.S.Karnak, cruising the Nile, has a reason to want heiress Linnet Ridgeway dead. Her jewels are coveted by elderly Mrs. van Schuyler, her maid is upset because Linnet won't give her a promised dowry, writer Salome Otterbourne is facing a libel suit brought by Linnet, Salome's daughter Rosalie wants to protect her mother, American Andrew Pennington has been embezzling from the Ridgeway family, and former friend Jacqueline de Bellefort is upset that Linnet stole her fiance, Simon, away from her. Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot must unravel the mystery when Linnet (and some of the others) turn up dead.
| Peter Ustinov | Hercule Poirot |
| Jane Birkin | Louise Bourget |
| Lois Chiles | Linnet Ridgeway Doyle |
| Bette Davis | Marie Van Schuyler |
| Mia Farrow | Jacqueline De Bellefort |
| Jon Finch | James Ferguson |
| Olivia Hussey | Rosalie Otterbourne |
| George Kennedy | Andrew Pennington |
| Angela Lansbury | Salome Otterbourne |
| Simon MacCorkindale | Simon Doyle |
| David Niven | Colonel Johnny Race |
| Maggie Smith | Miss Bowers |
| Jack Warden | Doctor Ludwig Bessner |
| Harry Andrews | Barnstable |
| I.S. Johar | Manager of The Karnak |
| John Guillermin |
7.10 out of 10 (5613 votes)
Visitor Reviews
I have never seen such a reptile in a first class cabin
posted on 31 Aug 2009This is a good adaptation from the book. After watching "Evil under the Sun" (1982) and "Appointment with Death" (1988) you naturally think of Peter Ustinov as Hercule Poirot. The whole movie is packed with great actors, yet even thought you recognize them they do not distract from the characters that they play.
I thought that it was a nice touch when the kids along the shore mooned Mrs. Van Schuyler (Bette Davis) as kids would do everywhere.
Simon (Simon MacCorkindale) and his new bride Linnet (Lois Chiles) are being perused by Jacqueline De Bellefort (Mia Farrow) the girl he jilted. Once onboard a boat going down the Nile bodies are dropping like flies. Everyone is a suspect. Everybody could have done it as we see the proof acted out. And yet nobody could have done it as all alibis hold up. Only Hercule Poirot can logically figure this out. Naturally as usual Hercule Poirot is in the right place at the right time to hear everything and extract the truth.
Evil Under the Sun
don't order from this seller
posted on 31 Aug 2009I order 3 movies from this seller; I had broken my leg and needed something to do; I also reordered from other sellers the same day and three days later...I received the others quickly...I received the others I order 3 days later..still no order from this seller finally on the last day 3wks later I received 2 of the movies I ordered but still a full month later .. I have not received the 3rd movie...don't be fooled I saw he had a lot of postive feedback, few neg.and cheap prices...but something has happened to this sellers business..I would never order from him again...
The best of the Ustinov Poirots
posted on 03 Aug 2009Gorgeously photographed, handsomely designed and well-directed, DEATH ON THE NILE works almost as well as MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS. Granted, Ustinov is a fair distance from Christie's conception of the character (while Albert Finney was dead on), but he has enough charm of his own to carry the film effortlessly. And he's helped by a terrific cast.It's too bad that stories like this have now been relegated, apparently permanently, to television.
Beautifully Made!
posted on 01 Jun 2009I love over-acted mystery movies like this one.I never got into Agatha Christie novels, but good movies like this one enable those of us novel-impared people to enjoy a great story.The acting was excellent and the all-star cast, including Romeo and Juliette alum Olivia Hussey, veteran Bette Davis, the hilarious Angela Lansbury, and the beautiful Maggie Smith present some of the best on-screen chemistry I have ever seen. Not to mention the fact that the movie is dramatic, funny, and mysterious all at the same time. Well done! 9 out of 10
This Cast Was Robbed At The Oscars!
