Kiera DelMonte
Section: Arts
Staff Writer
Inspired by Agatha Christie’s novel, the murder mystery, “A Haunting in Venice” was released on Sept. 15. Produced by Kenneth Branagh, “A Haunting in Venice” maintains a suspenseful tone as the characters learn they don’t know who they can trust, even with each other. With a run time of 1 hour and 43 minutes. “A Haunting in Venice ” was an intriguing murder mystery where the audience never knows what to expect next. The main characters consist of Hercule Poirot, Ariadne Oliver, Rowena Drake, Maxime Gerard, Olga Seminoff, Leopold Ferreir, Dr. Leslie Ferrier, Desdemona Holland, Nicholas Holland, Vitale Portofoglio, and Alicia Drake. They all become part of the mystery to find out what really happened to Alicia Drake.
“A Haunting in Venice” takes place in Venice, Italy during a seance at what is believed to be a haunted palazzo with spirits lurking throughout the halls. Hercule Poirot, a retired detective, is convinced by his so-called friend who is an unsuccessful author wanting a best seller book. They attend a seance hosted by Rowena Drake, who had recently lost her daughter, Alicia Drake. due to a fatal incident that does not quite add up.
The question of the cause of death keeps the audience on the edge of their seats with every spooky event leading to more questions. Each character has their own connection to Alicia’s death, making each person a possible suspect of the girl’s death. The detective starts seeing hallucinations, but he refuses to believe that a dark spirit lies within the palazzo.
As Detective Poirot becomes determined to solve this mystery, he interviews each suspect, revealing the secrets that had yet to be discovered. The mother loved her daughter very much, but maybe even too much. The ex-fiance broke her heart, but happened to come back around the time of her death. The cop quit his job after her death and mysteriously disappeared after. The questions the movie invokes the audience and drives them forward with curiosity.
The storyline was extremely interesting, but despite that, new plot twists kept popping up, throwing the audience off causing some confusion to the main focus of the movie. For instance, when the Doctor is randomly killed, it does not seem like a necessary action, until it becomes later revealed. However, they are easily overlooked by the phenomenal qualities.
“A Haunting in Venice” is a phenomenally structured mystery film, which intrigues the audience with great intensity and unexpected, bone-chilling twists that leave the audience on the edge of their seats.
“A Haunting in Venice,” is rated PG-13 and is now available in theaters as of September 13th, 2023 and will be available to stream on HBO MAX starting October 25th, 2023.
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