Poirot Retrospective #14: Death on the Nile

 

Poirot Retrospective #14: Death on the Nile

Although it's very debatable, I think I like this even better than Murder on the Orient Express; this is a really fine, well-written murder mystery. Christie at the peak of her powers, with none of the occasional flaws that mar her lesser novels.

Second only to the magnificent Murder of Roger Ackroyd. Perhaps better than Ackroyd in some ways (unforgettable setting! and perhaps slightly better cast of characters), but not in others (crime here a little too complex; narrative not as shocking or revolutionary; Poirot's solution not as dramatic).

Poirot is again semi-retired and decides to take a holiday to Egypt and see the world a little bit. I get the feeling that this was a fashionable thing to do for wealthy Brits in the mid-1930s. He meets various interesting people on his excursion, including a fabulously wealthy but cold-blooded heiress, the simple -yet-handsome husband she has recently stolen from her best friend, and the best friend who is stalking them on their honeymoon.

The plot here is intricate (over-intricate, perhaps) yet plausible. There are side crimes that are also intricate yet plausible. Almost every member of the trip is involved in ONE crime or another, which is oddly very fun as Poirot peels the criminal onion layer by layer.

There are also number of callbacks to prior novels: Poirot discusses his method of solving the side crimes first as being similar to artifacts being cleaned and cataloged in Murder in Mesopotamia; Poirot mentions a red herring in Orient Express; Poirot is assisted here by Colonel Race, who also helped him in Cards On the Table; etc. This is a nice little reward for longtime Christie readers!

The writing is very good throughout - especially (as always) in her characterizations. Poor people act distinctly differently than rich people. Men from women. Brits from foreigners. All of it displayed subtly in mannerisms, dress, dining habits, etc. Many little clues are dropped here and there about the various suspects.

Also interesting is Christie's philosophy here - much like Orient Express and Roger Ackroyd, Poirot prefers to let the murderers take responsibility for themselves - he gives them agency and respect as intelligent creatures. This is one thing that really separates Christie from other authors (of her own time or even now) - Poirot treats adults like adults, and fully recognizes the entire scope of human behavior. He has compassion. He understands that murderers are often not outlandish monsters, but actual people with needs and feelings that have gotten out of hand. The result is that the denouements of these best books are remarkable.

Another fascinating point is that Christie doesn't cast any blame on the various criminals from her position as author; indeed, the opposite - it seems likely that she sympathizes with them, especially the murderers! Two of the murder victims are extremely unappealing people who actively damage the lives of others without remorse; only one is a true victim, sort of... and even they are depicted rather unflatteringly.

A quick note on the recent movie: I disliked it. It was beautiful, opulent, but flat and had very poor pacing. The novel is tense almost from the first pages, and the tension only mounts steadily. Even the final page is tense! It feels like absolutely any character could die at any moment - this is a confined boat with at least one murderer on board - they are trapped together - in an exotic and almost lawless place. The movie somehow neglects this - it focuses on the wrong things entirely. It lacks the human dimension I mentioned above - the characters are flattened in caricatures and stereotypes. A real shame. I prefer the 70s film with Ustinov as Poirot.