All About the Sexy New Adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express

Agatha Christie's iconic novel, Murder on the Orient Express, has been adapted yet again, marking what could be considered the fifth or sixth attempt at retelling the story. (That's if you include the original movie, the radio show, TV movie, TV series, and even the 2006 computer game). What sets this production apart, more than 80 years after the book's publication? I attended an advance presentation of the film, which included an exclusive 15-minute reel of footage and a Q&A with some of the cast's major players. If you have any doubts about the new adaptation, which comes out Nov. 10, allow us to tell you what we've learned.

There are a lot of comical aspects of the story, mostly in the suspects themselves. In the novel, Agatha Christie does a great job of balancing the dark murderous atmosphere with a bit of levity. She achieves this mostly through the colorful characters and their behavior, but the sharp dialogue helps too. The new film seems to have heightened these aspects, and the result is an extremely amusing romp . . . you know, with a dead body on a stranded train. The first trailer gives a perfect primer for the film's feel.

I mean, can we talk about the jam-packed cast for a second? We've got Dame Judi Dench, Daisy Ridley, Willem Dafoe, Penélope Cruz, Michelle Pfeiffer, Johnny Depp, and many more. Everyone seems completely on their game; they all seem to have consumed that heightened ridiculousness that's inherently built into the story and those involved in it. It's more than that, though: there's a great chemistry and camaraderie among the members of the cast. One rather intimate and biting scene between Pfeiffer and Depp is electrifying. Ridley is perfectly quaint as a proper, progressive, and slightly sassy British governess. And of course, Dench never fails to deliver her usual pomp and gravity to anyone and everyone.

One of the limiting parts of the novel is we stick almost exclusively to the point of view of Hercule Poirot (played by director Kenneth Branagh), the detective who rises to the challenge and solves the case. In the movie, we're jumping around a bit more and getting more information. As mentioned above, we witness a rather tense flirtation between Mrs. Hubbard (Pfeiffer) and Ratchett (Depp). Count Andrenyi, who doesn't do much in the book, is given an interesting shade by Sergei Polunin, the world-renowned ballet dancer. There's even a bit of, um, choreography for him in here (hint hint). All of it leads to a much more fleshed out and captivating story.

One of the most interesting things we learned during the Q&A portion: the filmmakers painstakingly re-created the Orient Express as it was in the 1920s and 1930s, down to every last detail. Everything from the costumes to the sets to the scenic backdrops that fly by in every scene has been artfully and carefully done. It lends a sort of realism to experiencing the film, but there's also a noted modernity to it as well. I guess it's not so much that the story has been adapted for modern film but rather, it's like a modern film has been made in this time period. It's electric.

During the Q&A, director Branagh insinuated that small changes may have been made to the story. After all, the novel has been around for 83 years. The novel's twist ending won't exactly be a surprise . . . unless they give it a new spin, of course. As to what changes they made and how big they are, that remains to be seen. But rest assured, you'd better be on your guard. You never know who's going to end up being a murderer.

All press trip travel expenses and accommodations were paid for by 20th Century Fox.