posted on 11 May 2009In 1978, the nominees for Best Supporting Actress were: Maggie Smith in "California Suite" (winner), Dyan Cannon in "Heaven Can Wait," Penelope Milford in "Coming Home," Maureen Stapleton in "Interiors," and Meryl Streep in "The Deer Hunter." I agree that Maggie was wonderful, of course, but Angela Lansbury deserved a nomination in this category as well, in truth, the win.Perhaps, the reason Jack Warden wasn't nominated for "Nile" is that he was up for "Shampoo." But, John Hurt's performance in "Midnight Run" was not superior to David Niven's in "Nile."I never understood Jill Clayburgh's nod for Best Actress in "An Unmarried Woman" in 1978. That spot should have been taken by Mia Farrow in "Death on the Nile."
To be honest, Peter Ustinov deserved to be nominated for his incredible perfomance as Hercule Periot. When you watch it, he doesn't miss a trick.
Just look at his "set up" as he accuses Angela Lansbury of killing Lois Chiles. Just watch the screen! If they had to add one name to the list, it should have been his.In my opinion, "Death on the Nile" should have been up for best picture of the year. It was perfect.
Great all-star whodunit
posted on 26 Apr 2009Filthy rich Lois Chiles is killed on a ship traveling down the Nile River in Egypt. Good thing that detective Hercule Poirot (Peter Ustinov) is aboard.
Unfortunately, everyone on board had a reason to kill her. Poirot tries to figure out who did it while the bodies start to pile up....Visually beautiful and totally fascinating adaptation of an Agatha Christie mystery. It was a deserved Oscar Winner for Costume Design--all the clothing was in period and looks truly beautiful. Also they shot on location in Egypt which helps. The cast went through hell though--it was very hot and the clothes they wore were heavy and uncomfortable. Bette Davis especially complained loudly about the clothes and tore into Olivia Hussey for playing loud music in her cabin--at 6:30 in the morning.The cast, however, is very good in their roles. Ustinov is perfect as Poirot--much better than Albert Finney in "Murder on the Orient Express".
Bette Davis does wonders with next to nothing in her role as a jewel thief. David Niven just tags along with Ustinov helping him solve the mystery. Mia Farrow is (sadly) miscast--she struggles in a very difficult role. Angela Landsbury (obviously enjoying herself) runs away with the movie as an alcoholic novelist. George Kennedy barely registers--he's very underwritten. Maggie Smith, playing Davis' maid, is a treat--the sparring insults between her and Davis are VERY funny. Jack Warden is OK faking a fairly convincing German accent as a doctor. Lois Chiles looks absolutely stunning...but is killed off. Olivia Hussey is sadly underused. Simon MacCorkindale is very good as Chiles' husband. And Jon Finch is very wooden as a revolutionary. Still, everything works.I saw it back in a theatre in 1978 and loved it. Over 20 years later, I STILL love it. Much better than the overrated "Murder on the Orient Express". A definite 10 out of 10.
Brilliance
posted on 26 Apr 2009This film has to be the most underrated films ever made. It hosts some of the best performances to date of the likes of Ustinov, Lansbury and Mia Farrow and brilliant characterisations from Maggie Smith, Bette Davis and Jane Birkin. To be honest they all gave this film their best. The locations are magnificent, the costumes stunning and the intrigue is masterfully worked on. Simply the best "Christie" film of them all. I was a Bette Davis fan before the film and when I saw it upon release I was introduced to so many other performers that I have this film to thank for that. 10 out of 10 !!!
Great murder mystery
posted on 24 Mar 2009I loved this film. It's the finest murder mystery i've ever seen. It's actually impossible to guess who did it because everyone had a motive.The whole cast was perfect, especially Mia Farrow and Peter Ustinov. Bette Davis was wonderful as always, same with Maggie Smith.If you're a fan of murder mysteries and haven't seen this one. Definitely rent this one today, it keeps you guessing throughout the whole movie and the ending, well I don't want to spoil it for anyone but you will never guess.
