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Murder on the Orient Express ()


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In December 1935, when his transcontinental luxury train is stranded by deep snow, detective Hercule Poirot is called on to solve a murder that occurred in his car the night before, with a multitude of suspects.

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Awards:
  • Won 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 17 nominations.
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Cast verified as complete

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Hercule Poirot
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Mrs. Harriet Hubbard
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Bianchi
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Greta Ohlsson
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Countess Elena Andrenyi
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Pierre Paul Michel (as Jean Pierre Cassel)
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Col. Arbuthnot
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Beddoes
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Princess Natalia Dragomiroff
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Hector McQueen
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Mary Debenham
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Hildegarde Schmidt
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Ratchett
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Count Andrenyi
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Hardman
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Doctor Constantine
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Antonio Foscarelli
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Concierge
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A.D.C.
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Chief Attendant
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Andrew Andreas ...
Waiter (uncredited)
Vic Chapman ...
Reporter (uncredited)
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Turkish Ticket Collector (uncredited) (voice)
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Dining Car Steward (uncredited)
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Loudspeaker (uncredited)
George Silver ...
Chef (uncredited)
Leslie Soden ...
Turkish Pianist in Hotel (uncredited)
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Hawker (uncredited)
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Traveling Salesman (uncredited)

Directed by

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Sidney Lumet

Written by

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Agatha Christie ... (novel)
 
Paul Dehn ... (screenplay)
 
Anthony Shaffer ... () (uncredited)

Produced by

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John Brabourne ... producer
Richard Goodwin ... producer

Music by

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Richard Rodney Bennett

Cinematography by

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Geoffrey Unsworth ... (photographed by)

Editing by

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Anne V. Coates

Editorial Department

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Richard Hiscott ... assistant editor
Mick Monks ... second assistant editor (uncredited)

Casting By

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Dyson Lovell ... (uncredited)

Production Design by

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Tony Walton

Art Direction by

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Jack Stephens

Costume Design by

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Tony Walton

Makeup Department

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Stuart Freeborn ... makeup artist
Ramon Gow ... hairdressing supervisor
John O'Gorman ... makeup artist
Charles E. Parker ... makeup artist (as Charles Parker)
Elaine Bowerbank ... hairdresser (uncredited)
Leonard ... hair designer (uncredited)

Production Management

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Jim Brennan ... unit manager
Jack Causey ... production manager
Louis Fleury ... production manager: French

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director

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Ted Sturgis ... first assistant director
John Downes ... third assistant director (uncredited)
Richard Jenkins ... assistant director (uncredited)

Art Department

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George Dean ... painter
Richard Amsel ... poster artist (uncredited)
E.W. Brister ... scenic artist (uncredited)
Simon Holland ... assistant art director (uncredited)
John Siddall ... draughtsman (uncredited)
Tony Strong ... scenic artist (uncredited)

Sound Department

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Jonathan Bates ... sound editor
Peter Handford ... sound
Bill Rowe ... sound
Nick Flowers ... sound maintenance (uncredited)
Jeremy Hume ... assistant dialogue editor (uncredited)
Trevor Rutherford ... sound camera operator (uncredited)
Brian Sinclair ... footsteps editor (uncredited)
David Stephenson ... boom operator (uncredited)

Visual Effects by

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Charles Staffell ... process photography

Camera and Electrical Department

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Peter MacDonald ... camera operator (as Peter Macdonald)
Steve Birtles ... gaffer (uncredited)
John Campbell ... focus puller (uncredited)
Cedric James ... assistant camera (uncredited)
Joe Pearce ... still photographer (uncredited)

Costume and Wardrobe Department

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Brenda Dabbs ... wardrobe

Location Management

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Norton Knatchbull ... location manager

Music Department

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Marcus Dods ... conductor
Skaila Kanga ... musician: harp
Richard Rodney Bennett ... musician: piano (uncredited) / orchestrator (uncredited)
John Richards ... music engineer (uncredited)

Script and Continuity Department

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Angela Allen ... continuity

Additional Crew

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Nat Cohen ... presenter
Richard du Vivier ... production associate (as Richard Du Vivier)
Elisabeth Woodthorpe ... production secretary
John Chambers ... finance executive (uncredited)
François Guillaume ... stand-in: Anthony Perkins (uncredited)
Catherine O'Brien ... unit publicist (uncredited)
Crew verified as complete

Production Companies

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Distributors

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Special Effects

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Other Companies

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Storyline

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Plot Summary

The first class compartment of the December 1935 departure of the Orient Express from Istanbul is full, unusual for this time of the year. Regardless, famed and fastidious Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, who needs to get back to London immediately, is able to secure last minute passage in the compartment with the assistance of his friend, Signor Bianchi, one of the directors of the train line who is also making the trip. Some of the first class passengers seem concerned about Poirot's presence on the train. At least one of them has reason to be concerned, as later, another first class passenger, who earlier in the trip asked Poirot to provide protection for him due to several death threats, is found murdered in his stateroom by multiple stabbings. At the time the victim is found, the train is unexpectedly stopped and delayed due to snow in remote Yugoslavia, which may be problematic for the murderer in getting away now that Poirot is on the case, which he is doing as a favor to Bianchi as not to get the Yugoslav police involved. Poirot quickly learns that the victim was not who he presented himself to be and has a connection to a five-year-old American kidnapping and murder case of infant Daisy Armstrong, murdered in spite of the fact that her parents had paid the requested ransom. The murderer in that case has long been convicted and executed but the ransom moneys were never recovered, a known accomplice never captured, and both the Armstrong parents have since tragically died. As Poirot questions the train's valet, the victim's accompanying staff, and the other primarily well off first class passengers and their accompanying servants, who are all on the surface more than cooperative, he finds that many had opportunity and motive, the latter which may not be obvious. There is also a great deal of evidence discovered on the train, which pulls his thoughts in many directions. These pieces of information may complicate the deduction of who is the murderer. Written by Huggo

Plot Keywords
Taglines The greatest cast of suspicious characters ever involved in murder. See more »
Genres
Parents Guide View content advisory »
Certification

Additional Details

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Also Known As
  • Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express (United Kingdom)
  • Le crime de l'Orient-Express (France)
  • Mord im Orient-Express (Germany)
  • Assassinat a l'Orient Express (Spain, Catalan title)
  • Asesinato en el Orient Express (Spain)
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Runtime
  • 128 min
Country
Language
Color
Aspect Ratio
Sound Mix
Filming Locations

Box Office

Budget GBP1,500,000 (estimated)

Did You Know?

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Trivia In 1929, a westbound Orient Express train was stuck in snow for five days at Çerkezköy, approximately one hundred thirty kilometers (eighty-one miles) from Istanbul, Turkey. This incident inspired the setting of the book and movie. See more »
Goofs In Istanbul a muezzin is heard giving the standard Muslim azan (call to prayer) in Arabic: "Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar!" However, the movie is set during the 1930s when Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was in power. During this time, the Arabic azan was outlawed, and a Turkish one ("Tanri Uludur!") had to be used instead. After Atatürk's death in 1938, the law was repealed. See more »
Movie Connections Featured in The Dumb Waiter (1979). See more »
Soundtracks Overture And Kidnapping See more »
Quotes Foscarelli: Hey, what are you reading, Mister Beddoes?
Beddoes: I am reading "Love's Captive," by Mrs. Arabella Richardson.
Foscarelli: Is it about sex?
Beddoes: No, it's about 10:30, Mister Foscarelli.
See more »

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