One of the most succinct statements in the new Hercule Poirot film “A Haunting in Venice” is that there would be a curse on every house in the Italian lagoon city of Venice – and if this were not the case, then at least there would be an ominous ghost haunting the old buildings. Anyone who has ever experienced the atmosphere of this idiosyncratic city with its turbulent waterways and facades affected by the harsh sea air cannot help but agree with this quote.
Yes, Venice has an aura of mystery and the supernatural surrounding it. Even the narrow shopping streets sometimes have something eerie, because the fantastically crafted Venetian masks stare at you silently and with empty eyes from many shop windows. How fitting, then, that mustached detective Hercule Poirot’s latest crime novel has been moved from the rural town of Woodleigh Common, England, to this mysterious town.
I was invited by Disney to Venice for the theatrical release of Kenneth Branagh’s third Poirot case “A Haunting In Venice”, which is based on Agatha Christie’s 60th novel “Hallowe’en Party” (formerly known as “The Snow White Party”). to follow in the footsteps of the famous master detective. In addition to a special screening, a city tour and an atmospheric gondola ride, I was also able to participate in a staged séance, which was an entertaining treat, especially for a horror fan like me.
“A Haunting in Venice” finally relies on a great backdrop
“A Haunting in Venice” thrives on its extraordinary setting like no other installment in the Whodunit series. The cold and sometimes very artificial green screen look from ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ and ‘Death on the Nile’ is exchanged for a tangible background – and some of it was even filmed in Venice itself. For example, in the Palazzo Pisani a Santo Stefano, a beautiful palace in Venice, where Poirot’s Venice residence in the film wants to enjoy his peaceful retirement.
And the gondola ride through the canals of Venice and the shots of St. Mark’s Square were made on location. Surprisingly, the gloomy palazzo of tragic opera singer Rowena Drake, where most of the film’s action takes place, is a studio building. – but fits wonderfully into the atmospherically creepy and beautiful city environment.
In the footsteps of Hercule Poirot
Because the film is so connected to the special atmosphere of the lagoon city, it is only logical to let Venice speak for itself. And As part of a scavenger hunt through the city, I was able to explore the filming locations. The search for clues led through narrow streets and over waterways, repeatedly interrupted by some masked figures dressed in robes, making for some eerie and beautiful moments.
The atmosphere of the puzzle tour was completely dominated by the new Poirot adventure, which for the first time can also be placed in the horror genre. Of course, no one should expect a real horror shocker here. However, the deliberately used scary moments are effective enough to give the crime thriller a new lick of paint. These inserts make the classic whodunit increasingly narratively loose, making it pleasantly different from its predecessors.
By the way: My group won the aforementioned scavenger hunt through the city – I may have lost a real Hercule Poirot.
A live séance – and me in the middle of it
The evening ended with a very special event: A live theater performance of the séance from the film – and while I would have liked to participate in a real spiritual session, the performance, which was heavily based on the scene from “A Haunting In Venice”, was spooky fun – including necromancy, scary girls and self-turning chairs.
One can only hope that ‘A Haunting In Venice’ wasn’t Kenneth Branagh’s last adventure as Agatha Christie’s neurotic sleuth Hercule Poirot. The series now seems to have found itself and understood that the criminal cases don’t necessarily rely on a huge star cast – even if the latest installment features Hollywood greats like Tina Fey (“30 Rocks”), Jamie Dornan (“Belfast”) and Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh (“Everything Everywhere All At Once”) is once again excellently cast – but the setting also always adds great charm to the puzzle fun.