David Suchet on the Orient Express (2010)

Am I Missing Something?

n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.

Instead, you get a movie that's enjoyable enough, but leaves you feeling like it could have been much, much more.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

The worst Christie adaption ever, bar none. One of her best novels has been butchered beyond recognition. Suchet is superb, as usual, but even he can't save this fiasco.

The title is self-explanatory: this 47-minute documentary focuses primarily on the Orient Express, but also tells us quite a bit about David Suchet himself. And it is actually still quite astonishing - not only for us, but also for the other passengers on the train! - to see - and hear - David Suchet as "himself", without the famous moustache, the characteristic Poirot voice, the French words and phrases dropped in nearly every sentence, etc; it shows how great an actor he is that he can make a transformation so complete. On the other hand, Suchet and Poirot do have some things in common: among them, is a love for all things elegant, tidy, high-class; Suchet recognized that he is lucky to be playing for so long a character whose surroundings usually have these qualities in abundance. Suchet also gets to live his boyhood dream - drive the Orient Express for a while. Speaking of the Orient Express, this documentary does a good job of putting it in a historical perspective: from a technological innovation at the turn of the 20th century to a symbol of glamor in the 1920s and from an outmoded relic after WWII to an icon of nostalgia in our days. This pleasant little film also includes a visit to one of the most beautiful cities in the world, Venice.

It was difficult to follow David Suchet's route on the Orient Express.At one point, seemingly in Switzerland, we are told he was leaving Innsbruck (Austria) for the Austrian border. Then he is in Venice! Onward to Vienna (really?), he finishes in Prague, but not at Prague Main Station (Hlavní Nádraži), but at the out-of-the-way suburban Praha-Smíchov. What happened to Austria & Vienna? Did I miss something?On board, we have Suchet talking from the point-of-view of the fictional Poirot. Surely, this is supposed to be a documentary about the actual Orient Express. He speaks of Poirot's wonderful brain. Excuse me – Poirot is the successful invention of Agatha Christie. He mentions Christie's accurate descriptions, but despite her supposed frequent travelling on the train, 'Murder on the Orient Express' contains virtually nothing to reflect this, especially in relation to geography. Her Orient Express could have been stuck in a snow-drift near Maidstone in England for all the reader can tell.Misguidedly, because the Orient Express has the reputation of being an upper-class white preserve, Suchet has the token black attendant in an attempt to somehow "correct" matters. Let's hope the poor man was rewarded financially by the production company.An undemanding, inaccurate, and ultimately disappointing programme for middle-class readers of newspaper colour supplements and wool-over-the-eyes Suchet/Poirot fans, who undoubtedly will enjoy it. Good photography though.

This documentary can be found on the "Murder on the Orient Express" DVD, part of Season 12 of the series, just released in the UK as Collection 8 (4 DVD set).It is an amusing and very entertaining visit of, and journey with the legendary "Orient Express" seen through the eyes of David Suchet himself.He enjoys this immensely and it shows. When invited to conduct one of the locomotives, he seems to genuinely turn into a child filled with dreams.We are shown the train, introduced to a couple of guests and the train staff, all chaperoned by Suchet himself.We are also reminded of the historic importance that it had throughout a Century, but most importantly, we are referred to Agatha Christie's journey to Istanbul, and how she came to be inspired to write her famous novel.We have already had a documentary about the "Orient Express", but this one is a very special look at this train, befitting the talents of an actor such as David Suchet.My compliments Mr. Suchet and thank you for the ride...