#gal gadot
The Knightmare Timeline ♎️
Wonder Woman (2017)
dir. Patty Jenkins
They came to the conclusion that men are essential for procreation, but when it comes to pleasure, unnecessary.
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Through quirks of media mega-mergers and studios shunting movies to streaming during the pandemic, Kennth Branaugh has relased three films since 2020. Belfast is probably the universally agreed upon best and Artemis Fowl the worst. Death on the Nile is somewhere in the middle, un victim je pense, of a mediocre script adaptation and too-serious tone.
What happened to make this movie so bleh? I think Michael Green happened. Some of his changes from book to film are modern and inspired (the Otterbournes and the Schuylers); some are odd (the crew announcing “we’re going ashore” then not having that be significant? Flashbacks, really serious flashbacks, Poirot getting Hulk-angry.) These tonal choices are consistent with his and Branaugh’s adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express and I think they misfired in that adaptation as well.
The cast is … not bad. Agatha Christie’s work merits more context than I’m putting on it here, but the people caught up in a murder plot are usually rich, glamourous, and largly assholes. To that end, disliking anyone in the cast won’t necessarily negatively impact your viewing. But back to Christie for a moment: her characters frequently exhibit racist, xenophobic, sexist, greedy behavior. Sometimes we’re meant to see these as flaws and sometimes it’s Poirot’s benevolent sexism or something akin to the “period racism” tag on AO3. Christie definitely trucked in sterotypes we’d call racist and would apply them to characters of which we’re supposed to be suspicious. This is stripped out of this movie and that’s a good thing.
Despite the music being slightly less ponderous than Murder on the Orient Express (Patrick Doyle provides the music in both) the whole journey remains too serious. I don’t mean that murder isn’t serious but the prologue is Poirot’s flashback to WWI, a scene that I suppose only Branaugh’s staus saved from being cut. We witness Poirot’s emotional breakdown discussing love with Jacqueline and his impressive anger which makes him seem a little unhinged. I’d be unhinged in these cricumstances but he gets so worked up it undermines our confidence in the great detective.
What makes this worth the watch are the costumes and setting. Venture any farther upriver and you’re bound to be dissapointed.
Films I’ve Watched in 2020 (319/?)
Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)
dir. Patty Jenkins
“Nothing good is born from lies. And greatness is not what you think.”
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One Dress a Week Challenge
May: Gold & Silver
Death on the Nile / Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway (later Doyle)
Linnet wears this glamorous silver dress for her first appearance, establishing her as a wealthy style icon. The skirt is made of chiffon or some similar material in silver-grey, while the bodice is of silver lame with strips of the same material hanging down over the skirt. The construction of the bodice is quite intricate, with triangular insets just under the bust in front and a low back with a hanging loop of fabric that looks forward to 1940s styles. (For comparison, see the coat that goes with Ginger Rogers’ pink dressfromThe Barkleys of Broadway in 1949.) The “lift” photo shows that this loop swings freely.
There is a matching shoulder cape as well, but we never get a good look at it, as she removes it immediately upon entering the club. Otherwise, she keeps accessories to a minimum: silver pumps, small earrings (pearl?), and a rather nice bracelet (see below).
