Mixed Feelings about A Haunting in Venice | Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie Adaptation

[@arlissbunny]

I’m invariably on #TeamAriadne. How did these people screw that character up so badly? Did they not know fans love her?

[@bookslikewhoa]

I honestly have no idea... who wants to see that? And if they were going to do it, it would have to be better written & acted for me to have any respect for it as a choice

[@amivanzyl8876]

I was also sad about this! I thought it was a fun suprise to get Fey, and thought it would be smart to add a snarky comedic lift to this emo interpretation of Poirot (if they stayed in Fey's wheelhouse). The ingredients all seemed to be there, I don't know why they thought the movie needed the twist? they added

[@Planetholmes]

Agree totally. I love Ariadne The chemistry and indeed the firm history they shared is destroyed. I very much did not care for this presentation at all. Kenneth Branagh needs to stick with what he does best. Shakespeare. I had to watch several seasons of David Suchets Poirot just to block out the unpleasant experience. Suchet is the master in this characterization.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

Fun Fact: David Suchet is currently doing a UK Tour of ‘Poirot and More’.

[@1jackieworcs]

Thank you for mentioning this - I’ve now just booked tickets to go and see him!

[@beverlyhowell5750]

Love David Suchet as Poirot 😊

[@kaleed.8260]

Mara, before you completely unsubscribe from Hulu try out one episode of "Death and Other Details". It's a Poirot-esque show on a boat staring Mandy Patinkin as the detective. It JUST came out and they're releasing one episode per week. I'm really enjoying it. Plus with your Christie experience it might be fun for you to try and solve it while the show progresses.

[@Nixreads]

This comment was not meant for me but I’ve been seeing this show on Disney plus and had NO idea it’s a murder mystery 😮just watched the trailer after reading this and am 100% watching it!! Thank you xx

[@bookslikewhoa]

I'm going to change to Disney Plus so I can see the Percy Jackson series, so I'll check that out while I'm subbed 👍

[@justonemorechapter74]

Mara!!!! I knew you would have my back on what they did to Ariadne!!!! I have not heard enough people critiquing the decision to fundamentally ruin such a beloved friendship between her and poirot to the christie fans - i absolutely love their characters in the book and love how david suchet and zoe wannamaker deliver it. This was the thing that stopped me enjoying the movie. Well done for voicing what i felt ❤

[@bookslikewhoa]

I’m not sure what they were trying to do there… so unnecessary and not well executed 🫠

[@MathewRyan1111]

The way I waited for this review/reaction. Thank you Mara!

[@PokhrajRoy.]

I thought ‘A Haunting in Venice’ was like a pastiche of some Poirot novels but when I heard it’s an adaptation of ‘Halloween Party’, I was like, “Wasn’t that at a tame suburban party?” like why are they going for ‘Eyes Wide Shut’?

[@johneast4235]

You are the Queen of Christie!

[@donnastratton8397]

First, David Suchet is my favorite Poirot. I have read all Agatha Christie books at least twice, some of them more, and I've watched every movie based on her books that has ever been done, as well as all tv versions. I also listen to her books on Audible in my car when I don't have anything else to listen to. They never get old to me. My husband and I watched the whole David Suchet series on BBC so he was super excited when this movie came out, as was I. After it was over, I said to him, that was absolutely not based on the book at all. It was a good movie like you said just billed as a mystery, but not the same story whatsoever. I loved that it was set in Venice because we had been to Italy the previous year and I loved Venice.

[@bookslikewhoa]

The atmosphere of Venice was a huge highlight, I agree 👏

[@MsJayteeListens]

You’re right it is the BBC who’ve done the recent adaptations of Christie, they’ve done Witness for the Prosecution, Ordeal by Innocence, The ABC Murders, And Then There Were None and Murder Is Easy. I’ve only seen The ABC murders but I haven’t read that book, a channel I watch that does video about Christie adaptations says these BBC ones are often much darker than the book, but they’re always well written/acted. Did you see the documentary about Christie Lucy Worseley did? It’s excellent.

[@bookslikewhoa]

I haven't but I've heard great things about it!

