Kenneth Branagh has been bringing the world a treat with his big screen adaptations of Agatha Christie murder mystery stories. 2017’s Murder on the Orient Express and 2022’s Death on the Nile both won over critics and audiences. The next story that Branagh has brought to life, A Haunting in Venice (based on Hallowe’en Party) has hit theaters. Is this mystery just as mystifying as the previous installments? Let’s analyze every clue to find out.

Spoilers for A Haunting in Venice are ahead.

The Good

The most intriguing element of A Haunting in Venice that allows it to stand out from the previous two installments in this Branagh-Poirot saga is that there are layers of mystery here. There are a couple of sub-mysteries within the primary mystery. Outside of the main murder mystery, there’s a slight mystery as to the true reasons Ariadne Oliver asked him to solve the case in the first place. There’s also, more interestingly, a mystery of whether or not the paranormal is real and if ghosts truly haunt that building. These layers to the mystery add more to think about and unravel, which is quite fun.

The primary mystery is also a great one. This whodunnit is genuinely thought-provoking and suspenseful. The clues are the perfect balance of giving important information and not immediately giving away who the culprit is. The audience is able to play along and decipher who they think it is, which is quite fun.

The movie is also quite spooky. It carries a haunting tone throughout without ever trying to be a terrifying horror flick. It’s creepy throughout almost the whole story, and not just because there’s a murder. It’s perfectly chilling with a perfectly-fitting atmosphere for this story. This is heavily due to how well-shot the film is.

In the previous two films, Hercule Poirot serves as the nearly-perfect detective (which does work well). Here, however, he actually receives a bit of an arc which is nice to see. It’s quite satisfying to see such a loved character actually grow.

The performances from the entire cast are excellent. Kenneth Branagh, Tina Fey, Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Dornan, and the rest of the cast absolutely kill it with their performances. They all completely bring these characters to life and add to the suspense and creepiness of the movie. They truly sell that there was a murder and that there may or may not be an actual haunting. Plus, their emotions always feel completely real.

The Bad

Early in the film, there’s a parrot that has the ability to copy speech. It’s even seen throughout the entirety of the movie. However, it doesn’t do anything or lead anywhere. It feels like it’s there to set up a moment in which the parrot says something that leads to a clue to help solve the mystery, but that never happens. The parrot is essentially foreshadowing that goes nowhere, which is weird. Imagine a gun being shown in the first act that’s never fired in the third.

As previously stated, part of the mystery is figuring out whether or not ghosts and the paranormal are real. Almost all of the supposed-paranormal occurrences are explained away, except for one at the end. There’s a plausible explanation for it, but it’s still never clear or fully answered, leaving the possibility of the paranormal up for interpretation. On one hand, this adds to the film’s creepy factor. On the other hand, it’s quite frustrating that it’s mostly explained away and everything else gets solved while this doesn’t. Plus, the other films are quite grounded and realistic. 

There’s a bit of a conflict between Hercule and Ariadne regarding the status of their potential friendship. They have one last interaction at the end of the film, but it doesn’t quite fully resolve their conflict. Are they definitely now friends? Are they never seeing each other again? We may never know (unless Tina Fey’s Ariadne shows up in a future movie).

Conclusion

A Haunting in Venice is just as tremendous as its predecessors. This time, it’s spookier and with more layers to the mystery. Hercule Poirot’s arc is quite rewarding to see, and the mystery is satisfying to play along with. It’s just about everything one could want from a whodunnit with a creepier atmosphere. 

Rating: 9/10

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