Madeleine Pence
The latest installment of Kenneth Branaugh’s Agatha Christie adaptations, A Haunting in Venice delivers a chilling mystery with plenty of twists and turns- and maybe a hint of the supernatural.
Set in 1947 Venice, Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branaugh) is now in retirement, deftly avoiding the cases that line up every day at his door, until his friend and writer, Ariadne Oliver (Tina Fey), comes to the door with an apple and an invitation to a seance- which he begrudgingly accepts, if only to disprove her. The seance doesn’t go to plan, though, with the medium saying that a girl who allegedly died of suicide in the house was actually murdered.
When the medium turns up dead, and a storm prevents the police from arriving, Hercule must take up the case once again, but increasingly strange and seemingly supernatural events keep happening. Can Hercule get to the bottom of this case?
I really enjoyed this movie. I enjoyed how it effectively blended the genres of horror and mystery. I was kept on the edge of my seat, needing to know what came next. Jump scares are few and far between in the movie, but the director cleverly builds tension through whispers of a children’s song, shadows across the wall, and seemingly impossible new developments. We’re glued to our seats, wondering how Hercule could explain these events.
In the end, the explanations are satisfactory, and all the clues are there for eagle-eyed viewers to see (Hint: pay attention to the honey). The characters are intriguing and the acting is good.
It’s not all positive, though. At points, it can be rather hard to see, and there are a few character/plot moments that feel a little forced, but those are few and far between. I enjoyed the horror elements and found them effective, but if you’re looking for a horror movie, you’ll be disappointed. Overall, I’d give it an 8 out of 10.