[@SarahAtHeart]

Thank you for your review, maybe I'll watch this one next October. I'm sad they did Ariadne Oliver so dirty though; she's one of my favorite Poirot characters and I love Zoe Wanamaker's interpretation of her.

[@bookslikewhoa]

Same, Zoe nailed it

[@beverlyhowell5750]

I also like Zoe Wanamaker's interpretation to. She cracked me up with the apples bit.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

Idk if you’ve seen it but Hugh Laurie did an adaptation of ‘Why Didn’t They Ask Evans?’ starring Will Poulter and Lucy Boynton.

[@bookslikewhoa]

Not yet!

[@Nixreads]

I agree with all points pretty much! The social commentary in the book of all people being so obsessed with delinquents and patients from mental institutions threw me off so much. The movie is not as clever as a Christie book but I had so much fun with it, great Halloween movie 😊

[@eamongilligan3262]

Excellent video, Mara! My thoughts are pretty much the same - I was laughing afterwards at the fact that the names of characters were pretty much the only thing they kept. As you say: why? I kept imagining people who liked the movie picking up the book and being very confused when they read it (especially as they have changed the title for that edition and Venice isn’t even mentioned in the book, haha!) I like Kelly Reilly a lot too. And thank you for saying it because I agree: I generally like Michelle Yeoh but she was not good in this and I hated what they did to Ariadne too. What I did appreciate was the Venice setting. I think Venice is a great setting actually for something a bit spooky and unsettling (it works so well in movies like Don’t Look Now). Unfortunately I kept feeling like dozing off when watching it, which didn’t help. I think bad acting makes me so uncomfortable sometimes that I go into sleep mode 😂

[@bookslikewhoa]

several people in the comments have mentioned they read the book right before seeing the movie and being so confused 😹 I would be too!

[@AZevahh]

I am newer to reading Agatha Christie, and I was partly drawn in by KB's Murder on the Orient Express. My son had to read the book for school, and I read it when he was done around the time when the movie came out. I went out and got Hallowe'en Party to specifically finish before we saw A Haunting in Venice. I realized pretty quickly the book and movie would have nothing, or little to do with each other. That said, I really enjoyed the movie. You just have to accept that the movie production just sort of - fan-fictioned Poirot or came up with a whole new story line for him. But - who isn't a sucker for Venice and a beautifully shot movie? I was kind of disappointed in the book, but still enjoyed it enough to complete it. I appreciated it more (or forgave its flaws) as I realized it was one of Christie's last books, and was the perspective of an older lady, maybe puzzled or disappointed by 60s Britain.

[@bookslikewhoa]

Yes, I definitely give the book a little bit of grace because it was so late in her life/career

[@TullaRask]

I saw Frankenstein with Branagh and it was deeply disturbing without ever explaining what was going on. So as someone who is open for disturbing things when it's done right, I'm never going to see his stuff again. Why people do things the way they do is an important part of the plot I think.

[@itchystitchy]

Before you cancel Hulu, have you watched A Murder at the End of the World series (closed circle mystery in the snow)? I really enjoyed it. Also, there is a closed circle mystery on a cruise ship series called Death and other Details that looks like fun.

[@Planetholmes]

It is excellent. Hulu has some good content and very well done series. We are new to it but pleasantly surprised.

[@SloanePaoPow]

My fave Christie adaptation is the 1980s series of Tommy and Tuppence with Francesca Annis. 👩‍🍳💋

[@thisisabookchannel]

i read Halowe’en Party for Gavin’s solve a long and i looked up the trailer for this movie after and i was like ??? this is not the book i just read. also i laughed at Death on the Nile when Poirot yelled, like who is that guy? def not Poirot, he would never

[@bookslikewhoa]

omg that must have been so confusing! 😹

[@mimispapercrafting]

Because I read the book, I couldn't finish the movie. It annoyed me so much that they were nothing alike. And I agree with you, they never should have tied the movie to the book.

[@BeantownMrs]

I saw this in the theater and my poor husband had to listen to me rant and rave about the ending with Ariadne Oliver. 😅😅 I think maybe KB changed Joyce from a child to an older woman bc he thought maybe wouldn't like seeing a child get murdered on screen? (that's literally the only reason I could think of) Edit: IDK if you have Netflix, but the 1974 version of "Murder on the Orient Express" is available until 1/31. Albert Finney is a weird Poirot, but the other cast is phenomenal. Also, do you have any plans to read Lucy Worsley's biography of Agatha Christie?

