Murder on the Orient Express appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. The image held up well over the last 50-plus years.
Because the film’s cinematography took on a bit of an airy feel, this meant some slightly loose definition at times. However, overall delineation seemed positive, as most of the movie appeared accurate and concise despite the “throwback” photography.
No issues with jagged edges or shimmering materialized, and I saw no edge haloes. Grain seemed natural and I witnessed no edge haloes.
Also a product of the movie’s “period vibe”, Express came with a palette that emphasized a brown/sepia impression, though it also demonstrated bolder colors. These appeared well-rendered within the stylistic choices.
Blacks felt deep and dense, while low-light shots brought appealing clarity. This because a positive presentation.
As for the remixed DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of Murder on the Orient Express presented something of a revelation. I didn’t expect much from this rejiggered mono work, but the results sounded excellent.
The soundfield didn’t go bonkers, but it opened up matters nicely. The score fared very well, as it offered strong stereo imaging.
Other effects also broadened across the front speakers to create a good sense of environment, and elements moved smoothly across the channels. The surrounds mainly supported the front material, but they helped form a solid sense of place with some unique information as well.
Audio quality also satisfied. Speech sounded a little dated and flat but not badly so, and the lines came across as reasonably natural and firm, without any edginess or issues with intelligibility.
Effects also occasionally showed their age, but they were more than adequately clean and concise, and they demonstrated good dimensionality. In particular, the train pushed along with nice force and heft.
Best of all, the score sounded just terrific. The music was bright and dynamic and offered surprisingly strong range. All of those factors combined to make the audio of Express memorable and worthy of a “B+”.
How did the Blu-ray compare to the DVD from 2004? Both came with 5.1 tracks that demonstrated similar scope, though the BD offered lossless audio absent from the lossy DVD mix.
Visuals demonstrated obvious upgrades, as the BD looked cleaner, better defined and more natural than the iffy DVD. This turned into a substantial step up in picture quality.
This Kino release comes with old and new extras, and in the latter category, we find an audio commentary from film historians Howard S. Berger, Steve Mitchell and Nathaniel Thompson. All three sit together for a running, screen-specific discussion of story and characters, genre domains, director Sidney Lumet and his efforts, cast and performances, some production elements and their view of the movie.
That last topic becomes more of the track’s focus than I’d expect, especially because Mitchell dominates the piece and mostly likes to make this essentially an appreciation of the film. We get enough useful notes to make the commentary worth a listen, but it doesn’t bring a whole lot of real insights about the project.
Found on the old DVD, Agatha Christie: A Portrait runs nine minutes, 36 seconds. It provides remarks from her grandson Matthew Prichard as he relates his grandmother’s origins as a mystery writer, her influences for the Poirot character and his personality, influences for Express itself, and his thoughts about her.
This becomes a short look at the author. It offers some basics and little more.
In addition to the film’s theatrical trailer, we also find Making Murder on the Orient Express. Split into four parts, this 48-minute, 32-second documentary offers comments from Prichard, director Sidney Lumet, producers Richard Goodwin and Lord John Brabourne, filmmaker/author/Express appreciator Nicholas Meyer, production designer/costume designer Tony Walton, composer Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, and actors Sean Connery, Jacqueline Bisset, and Michael York.
The program goes into the story’s path to the screen and difficulties getting consent from Christie, casting and rehearsal, Lumet’s style and dealing with such a large and prominent cast, the influence of the Lindbergh baby kidnapping, various stylistic decisions, locations and the train set, the Poirot makeup, various production challenges and anecdotes, approaches to the characters and the actors’ interactions, translating the mystery to the screen, the film’s score and its audio, and the film’s reception.
The program moves through the various elements of the production smoothly and concisely, and it covers the appropriate bases well. Lots of interesting material pops up, and we get fascinating footnotes like Bernard Herrmann’s negative reaction to Bennett’s score. “Making” gives us a fine look at the film’s creation.
New to the Kino release, we get an Interview with Producer Richard Goodwin that spans 18 minutes, 15 seconds.
Goodwin discusses his involvement in this film as well as bringing in Lumet and the cast, sets and locations, and the movie’s release. Goodwin brings an enjoyable summary.
10 trailers complete the disc. We find promos for Express as well as Death on the Nile, Evil Under the Sun, Witness for the Prosecution, Endless Night, The Mirror Crack’d, Ordeal By Innocence, Ten Little Indians and Murder By Decree.
A classic murder mystery told in a fine manner, Murder on the Orient Express provides a satisfying experience. The movie moves briskly and uses its all-star cast well to create an engaging and entertaining throwback. The Blu-ray boasts very good picture and audio as well as some useful supplements. We get a fine release for a quality whodunnit.
Note that this Blu-ray only comes paired with the movie’s 4K UHD version. Kino chose not to release a solo Blu-ray for Express.
This means Blu-ray fans without 4K UHD players will need to buy this package to get the movie’s BD – well, if they want this specific version. Paramount put out their own BD in 2022 so that one exists as well.
