Agatha Christie gone goth

It is 1947. Our dear friend, Detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh), would rather live a quiet life in Venice, tending to his garden and only allowing access to the pastry delivery gondolier. A bodyguard named Vitale (“John Wick 2’s” Riccardo Scarmarcio) imposes the cordon sanitaire. Yet mystery author Ariadne Oliver (Tina Fey) slips through and eventually makes that offer Hercule can’t resist.

Kenneth Branagh and that mustache returns to the world of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot in ‘A Haunting in Venice.’ Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. 

She invites him to a gathering on Halloween night at the residence of opera singer Rowena Drake (Yellowstone’s Kelly Reilly, aka “Beth Dutton”), which also happens to be a supposedly haunted palazzo. To cap the evening, a famous “spiritista” played by Michelle Yeoh shall conduct a séance and perhaps uncover the truth behind the death of Rowena’s daughter, Alicia.

Ariadne asks the detective to help her figure out if this woman can truly relay messages from beyond or if her actions are merely a well-crafted parlor trick.

I can completely relate to Signore Poirot. I imagine myself living a delicious, quiet life for a spell, reading books, going on walks, looking after dogs, and getting fresh pan de sal. It would take something just as delicious and special to draw me out of my contentment. And that would likely be an occasion such as Ms. Oliver described. Throw in a storm to complete the gothic atmosphere, and a child who loves to read Edgar Allan Poe (Belfast’s Jude Hill) and I’d be sold.

This movie is the third Agatha Christie whodunit presented for the screen by director and actor Branagh, and it is the best one. The first, 2017’s “Murder on the Orient Express,” had such a fantastic ensemble — Michelle Pfeiffer, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Leslie Odom, Jr. and Derek Jacobi to name but some. I had expected so much. The worthiest part was Michelle Pfeiffer’s monologue. “Death on the Nile” with Gal Gadot was released last year, with less heavy hitters in the cast.

The artsy, gothic setting is wonderfully captured by Haris Zambarloukos, a regular Branagh collaborator who worked on the previous Poirot films. The cast is given their moments, the acting is good across the board, and it also reminded me of classic movies.

“A Haunting in Venice” is based on Agatha Christie’s 1969 novel, “Hallowe’en Party.” If there are movies for kids, this one might do well with an older crowd who remembers the murder mysteries of long ago.

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“A Haunting in Venice” opened last Wednesday and is out at the IMAX and regular cinemas.