Enjoyably civilised entertainment - the British film industry of the 1970s gets a bad wrap at times but they could rise to the occasion, such as this one. It's got a strong story (thanks to Agatha Christie); a cast of familiar faces (I wouldn't say "all star" when the line up includes Jane Birkin, Simon MacCorkindale and Jon Finch but I recognised most of them); some broad comedy courtesy of Bette Davis and Maggie Smith's hilarious double act (I wish they'd be given their own vehicle; does the film hint they're lovers?) and Angela Lansbury; sex appeal via Lois Chiles and some very low cut gowns; location shooting in Egypt; David Niven as his exposition man; Mia Farrow being a crazy nutter very convincingly (I imagine her acting the way she does here with Chiles and MacCorkindale with Woody and Soo-Yi years later); Olivia Hussey being pretty; Jon Finch as a communist who can stay in expensive hotels.
IS Johar does his comic Indian turn again which he was always good at - it just wish in a film set in colonial Egypt (well it was basically a colony) that the only decent sized non Anglo part wasn't a broad comic bit. Jack Warden hams it up as a German doctor (wish this part could've been played by a real German) and Peter Ustinov occasionally goes OTT as Poirot. Niven handles his part with aplomb and is very likeable (I remember first watching this and being terrified he'd turn out to be the killer). Olivia Hussey is pretty as always and George Kennedy fits in well.
The unravelling of the murderer is very satisfactory - though when you think about it too much, it was an incredibly risky plan involving lots of throwing things over the side of the board despite a verandah being there. The film does feel long at two hours 20 minutes. Some funny dialogue.
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