[@effiehernandez]

I ❤ your review and agree on almost every part. I still enjoyed this movie but kept thinking I have read all her books and this isn't ringing familiar to me...but I loved the vibe of the movie.

[@amg304]

Thanks for the review, it was so not from the book, I was distracted from the movie the whole time. When I first saw the previews I checked if A Haunting in Venice was a Christie book I missed. I'll stick to the David Suchet versions.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

10:44 I have the graphic novel version of it.

[@megantouchton4636]

Between loving Hallowe'en Party, LOVING Ariadne Oliver, and thinking Kenneth should've been sent to his room to think about his poor decisions after MotOE...so glad to hear this will be the last of his. Thank you for such an eloquent review. I've wanted so badly to enjoy (or at least not dislike) these movies--and had hopes for this one (the trailer was intriguing). So thank you for saving me the trouble (and angst--I would have rage-quit at the first hint of Ariadne turning on Poirot!).

[@owlsreads]

I've been waiting for this video! One of the first things that came to mind when I watched this was: I wonder what Mara is going to think about this. 😂

[@melanieahrens6739]

Had to see your take on this after finally seeing Haunting last weekend. There were enjoyable moments in this film, but as a lifelong Poirot fan, the treatment of Ariadne was a slap in the face to me. I had to force myself to watch the rest of the film. (There was a nice happy ending for a couple of characters, which I appreciated.) I agree with the poster who said that Branagh and his team don’t seem to like Poirot very much.

[@FrostyWitchGoddess]

I just finished Hallowe'en Party for the first time and as I finish the books (in no particular order) I'm subsequently watching the Brannagh films, which tbh is kind of torturous. I haven't watched this one yet but accidentally read a synopsis online (when trying to figure out why the copy of the book in my hand was published with "A Haunting In Venice" as the title ... Marketing move that makes zero sense!). I stopped your video about halfway - I'll come back to it after I see the movie. Anyway I think it would've been fun if they had used Ariadne's Finnish detective instead of Poirot. Get the nod to Agatha without having any source material to ignore. Ha ha

[@tyleachwatkins6726]

You were very kind. This film was the worst I’ve seen in awhile. I didn’t even realize it was supposed to be based on Halloween Party until I looked it up. I agree with your sentiment that it didn’t need to be a Hercule Poirot…. And maybe I would have liked it more if it had not been linked to Poirot.

[@PokhrajRoy.]

I dread Branagh’s adaptations but I’m excited by the concept.

[@krisprepolec5616]

I saw the film in the theatre with my mom, an the way that the camera swooped around made us both nauseous at various points. It was a bit of a dog’s breakfast. I watched it again recently at home and surprisingly enjoyed it more than the first time. I tried to appreciate it on its own merits and not compare it to the book.

[@tarek8576]

I agree about Joyce Reynolds buuuuuut (MILD SPOILERS BELOW) I think an argument can be made is that they are both characters who are prone to lying for attention whose exaggerations/performances get them killed. Joyce Reynolds in the original “stole” her friends story and here she pretended to be psychic in both cases for attention (of differing varieties). In both cases the murderer called the bluff (for lack of a better word) and murdered her.

[@bookslikewhoa]

Oooo didn't think about that, but you're totally right!

[@ysbel]

Oh god I’ll think I’ll pass. I was wondering how a movie called ‘A Haunting in Venice’ could ever have anything based off the novel ‘Halloween Story’ and the answer is ‘It doesn’t.’ The novel wasn’t my favorite Christie but it was enjoyable and relatable since the children in the book were my generation. I could relate to a lot of them but I don’t think I could relate to any of the characters in this movie.

