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Tuesday 6 February 2024 at 7.30pm A HAUNTING IN VENICE (12A) 103 mins Director: Kenneth Branagh Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Michelle Yeoh, Jamie Dornan Synopsis: Hercule Poirot has retired to Venice. His old friend Ariadne Oliver asks him to investigate charismatic psychic Mrs Reynolds. Set mainly in a palazzo that seems as immense as Xanadu or Castle Elsinore (it's a blend of actual Venice locations, London soundstages, and visual effects), the movie is threaded with intimations of supernatural activity, most of the action occurs during a tremendous thunderstorm. It's fun with a dark streak. At the same time, amid the expected twists and murders, "A Haunting in Venice" is an empathetic portrayal of the death-haunted mentality of people from Branagh's parents' generation who came through World War II with psychic scars, wondering what had been won. Awards: Reviews: "With smart casting and suitably murky Venice setting, the director improves on last year’s Death on the Nile, though his moustache-fondling Poirot remains the same" *** OBSERVER "Poirot follows a tried and tested formula, but what's wrong with that?" *** TIMES |