Probably the most enduringly enjoyable Agatha Christie adaptation.
posted on 22 Feb 2009I haven't seen every single Agatha Christie adaptation, of course, but I know that "Murder on the Orient Express" is considered by most fans to be the best of them all. I believe that "Death on the Nile" in a vastly superior film, for the following reasons:1) Ustinov is a much better Poirot than the cold and dislikable Albert Finney. Ustinov combines intelligence and sweetness in the role, and the scenes where he displays Poirot's vanity ("I leave luck to others!") are hilarious.2) The logic in this movie is flawless and everything is CLEARLY explained, while in "Murder in the Orient Express" Poirot reached many ARBITRARY conclusions. You won't guess either ending, but it takes a brilliant person (like Poirot) to guess the ending here, while it takes a magician to guess the ending there.3) "Murder on the Orient Express" is somewhat claustrophobic, while "Death on the Nile" contains many more scenes filmed in beautiful natural locations. Visually, it's a much more pleasing film."Death on the Nile" has only one serious flaw: its overlength. But it's still an unpredictable, highly enjoyable film, and the scene where Poirot reveals everything is so perfectly done that you'll want to watch it again and again.
Good, old-fashioned entertainment
posted on 15 Dec 2008The main virtue of "Death on the Nile" is Agatha Christie's unbeatable whodunit plot, which is arguably even more beautifully constructed than that of "Murder on the Orient Express." The latter had been adapted for the screen in 1974 by one of America's great filmmakers, Sidney Lumet.Like its predecessor, "Death on the Nile" was filmed with a fine all-star cast, in which Peter Ustinov, Bette Davis, Angela Lansbury, Maggie Smith, Mia Farrow, David Niven and Jack Warden stand out. Ustinov's Hercule Poirot is perhaps a bit less eccentric than Albert Finney's or David Suchet's, but I actually like all three interpretations.The film is as lavishly produced as "Orient Express." It has nice costumes and beautiful natural locations. John Guillermin isn't as strong a director as Lumet is. Consequently, the images in "Death on the Nile" are pretty, but less artistically interesting than those in the preceding film. Moreover, Guillermin's visual storytelling is a bit repetitive (he shows all the possible versions of the murder in detail, which tends to become a bit tedious after a while), and the first half could have been shortened a bit. Still, the direction is way above average, and Guillermin handles the action scenes and the solution in a convincing way.To me, "Murder on the Orient Express" is the most artistically satisfying Poirot film, but "Death on the Nile" is the most entertaining of the Poirot adaptations with Ustinov as the Belgian detective. "Evil Under the Sun" is also enjoyable, since its strong second half more than compensates for the overlong exposition. I'd give "Death on the Nile" a rating of *** out of ****.
Classic Christie
posted on 27 Jul 2008This is one of the three best films (as opposed to TV - David Suchet and Joan Hickson are the best portrayals of the sleuths imaginable) of Christie ever done - "Evil Under the Sun" and "Ten Little Indians" are also excellent. Ustinov's Poirot, Niven's Col. Race, and the rest of the cast, all perform magnificently. Note that several of them were to appear again, with Ustinov, Maggie Smith and Jane Birkin all appearing in the sequel "Evil Under the Sun" - giving strength to the theory that great actors give great films... The Egyptian locale is very well portrayed, as is shipboard life. John Dickson Carr was correct in calling this Christie's masterpiece (though "Cards on the Table", "Murder on the Orient Express", "Evil Under the Sun", and "Ten Little Indians" come close).
A Great Adaption!
posted on 15 Jul 2008I watched this film when it was broadcast on channel four last Christmas and I was so blown away by it that I had to buy the movie on DVD. Coming from a true fan of murder mystery TV shows with my all-time favourite series being Midsomer Murders, I can tell you this has to be one of the best detective dramas ever to be adapted from one of Agatha Christie's novels. Peter Ustinov gives a wonderful performance as Christie's world famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, who along with his sidekick has to solve three violent shootings on a luxury cruise ship sailing off the coast of Egypt. The story is full of red herrings, great and really well acted characters and lots of fantastic humour. It is also very gripping with a crime that is forever tricky to work out and a truly unpredictable killer gives the film a perfect ending. I would suggest to all fans of classic British Murder Myestries to see this 1970's Agatha Christie tale but you will have to be prepared to be blown away by it. I overall give Death on the Nile 8/10 stars.ONE OF THE BEST DETECTIVE STORIES EVER WRITTEN!