[@claire890]

I enjoyed your thoughts. I was really looking forward to seeng this -- I am a life long Christie fan as well. On the positive side, I loved the setting in Venice and the visuals were great. Plus Proirot was slightly less annoying in this one. But otherwise I was just open mouthed with surprise while watching it. It had absolutely no relation to the book or its plot that I could see. As you said, no real need or reason for this to be a Poirot at all -- no reason to say it was based on the Christie book in fact. But what pushed it over the edge into me disliking it was the treatmnet of Ariadne -- that was a hard no from me.

[@bookslikewhoa]

Justice for Ariadne!!!

[@ChristmasJourney]

I’ve seen this at the theater on Halloween and liked it! I haven’t read the book though, nor seen the previous 2 movies 😅

[@bookslikewhoa]

haha that's honestly the optimal viewing experience

[@PokhrajRoy.]

I was so excited to see Michelle Yeoh in the Agatha Christie Adaptation Cinematic Universe. I think she’d be a great Ariadne Oliver.

[@thedarkhorse9218]

I'm not familiar with Halloween Party, but from your description of it centering around a murdered child, I immediately thought of Murder on the Orient Express. I thought I had the books mixed up, but no. Agatha really was like, "Screw these kids!" How many Poirot books explore this theme?

[@Adelynoir]

Only these two. MOO is about a kidnapping, Halloween party has kind of a cult(it isnt one of her better ones)

[@bookslikewhoa]

The other one that comes to mind is Dead Man's Folly, but it's not a super prevalent theme overall considering she wrote 60+ books

[@melanieahrens6739]

MOtOE was inspired by the Lindbergh kidnapping/killing, so it’s not like Agatha wrote it because she had it in for kids.

[@ευφροσύνηΠολίτου]

Have you seen the slaughter of ' ordeal by innosence ', the latest adaptation? Why do they use her name?

[@WickedPluto]

I did like the spooky elements as well. Honestly though, these adaptations made me really annoyed. The rants that my husband and bestie have had to listen to. 😂Like I'm mad enough at Kenneth Branagh that I plan on avoiding any future projects by and starring him.

[@bookslikewhoa]

If you're coming for an actual adaptation on this one... yeah... annoyed is a very fair way to leave that movie :D

[@teddytodorova]

After MOTOE I said no more Kenneth Branagh. I've never been huge fan of Halloween Party anyway. I don't like what you said about Ariadne Oliver. I didn't like it in the books for whatever reason but after Zoe Wannamaker's portrayal I started adoring her, Zoe did amazing job. I've seen her episodes so many times. I might have a second thought after your review and might try to watch it, but I know I will be sorry!

[@bookslikewhoa]

If you love Ariadne, this is one to skip 😅

[@Adelynoir]

It is so sad, because Adriane is written as a sort of Agatha self insert, where she takes jabs at her self, her writing and tropes, and her age and how she feels about the world changing around her. Adriane is fussy and proper and up-tight because those are exaggerations of Agatha's own personality. But she is also ultimately a kind, lovong, grandmotherly figure who has a steong sense of justice.

[@fttoma]

💗💗

[@skeletonkeybooks]

Stopping before spoilers for now because I probably will watch the movie. At least now I don't have to wait for my chronological re-read project to get to it. Did Branagh at least learn how to pronounce anything in French? I saw MotOE in the cinema and was going to at least give Branagh a chance to impress me. And then he came out with "oofs" mere minutes into the film.

[@amivanzyl8876]

I loved the movie as pure opera and camp (we also saw it in a tiny Amsterdam art deco theatre refurb cinema, and that felt so right). I really disliked the recent Death on the Nile but was up for the ooky spooky vibes of this one. I wish this weren't a Poirot interpretation because it's great at drama and vibes and bad at giving the quirk and quiet I love in Poirot stories their space. As a beautifully shot atmospheric movie it's fun. That said, I fully disassociate when they bring up the sadboy Poirot moments. I just have to pretend they're not trying to tell me this is Poirot 😅

[@bookslikewhoa]

That atmosphere for film going sounds immaculate

[@tawnyachristensen7310]

I enjoyed this movie, (I remember thinking that you probably would not )so I'm glad it was more successful for you. I love the period pieces, settings and costumes. I am also a Kenneth Branagh fan and got a kick out of Tina Fey, but she was in above her head a bit.

