THE USUAL SUSPECTS (DEATH ON THE NILE)

Sometimes directors get the breaks.

Other times they don't.

When Kenneth Branagh embarked on his second Hercule Poirot film 'Death On The Nile,' he was coming off the $352 million success of his stodgy, yet handsome star studded 2017 version of 'Murder On The Orient Express'.

By September 2018, two of Hollywood's hottest stars, Gal Gadot and Armie Hammer had signed up to take part.

Tom Bateman had agreed to reprise his role as Poirot's sidekick, Bouc.

Jodie Comer was also attached to the project but had to drop out before the cameras rolled at Longcross Studios in Surrey in September 2019.

By then, Annette Bening, Russell Brand, Letitia Wright, Sophie Okenodo, Emma Mackey, Ali Faizal and the British comedy legends Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders had all come on board.

Originally slated for a December 2019 release, what 20th Century Studios and Branagh didn't expect was a global pandemic.

As the world grappled with COVID and countries shut down, the release of the film was pushed back to October 2020.

The disappointing performance of Christopher Nolan's 'Tenet,' which Branagh starred in with John David Washington, did its release no favours.

The sluggish response of cinemagoers to 'Tenet' unnerved many studios and 'Death On The Nile' was subsequently pushed back to September 2021 while cinemas and wider society went through a series of lockdowns and tentative reopenings.

By the time 'Death on the Nile' was ready for release, Branagh had also made 'Belfast' which quickly gained Oscars momentum after its success at the Toronto Film Festival.

As a result, the release of 'Death On The Nile' was pushed out again to February 2022.

The pandemic hasn't been the only problem that Branagh's film has had to contend with.

In January 2021, lurid allegations surfaced about Armie Hammer's private life - allegations that have seriously damaged his credibility and reputation and which have led to him dropping out of several major film and television roles.

While Hammer has strenuously denied the claims, they are undoubtedly problematic for the film.

Playing a character in the throes of intense sexual desire, the potential for audiences to link the sordid details of his life offscreen to his performance onscreen is considerable.

Faced with a potential backlash, trailers for 'Death On The Nile' prior to its release have downplayed Hammer's role, even though his character is central to the mystery.

But rather than reshoot the part, Branagh has gamely ploughed on with the release of his Agatha Christie adaptation which doesn't tinker massively with the 1937 source novel.

Yes, there's a preamble set in the First World War which, given all the comments about Branagh's facial hair in 'Murder On The Orient Express,' amounts to a moustache origin story.

He's also pared back or reworked some of the characters in the novel like the Austrian physician Dr Bessner, the Italian archaeologist Guido Richetti and the solicitor Jim Fanthorp.

Nevertheless the essential ingredients are still there - just like they were in John Guillermin's 1978 star studded film starring Peter Ustinov as Poirot, Mia Farrow, David Niven, Bette Davis, Lois Chiles, Simon MacCorkindale, George Kennedy, Angela Lansbury, Jack Warden, Olivia Hussey and Maggie Smith.

Working again from a screenplay by Michael Green, Branagh begins his version in the First World War trenches to reveal Poirot's relationship with Susannah Fielding's nurse Katherine.

Skipping forward in time to 1937, we see him entering a London nightclub to consume some pastries while observing the punters attending a gig by Sophie Okenodo's sassy blues singer Salome Otterbourne.

As Letitia Wright's Rosalie Otterbourne, Salome's neice, secures money for the gig, a couple on the dancefloor catches Poirot's eye.

Hammer's Simon Doyle and Emma Mackey's Jackie de Bellefort are burning up the floor with a very sensual dance and they only break off when Jackie's childhood friend, Gal Gadot's wealthy socialite Linnet Ridgeway arrives.

Chatting at the bar, Jackie is excited to introduce Linnet to her fiance and also implores her to employ him.

However when Simon is introduced to Linnet, sparks fly and you know Jackie's engagement to him is toast.

The action moves to Egypt six weeks later, with Poirot gazing at the Pyramids as he is about to tuck into a Jaffa cake.

His enjoyment of the cake and the spectacular view is disrupted by the sight of a green kite flying in front of a pyramid.

Poirot is amazed to discover, however, his good friend, Tom Bateman's Bouc is responsible.

Excited to see Poirot, Bouc introduces him to his mother, Annette Bening's Euphemia, a renowned artist who is painting the view.

Bouc also persuades Poirot to join Euphemia and him at a celebration in a hotel of the honeymoon of Simon and Linnet.

Among the guests are Ali Faizal's Andrew Katchadourian, Linnet's cousin and lawyer.

Her former lover, Russell Brand's intense aristocrat and physician Linus Windlesham is also in attendance.

Linnet's godmother, Jennifer Saunders' socialite Marie Van Schuyler who likes to flaunt her Communist beliefs is there, along with her nurse, Dawn French's Miss Bowers.