Great plot with an unthinkable ending
posted on 12 Jul 2008I've never seen myself as an Agatha Christie fan, but this film changed the way I look on the 'whodunnit' mysteries. The cast is one of the finest ever assembled and Peter Ustinov is perfect as Hercule Poirot. Good to see Angela Lansbury in a quite a different role as a drunken women about to be ruined. The plot is very intelligent and the ending is absolutely unbelievable, it really showed how intelligent Agatha Christie really was. A must see for all murder mystery fans!
Throws out the eerie classiness of "Orient Express", but it's much more fun
posted on 27 Jun 2008Second in the all-star Agatha Christie mysteries brought to the screen (the first was 1974's "Murder On The Orient Express", with Albert Finney cast as detective Hercule Poirot). This one stars Peter Ustinov as Poirot, and he fits the part quite snugly. The murder victim is heiress Lois Chiles and the suspects--all with axes to grind--are together aboard a creaky vessel sailing the Nile. Film has a campy penchant for melodrama (not to mention an odd fetish for leaving its victims with gunshots to the head!), but the cast is pretty good and gives the proceedings a little lift. Ustinov is charming, as are dowager Bette Davis and lady-in-waiting Maggie Smith, fidgety Mia Farrow, and drunken wreck Angela Lansbury. George Kennedy is just around to take up space, and similarly David Niven and Olivia Hussey aren't given anything special to do, but the movie still rolls along at a brisk clip and is surprisingly engrossing and amusing. One questions remains: how exactly did the killer get that python in Poirot's bathroom? **1/2 from ****
Death comes to beautiful life on the Nile
posted on 04 May 2008In a follow up to the star-studded and highly successful "Murder on the Orient Express", producers put together this next adventure in the glamorous, but dangerous, life of Agatha Christie's famed sleuth Hercule Poirot. Played by Ustinov (as Albert Finney declined to participate in this film), he is on a trip to Egypt and in the company of wealthy (and selfish) heiress Chiles. She is on honeymoon, having recently stolen best friend Farrow's hunky boyfriend MacCorkindale and married him. Unfortunately, Farrow is in hot pursuit, turning up at every locale to make them suffer. Even more unfortunately, Chiles and MacCorkindale board a paddle steamer to travel the Nile and virtually every fellow passenger on the vessel would be pleased to see Chiles six feet under! Lansbury is a tipsy romance novelist presently being sued by Chiles for libel. Hussey is her protective daughter. Finch plays an anti-Capitalist who resents Chiles' ostentatious wealth. Davis is a cranky, jewel-loving widow who covets Chiles' pearls while her dour handmaid Smith blames Chiles' family for the ruination of her father. Birkin is Chiles' somewhat oppressed maid. Kennedy plays Chiles' crooked attorney and Warden is a doctor who hates Chiles for her damaging public criticism of his clinic. Naturally, the chances of all these people being together at once on the same boat is preposterous, but it's the hallmark of Christie's type of mystery. In any case, Chiles soon winds up dead, but Farrow, the one who wanted her destroyed more than any other, has an airtight alibi! Ustinov must delve into every detail of the matter and solve the case. He's hastened in his desire when another passenger turns up deceased. Then another! One's tolerance for films like this will depend on one's love of things like wondrous scenery, a palette of well-known cinematic faces and a head-scratching mystery. Some less-interested viewers may balk at the lengthy running time or the deliberate pacing (it's close to an hour before much of anything significant happens.) Standouts in the cast include Davis as a cantankerous biddy and Smith as her put-upon aide. Their bickering and sniping supplies much of the fun in the film and, of course, Davis has the hysterical shoreline greeting from the local Egyptian children. Lansbury gives an audacious, completely over-the-top performance which is nevertheless delightful. She never lets up on her flouncy, barely navigable character. Farrow is entertainingly nutso, popping up again and again, her snowy skin and red hair contrasting against the taupe settings. Ustinov and Niven also make an interesting pair as they work on solving the mystery. Chiles, who looks wonderful in her character's striking clothes and hats, is in way over her head acting-wise. Vocally, she lets the air out of some of her more caustic lines. The costumes in the film are magnificent. A gorgeous family of creams, greys, blacks, tans and golds are beautifully represented in the stellar cast. Mention must be made also of the music, a majestic theme rows the boat down the Nile, giving the film a lustrous quality from the beginning. The endless use of fantasy scenarios can be a little tiring (how many times does the viewer need to see the scuffle in the saloon?!), but first time viewers who are still trying to figure it all out shouldn't mind too much. It's a beautiful, star-filled, solidly-constructed film, the likes of which is no longer made.