[@bookslikewhoa]

The settings and costumes really were top notch - so atmospheric and eerie

[@nbunnysnowboard]

I appreciate the spooky angle they were going for but the original book is so good that it does a disservice to it by using the character names but changing everything else about the story. Also, he only felt like Poirot for me when he was measuring the eggs. Other than that, he doesn’t seem like Poirot to me. There are two moments in particular that I thought were out of character for him; one is when someone (I forget who) put a robe and a mask on him and the other is when he stuck his face in the bowl to bob for apples. Poirot would never let anyone touch him except maybe when he hugs an old friend, he wouldn’t let someone put a cloak and mask over his beautiful clothes and his perfectly groomed mustaches (which is another problem with the film, it’s not the Poirot mustache!!!). Poirot would also never stick his head in a bowl of water and A: ruin said mustaches, and B: stick his face and mouth in a bowl where other people have put their own faces and mouths. Completely took me out of it both times, although I get that they wanted to give a nod to how Joyce dies in the book. This movie was so confusing to watch after having just finished the book last night and the whole ghost plot line was ridiculous, Agatha Christie is so grounded that I don’t understand why they went the supernatural route. I can see how someone who didn’t read the book might like it but I don’t understand why they would alienate the real fans by giving them a completely different story. I think I would have been less confused if I hadn’t read the book because they mix things up so much it’s hard to keep track of what’s going on and who’s related to who because it’s so wildly different from the book

[@heabooktubes]

I haven’t read the book. But I missed the end of the movie because I fell asleep. I was not impressed when my husband told me the solution. 😅

[@bookslikewhoa]

lol I'm glad you got a good nap out of it! :D

[@natethomas9253]

Although this entry was the least faithful to its book counterpart out of the three of them, it by far had the strongest "Christie" vibes to it.

[@bibliomania.express]

These movies always gave me the impression that the writers/Branaugh actually don't like Poirot - there's a scene in every movie where a character goes on a long tirade at Poirot about how awful he is, and I'm always confused by that. We're watching because we like Poirot, yes?

[@bookslikewhoa]

Thisssssssssss 👆

[@jaimeehingerton2397]

I’m with you on wondering why they even made this movie as an adaptation of the book. It was so different from the source material and it probably would’ve been a better movie if they hadn’t tied it to Poirot. I read the book for the first time a day or so before I watched the movie, so the book was still very fresh in my mind. I’m not into Poirot being an action hero either. I think that works better for Sherlock Holmes adaptations because he was quite active in the books.

[@bookslikewhoa]

I agree, that approach made a lot more sense for Holmes

[@hmrishel11]

I agree that this was the best of the three (though comparing it to Gal Godot’s horrible reading of “enough champagne to fill the Nile” anything is better). If you haven’t gotten rid of Hulu yet, there’s an original mystery show airing right now called Death and Other Details starring Mandy Patinkin as the detective. It’s clearly Hulu trying to keep up with Knives Out, but it’s fun so far.

[@Nicole-dh3um]

Great review. I'm glad you enjoyed this movie better. I was confused and too annoyed to appreciate it, lol. I read the book first and while the movie was obviously going to be different, it was so different that I found it distracting. Now that I think about it, yes I would have liked it much better if they had just had a random detective and not tried to say it was Poirot. And indeed, Tina Fey was horrendously bad. The only good thing about her performance was that she in no way made me think of Ariadne from the books.

[@bookslikewhoa]

Very fair! The inclusion of the Christie recurring characters frankly made the movie worse IMO

[@karenmiddlebrook5069]

I heard poor reviews of Murder is Easy, but I enjoyed it. I don't mind this version of Poirot but I intensely dislike the John Malkovich version which is too sombre. I saw the haunting film around halloween so that worked well. I think it's time for a new Miss Marple. We personally love the Margaret Rutherford version. I grew up with Joan Hickson. Sadly I didnt love the Geraldine McEwan iteration (love the actress but wrong for the part). Re Westmacott, I concur about watching the Worsley documentary. Absent in the spring is so clever, I think about it often and how it shows Christies understanding of the human psyche. Suchet for me is associated with the Sunday Scaries, the theme tune reminds me of sad childhood sunday evenings 😅

[@TsuFC]

Of the three, this one was my favorite too. It was kinda cheesy and didn't even try as an adaptation - which I found worked better than the other two. It was actually kinda... fun? Had a good time with it.

