It took me two viewings to decide how I felt about Branagh's MOTOE. When I saw it in the theater I was a little cold on it. I think this is largely because I've both read the book and seen multiple adaptations for the screen, and so there was a bit of a feeling of "been there, done that." Also, when I first watch a movie that I've really been anticipating I tend to feel a little let down the first time around, and I had been anticipating this one greatly.
However, when it came out on Blu-Ray I went ahead and bought it and gave it another watch and I actually enjoyed it quite a bit the second time around. I think the reason I enjoyed it so much was precisely because Branagh was smart: He made enough changes to keep the story interesting for seasoned viewers, while keeping the story close enough to Christie's book that it always feels faithful to the spirit of the original narrative. I appreciated this.
I also thought the cinematography was gorgeous and the performances were good across the board. My only complaint would be the obvious CGI during the avalanche scene, which just felt a little out of place.
So to sum all that up, I liked it and am looking forward to Death on the Nile. That should be a better theatrical experience, because I actually don't remember the ending for that one.
Regarding the ABC Murders, I have watched the first episode twice and that's it. I just haven't managed so far to get through the whole thing. As you say, it's very different from the original story and it also doesn't really feel faithful to the spirit of Christie's writings.
The writer who has been adapting these recent BBC Poirot films is Sarah Phelps. She's done four of these so far. And Then There Were None and The Witness for the Prosecution I thought were both pretty good. But Ordeal By Innocence and The ABC Murders feel like busts to me. I'm not sure she actually has much respect for Agatha. Some of her changes are pretty outrageous.
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