Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot’s (Kenneth Branagh) spectacular Egyptian vacation aboard a river boat becomes a terrifying search for a murderer after a picture-perfect couple’s honeymoon is cut tragically short. Based on Agatha Christie’s novel, this tale of passion and jealousy is filled with wicked twists and turns until its shocking finale.
For in-depth thoughts on Death On The Nile, please see my colleague Dom Fisher’s review from its original theatrical release here.
Video Quality
Death On The Nile makes the most of its 4K 2160p presentation in 2.39:1 on this 4K UHD Blu-Ray disc. The cinematography featured in this film is stylized with a warm digital background that evokes a sense of nostalgia and place, and this disc replicates it beautifully. This presentation especially shows its worth with black levels that are incredibly deep and detailed with digital noise absent from the screen. The 4K presentation provides a depth of field that just cannot be replicated as well with the accompanying Blu-Ray. Brighter scenes wow with an intense clarity and a strong handle of white levels that show no evidence of blooming. Skin tones look very realistic throughout and show a great amount of facial detail. Color highlights are another area of substantial improvement in comparison to the Blu-Ray. Colors look more natural in this presentation with multiple instances of vibrant hues featuring golds, greens, reds, and more that really dazzle. Overall, this is an excellent 4K UHD presentation that offers a noticeable uptick in clarity and depth.
Audio Quality
This disc comes equipped with an incredibly effective Dolby Atmos presentation that fully immerses you in this world. There are elements in this track that are truly enveloping, such as the sounds of the boat furiously chugging down the Nile. Sounds are appropriately rendered with precise directionality from the more kinetic scenes to the quieter dialogue-driven moments filled with subtle whispers. The score from Patrick Doyle brings to life a truly swelling soundscape. Dialogue is presented perfectly clear without ever being overwhelmed by any of the competing sonic elements. The low end is engaged well when the scene calls for it and there are a lot of sonic elements at play. The sound design of this film is quite specific, and the implementation of environmental sounds are executed very effectively. The mix here is very well done with nice engagement of all the channels, which makes this track more than satisfactory for fans of the film.
Special Features
- Death On The Nile – Novel To Film: A nearly 16-minute featurette in which Kenneth Branagh and screenwriter Michael Green discuss their collaboration to bring Christie’s world to life, subjects relay their relationship with the source material, an examination of the twisted tale of murder is put forth and more. There are keen insights about the ways in which Poirot has a presentational manner which lends itself to the screen, the decision to explore his past more thoroughly, among many other topics.
- Agatha Christie – Travel Can Be Murder: A six-minute piece which explores the story behind the book, how it connects with Christie’s own love of travel, the fascination of Egypt and its secrets, and more. It is heartening to see her legacy continue through new generations of creative figures contributing to the enduring nature of her novels.
- Design On The Nile: An 11-minute look at all of the crafts that go into bringing this world to life including the setting, the costumes, the photography, and how that applies to each individual character.
- Branagh/Poirot: A six-minute focus on Branagh and his prowess at playing Poirot one moment and directing the next. You get a sense of his ability to stay connected to his cast and creative team through collaboration and understanding.
- Deleted Scenes: Eight scenes of unused material totaling eleven minutes are included here featuring more scenes between Poirot and Salome, Poirot inspecting his accommodations, moments between Bouc and Rosalie and more that are worth exploring if you enjoy the film.
- Theatrical Trailer: The two-minute trailer is provided here.
Final Thoughts
Death On The Nile is a big-budget take on the classic Agatha Christie novel which delivers opulence but not the most thrilling narrative. Most of the cast does a halfway decent job of bringing these characters to life, yet the momentum and tone of the film suffer from unclear direction from Branagh. If you were a fan of the recent take of Murder On The Orient Express, this is not that far off in quality, but those wanting more than passably entertaining may need to adjust their expectations. Disney Home Entertainment has released a 4K UHD Blu-Ray with an A/V presentation that will knock your socks off and a decent assortment of special features.
Death On The Nile will be available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-ray, Blu-Ray and DVD on April 5, 2022. The film is currently available on Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Disney Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