[@bookslikewhoa]

That's pretty much my feeling too!

[@rainbowmagpie]

I agree, they did Ariadne so dirty - not even close. My take on this one is it’s a fun Halloween film but should come with the disclaimer that it bears no resemblance to the source material whatsoever a disclaimer would be good - “any resemblance to people living or fictional is purely coincidental”

[@giantcupofcoffee]

Re: This film misunderstanding the point of Ariadne, it’s very much a gen Z audience thing to actually want an adaptation to go against the book. An example is the recent Little Women. My take is that Greta misinterpreted Beth’s arc (her death matters in a book about growing up) and her relationship with Jo, and that Amy is actually supposed to be unknown and opaque. But tell any younger person that and they’ll argue that an adaptation must include original plotting and characterization. I wouldn’t be surprised if that thinking filtered into Halloween Party.

[@jackflowt]

Maybe I'm just a fan of Agatha's work, but I'll still pay to watch the next movies adaptations of her books.

[@mplbooks]

Tina Fey really pulled me out of the movie as Ariadne. I thought the movie was fun, but as a fan of the novel, it just felt bizarro...

[@allgirlreview433]

I too am over Hulu but also Amazon Prime. These are not the things they promised.

[@scottishgal101]

I personally found it really funny they kept referencing the police guy leaving the police because it wasn't for him any more etc while ignoring completely that he would have served in Mussolini's police and left because a new government took over. Why would you set it in post war Italy and then not reference that in any way?? Unless I totally missed something. Also I fully agree Oliver was god awful.

[@bookslikewhoa]

omg I didn't even consider that, but you're totally right!

[@marcevan1141]

I thought the film was absolutely dreadful. The book may not be great, but it has possibilities. The David Suchet version was far better than this movie

[@CASSIE_COLE]

I hated what they did with Ariadne!!! Branagh is NOT Poirot. I agree with you that this movie was the best of the three, but they are all forgettable. And I don't get why they just didn't make this movie an original story, without tying it to hallowe'en party, Just a new story with Poirot in it.

[@eriklonnrot3578]

Someone needs to stop Branagh. Pry Christie from his grubby hands. No hate towards him, but he’s just so manifestly the wrong person to be doing these adaptations.

[@ysbel]

Yeah the book was a product of the sixties and so for the generation that grew up in the sixties the book is a very memorable and nostalgic path back in time. Disappointed to see Tina Fey turn in a bad performance; I normally like her.

[@kitstratfull4606]

More of a "Why Do It?" than a "Who Dun It?"

[@bookslikewhoa]

Very much so

[@Hello_Kristie]

Good timing with cancelling Hulu. I’ve been seeing that they’ve been running a pro-Isr*el propaganda ad (their second one since Christmas), so it’s time for Hulu to go!

[@bookslikewhoa]

Yuck, good riddance :/

[@TullaRask]

It wouldn't surprice me if he did these movies for the funding, and it's an dishonest approach I think. I hate Branagh as a hole. Haven't seen any of them.

[@amyh8144]

As someone who read the book and saw the movie, I would also agree about the weirdness of how the movie wasn’t as much an adaptation as a faint whiff of the book. I would recommend neither the book nor the movie. Le sigh. What a waste of a fairly talented cast. What a waste of a very talented author.

[@joachimwilck2019]

😮I like your review, good insights. But do you realize you are doing exactly what you criticize about the film? Why do you insert so many cuts and breaks? It gives me a headache,, and that is no exaggeration. You think you need to add some visual jerking around to keep the interest of the audience. If I look up your other reviews I will be doing audio only as I can't stand the jumps. If you want your audience to listen and achieve a sustained thought, just do it smoothly, please.

[@bookslikewhoa]

I don’t believe I criticized jumps or breaks in the film’s editing so not sure where you got that. Cutting out some “ums” and pauses is pretty standard editing for KZbin so I don’t really know what tell you 🤷‍♀️

[@Clockingsmiles]

I didn’t like this installment in the series!