Simon has arranged for Rosalie and Salome Otterbourne to also join them because the latter sang on the night they first met.

Linnet's maid, Rose Leslie's Louise Bourget also tends to her needs.

The newlyweds are delighted to meet Poirot but when Jackie de Bellefort turns up, it emerges she has been stalking them throughout their Egyptian honeymoon.

Fearing she might do something to harm them, Linnet and Simon ask Poirot to persuade Jackie to back off.

Chatting to Jackie the following day, she reveals she is carrying a pistol and he subsequently advises the couple to call off their Egyptian adventure and return to England for their own safety.

Simon and Linnet, however, ignore his advice and instead arrange a glamorous boat trip on the Nile for their guests, including Poirot, which they conceal from Jackie.

The cruise on the SS Karnak takes them to Abu Simbel with its Pharoah temples.

En route Linnet confides in Poirot that she doesn't feel safe on the ship even with Jackie not on board.

Some of the guests, she states, have old axes to grind and are potential enemies.

Bouc also confesses to Poirot during the trip that he has become romantically involved with Rosalie Otterbourne but is uncertain that his mother will approve.

During the stopover at Abu Simbel, Simon and Linnet have a narrow escape when a boulder from the monument almost crushes them during a sandstorm.

Returning to the boat, they are horrified to discover that Jackie has tracked them down and is now on board.

With emotions running high, the couple reveal to Poirot they have decided to return to England.

However events soon spiral out of control after the Belgian sleuth gets drunk on a glass of champagne and retires to his quarters, only to miss a distraught Jackie shooting Simon in the leg during a late night row.

As pandemonium erupts, Simon is carted off to a different cabin away from Linnet to recover from his injuries by Dr Windlesham and Jackie is sedated by Miss Bowers.

Events take a turn for the worse when one of the party is discovered dead the following morning with a gunshot wound to the temple.

As in 'Murder On The Orient Express,' Branagh revels in the theatricality of Christie's murder mystery and milks to the full the star power of the cast that he has assembled.

Working again with cinematographer Haris Zamboukaris, who he collaborated with on 'Murder On The Orient Express,' he delivers another very handsome production shot in a 65 millimetre Panavision format, with loads of CGI thrown in for good measure.

The First World War preamble is shot like 'Belfast' in black and white and feels like a dress rehearsal for Branagh's Oscar nominated pet project.

Like 'Murder On The Orient Express,' Branagh and Zamboukaris also make their camera prowl.

The camera circles and spies on the characters on the nightclub dancefloor or on the decks of the SS Karnak, swooping down on the cruise ship like a bird and catching knowing looks as characters react to significant plot developments.

Unlike Branagh's previous Poirot tale, the canvas feels a little bit broader this time and the sets are a lot less limiting.

Una Ni Dhonghaile's editing also feels a bit tighter than Mick Audsley's on 'Murder On The Orient Express' and even though like its predecessor the film feels occasionally baggy, it still seems less baggy.

Like all star studded Agatha Christie adaptations, the performances are a mixed bag with some performers more impressive than others.

A lot depends on Gadot, Mackey and Hammer as the love triangle at the heart of the film.

Leaving aside Hammer's problems offscreen, he actually delivers a convincing performance as Simon and Mackey is good value too as his spurned, jealous lover.

Gadot's limitations as an actress are, however, a drawback and while she is undoubtedly glamorous, her performance lacks sufficient heft.

Bening, Okenodo, Wright and Leslie are good value, while Russell Brand is a real surprise - turning in a remarkably restrained and focused performance.

Bateman, however, is a little irritating as Bouc, while Faizal is often overshadowed by some of the more illustrious names he is acting alongside.

While it is good to see French and Saunders back together, their casting is a little problematic.

Watching them, you cannot help feel this is the kind of Hollywood production they would have spoofed in their heyday and you keep waiting for them to deliver a cheeky aside.

Branagh, though, is even better as Poirot in this outing than he was in the previous one.

The 'Allo Allo' accent is still there and is frankly inevitable, with the Belfast born actor and director clearly relishing saying "veggie-tables" and "bluesy bluesy musique."

But beyond the mannerisms is a performance of greater depth as he invests the sleuth with more emotion, more vulnerability, more flaws and little hints of vanity and smugness.

The back story at the start of the film is a shrewd move, making Poirot more human and all the more interesting.

Branagh's biggest challenge, however, is the fact that Rian Johnson did such a good job in 2019 with his own Agatha Christie-style murder mystery 'Knives Out'.

Johnson's film told its contemporary murder tale with great humour and astute social commentary.

It was less bloated than 'Murder On The Orient Express' and felt more fresh.

While 'Death On The Nile' doesn't quite scale its heights, it nonetheless holds up quite well and it certainly whets the appetite for the return of Daniel Craig's sleuth Detective Benoit Blanc in 'Knives Out 2' on Netflix later this year.

It also makes a decent case for another Branagh outing as Poirot.