MovieChat Forums > Murder on the Orient Express (1974) Discussion > Spoiled by Suchet

Spoiled by Suchet

posted 17 years ago by boomcoach
99 replies | jump to latest

I watched this movie again, for the first time in years. I had remembered the movie fondly, but was quite disappointed in it this time around. Maybe I am spoiled by David Suchet's performance as Poirot, but I found Finney's Poirot to be unconvincing. It appeared to be more of a parody of Poirot than a performance.

I am not sure why he kept his head pulled down between his shoulder blades like a scared turtle, but it looked very affected. Poirot often gets excited in the books, but he does not bark out his lines, as Finney did throughout the first 2/3's of the movie. Looking like Charlie Chaplin didn't help any. Chaplin was quite well known during the time frame of the books, and I do not ever remember Poirot being described as looking like Chaplin.

Most of the cast acted more like they were on stage, rather than in a movie, very broad performances, with little nuance. I realize that Christie's novels are peopled with fairly stock characters, but this was ridiculous. I am rarely bothered by deviations from the book, and I thought that the movie followed the book quite well, with the small changes making little effect, but this is a story that involves an inordinate amount of focus on the cast, because of the claustrophobic environment, and I felt it was simply overdone.

--
"If there's one thing that I wouldn't wanna be twice, zombies is both of 'em." Mantan Moreland

[–] sludgehound 10 years ago

Same here. Liked it much more on first go round. This time Finney too much like a Peter Sellers rant. Half a parody it seemed. Certainly Suchet more interesting, intellectual, smooth.
Perhaps since this performance timeframe the more striking crime actors on TV and films make the spiky, jumpy style seem way over the top, annoying even.
Tastes do change and some things get left behind. The detective will always be with us so even more interpretations will come but this slightly goofy approach is as far as it can go in this direction.
Look what they've gotten out of a fresher Holmes and BBC ones. We'll see what new players can get out of this enduring character.

[–] Jimmy-128 10 years ago

Tastes do change and some things get left behind. The detective will always be with us so even more interpretations will come but this slightly goofy approach is as far as it can go in this direction.
Look what they've gotten out of a fresher Holmes and BBC ones. We'll see what new players can get out of this enduring character.

True, but I can't help wondering what wonderful characters we're not getting to meet because people would rather constantly reimagine old ones.

[–] Eric-62-2 10 years ago

I think *at the time* it seemed like Finney had given the best on-screen performance of Poirot there had been up to that point. Before Finney there were very few frames of references other than Tony Randall (a very unlikely Poirot). Ultimately though, I have to agree that time is not particularly kind to Finney's performance. He's more convincing in playing older than he is than he is playing Poirot specifically. He comes off more as rude and annoying (like his behavior in the Istanbul restaurant where he tears up a menu and dumps his coffee in a plant), plus this script inexcusably leaves out the reason why Poirot refuses Ratchett's request, which in the novel is his sixth sense belief that there is something about Ratchett's face he can't trust. Instead, his blowoff of Ratchett (who as portrayed by Richard Widmark doesn't exude the oiliness we needed to see beforehand) comes off as the matter of a bored, arrogant "I'm above you" kind of person.

Suchet has emerged as the definitive Poirot but unfortunately he was placed in an unfaithful production that chose an entirely different tact. The irony is that you *can* hear Suchet in a more traditional version of the story in the PC game version of MOTOE where he gets to deliver the traditional denoument (and the game does add one surprise twist afterwards). Those who regret not seeing Suchet in a traditional 1974 style version of the story should get the game for that reason alone.

[–] greenbudgie 10 years ago

I am a fan of David Suchet as the definitive Poirot. I don't think anyone will ever produce Agatha Christie's ideal now that he has performed it. But nonetheless I like Finney's comic alternative. Poirot is a figure just asking to be sent up. And Finney does it well. Whereas David Suchet has obvious respect for the character and lived the part for real.

[–] Jimmy-128 10 years ago

I am a fan of David Suchet as the definitive Poirot. I don't think anyone will ever produce Agatha Christie's ideal now that he has performed it.

Not for a very long time, anyway.

[–] gb901 9 years ago

Ustinov was far better in the two further adaptations, death on the Nile and evil under the sun, in my opinion.

[–] dan.adams 9 years ago

On this 1974 version.a goodish yarn spoilt by Finney's awful accent. Most of my audience could not understand him.
Suchet is brilliant-until he gets into his little RC rave.Very off-putting.A far cry from his happy days with Arthur,Miss Lemon and the car.

[–] Midgegirl 9 years ago

I had such fond memories of watching this film on various Bank Holidays as a youngster and watched it again today in happy expectation of the full enjoyment I had in recently re-watching Death On the Nile; but no- I too found Albert Finney pretty irritating and almost unwatchable. He's so...loud. Instead of finding people beneath his great intellect he just comes across as bad tempered, he doesn't seem at all like someone who loves the finer things in life, just irascible, his accent is awkward and forced, and his acting of someone 20 years older than himself involves hunching his shoulders and speaking with a croaky rasp. Schoolboy stuff.

I know Agatha Christie thought his was the best version of Poirot, but that was clearly up against some not very stiff competition.

[–] hamlet-16 8 years ago

Having watched many Poirots ... Finney strikes me as the most affected .. close to the books ...almost too much so... but after multiple watchings of MOTOE I have come to see the brilliant nuances of his performance.

Like Suchet we know Finney carefully constructed his Poirot from the books... and it shows. In a way Suchet's Poirot is building on from Finney's performance .. less showy but with the eccentricities in full bloom.

And the final reveal sequence is a masterpiece of acting ... a monologue that goes for nearly 20 minutes.

Suchet's own MOTOE is one of my least liked of the Suchet Poirot's ..changing the book around and like most of the late Poriots stylistically awful and photographed through a yellow cloth!.

[–] tinagchristensen 8 years ago

Suchet 10/10
Finney 7/10
Ustinov 6/10

[–] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] liscarkat (19427) 5 years ago

Finney shouted most of the time.