A Haunting in Venice (2023)
An atmospheric adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Hallowe’en Party.
Laura’s Rating: 3.5/5 Stars
Plot: Retired famous detective Hercule Poirot is living a secluded life in Venice, Italy. An old friend comes to visit, inviting him to a Halloween party at a beautiful palazzo that has fallen into disrepair after several tragedies and apparent hauntings. When one of the guests is murdered, it’s up to Poirot to plunge back into his role as detective to solve the crime.
Analysis: First, I’ll say that this movie is nothing like the book it is based on, sharing maybe 30% of the story with its source material. That is actually a positive in this case, because Hallowe’en Party is my least favorite Christie novel I’ve read.
The setting of Venice is perfect for the story and the views are spectacular. The cinematography is absolutely beautiful but also perfectly eerie and haunting to create a sinister atmosphere. 5 Stars for the visuals.
I have mixed feelings about A Haunting in Venice. The movie had a lot of potential, but it was flawed. I didn’t love the screenplay and I thought some of the dialogue felt choppy and stilted. Poirot had some funny quips, but the other characters didn’t deliver their lines as consistently. The sound mixing and accents combined to make it difficult to understand dialogue on several locations.
In my opinion, the movie didn’t flow together right, as if it was edited down poorly. It felt choppy from scene to scene, like things in the middle that would have made it flow better had been cut out. The plot also gets a bit convoluted, which I don’t think helped the issue.
I did like how the story came together at the end and I figured out part of the reveal, but not everything. The cinematography and the ending go a long way to make up for some of the flaws along the way.
Comments