Good, old-fashioned entertainment
posted on 04 Apr 2008The main virtue of "Death on the Nile" is Agatha Christie's unbeatable whodunit plot, which is arguably even more beautifully constructed than that of "Murder on the Orient Express." The latter had been adapted for the screen in 1974 by one of America's great filmmakers, Sidney Lumet.Like its predecessor, "Death on the Nile" was filmed with a fine all-star cast, in which Peter Ustinov, Bette Davis, Mia Farrow and Jack Warden stand out. Ustinov's Hercule Poirot is perhaps a bit less eccentric than Albert Finney's or David Suchet's, but I actually like all three interpretations.The film is as lavishly produced as "Orient Express." It has nice costumes and beautiful natural locations. John Guillermin isn't as strong a director as Lumet is. Consequently, the images in "Death on the Nile" are pretty, but less artistically interesting than those in the preceding film. Moreover, Guillermin's visual storytelling is a bit repetitive (he shows all the possible versions of the murder in detail, which tends to become a bit tedious after a while), and the first half could have been shortened a bit. Still, the direction is way above average, and Guillermin handles the action scenes and the solution in a convincing way. To me, "Murder on the Orient Express" is the most artistically satisfying Poirot film, but "Death on the Nile" is the most entertaining of the Poirot adaptations with Ustinov as the Belgian detective. "Evil Under the Sun" is also enjoyable, since its strong second half more than compensates for the overlong exposition.I'd give "Death on the Nile" a rating of *** out of ****.
Suspense and intrigue with Poirot on board a cruise in Egypt
posted on 11 Jan 2008This whodunit deals about Hercules Poirot(Peter Ustinov) as the Belgian sleuth man in he case of killing a rich heiress(a ravishing Lois Chiles)aboard a luxurious Nile cruise steamer.He investigates the travellers and as numerous suspects, all the support cast(George Kennedy,Bette Davis,Angela Lansbury,Jane Birkin,Olivia Hussey,John Finch..).Who is the killer? ,can he find the guilty?.Hercules is helped by a personage likeness to Watson(David Niven).After the clues have been shown we will get a chance to give the answer with Poirot finding out about the culprit at a twisted finale with outstanding surprises but are taken the murders from different viewpoints of everyone aboard which it makes boring,endless and overlong.The film is a detective story in which you are the detective.In the picture there are mystery,emotion,love,suspense and wonderful outdoors as are: the pyramids Keops,Kefren, Micerinos,sphinx Gyze,temples Karnak,Luxor and the rout of Nile river in the cruise ship. The movie gets a lush costume design(Anthony Powell) and magnificent production sets.Colorful and glimmer cinematography by excellent cameraman Jack Cardiff(Black Narcissus,African Queen).Sensitive and atmospheric music by Nino Rota(The Godfather),he's Fellini's usual musician.Interpretation actors are first-rate,Peter Ustinov acting is similar to Albert Finney(Murder on the Orient Express).Ustinov starred various Hercules Poirot films as :Evil under the sun(Guy Hamilton),Appointment with Death(Michael Winner) and for TV with low budget as :Murder in three acts,Dead man's folly and Thirteen at dinner;but the best considered is Death on the Nile.This film is well directed by John Guillermin. The flick will like to suspense lovers and Agatha Christie-Poirot novels buffs
The cast greater than the mystery
posted on 12 Dec 2007A very stylish movie with well justified Academy Award for the costumes. However, for anyone who has had the first hand experience of Nile cruising, basic mistakes in the geography of Egypt are plain ridiculous (it looks like neither Agatha Christie nor the script-writer was to Egypt). As far far as mystery goes, there seem to be too many lucky coincidences necessary for an allegedly perfect crime. Peter Ustinov as Poirot (otherwise well acting) seems a bit miscast. David Niven is slightly on autopilot but Mia Farrow, Bette Davis and the rest of the supporting cast saved the movie.
Star rating: 4 out of 5
posted on 23 Aug 2007Death on the Nile takes the viewer on a genteel cruise aboard the paddle-steamer 'Karnak' as it, along with its motley collection of passengers, wends its way through the stunning scenery of historic Egypt.
Unfortunately on this voyage the Nile proves to have disturbing currents, and a wealthy heiress with a propensity for making enemies is shot.
Corpulent Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot is on hand, and, as the body-count rises, must tax his legendary 'little grey cells' to the limit in order to expose the assassin in their midst.
The charm of this film is that to most of the audience it will be foreign in both time and place. The Egyptian location provides a visual feast, with visits to the pyramids, the inscrutable sphinx, and the eerie wailing statue of Ramses II at Abu Simbel. Scenery like this makes it somewhat easier to forgive the movie its overlong running time of almost 2 ½ hours. The story (originally penned by Agatha Christie) is set in the 1930s - the golden age of detective fiction - when murder investigations were much less clinical affairs than they are today. In an era before DNA sampling, Poirot uses the narratively more interesting approach of involving suspects in conversation, and reading between the lines.
The cast is certainly star-studded, but unfortunately several of the characters tend towards stereotypes. However, there are some wonderful performances by several of the silver screen's grandes dames - Bette Davis, Maggie Smith, and particularly Angela Lansbury as the inebriated author of appallingly bad romance novels.
Although a little slow initially, various techniques (such as dead silence being used as the ultimate suspense music) keep the viewer's interest piqued right through until Christie's trademark denouement.
An Interesting Trip
posted on 31 Aug 2009Hollywood was not always kind to Dame Agatha, but during the 1970s, they made some wonderful movies that were appreciative of her work. "Death on the Nile" is one of these. It is a clever murder mystery with the surprise ending that Christie is known for, but it's not as appealing as some of the other films made of her stories.
Part of the problem is that the central character, who is the main murder victim, is a beautiful woman who cannot act. This means that though the movie has a wonderful cast of English and American actors playing the suspects, it has a leaden center. Contrast this with Diana Rigg, the victim in "Evil Under the Sun," who is a wonderful actress who gives as good as she gets.
Also Christie admitted that when her stories started to bog down, she sometimes advanced the plot by throwing in additional murders. She does that here, and all this gratuitous death begins to get a little depressing. As many people know, Christie's dashing husband left her for another woman, and many times after this, the victim or the murderer in her stories is either the other woman or the hero. She may have been feeling a little extra bitterness when she penned this story.
But you still have the wonderful characters, the exotic location (the movie is filmed in Egypt), and a very interesting murder with a surprise twist. I bought it knowing its flaws and I still enjoy watching it.
Peter Ustinov is not the Poirot found in Christie's books, but the warmth and humor that he brings to the role actually make him better. Christie purist though I may be, I enjoy Ustinov in the role---even though he adds his own personality to the character, he is always respectful of Christie's creation.