Movie review
November 3, 2017 · 114 min · PG-13
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
2017 adaptation of Agatha Christie's 1934 novel directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh as Hercule Poirot, who investigates a murder on the snow-stranded Orient Express and uncovers that the passengers are vigilantes delivering justice for the kidnapping and killing of a child. The core story examines law versus personal morality in a classic ensemble whodunit. This version inserts visible racial diversity through reimagined and new non-white characters plus recurring dialogues and subtext that explicitly call out 1930s racism, xenophobia, and far-right attitudes.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Murder on the Orient Express.
Woke representation / casting
Prominent non-white casting additions and background swaps (Black actor as key doctor facing explicit racism in interracial relationship; Latino actor as Cuban-American salesman) create clear audience-visible diversity emphasis and partial mismatch with the original novel's homogeneous European/American cast, even in an international train setting.
Woke political dialogue
Characters voice period-specific racist slurs, xenophobic distrust ("not racist but" comments on Cubans), and far-right bigotry, met with direct acknowledgments of prejudice and mixed-race challenges; historical framing only with no modern activist language or lectures.
Identity-driven story themes
Recurring subtext and interactions around racial suspicion, far-right attitudes, and societal barriers to non-white or mixed characters add a noticeable identity layer to the passenger dynamics and mystery, serving as a modern overlay without driving the central vigilante-justice plot.
Western institutional / cultural critique
Limited historical nods to 1930s xenophobia, far-right ideology, and personal impacts of prejudice (including brief colonialism references); presented as era flaws without broader modern systemic attacks on Western institutions, patriarchy, capitalism, or traditional norms.
Woke character or canon changes
Race and nationality reinterpretations plus amalgamations of original characters (English colonel/Greek doctor merged into Black American; Italian salesman changed to Cuban-American) plus new diverse roles inserted specifically to enable racism themes—changes from Christie's 1934 text explicitly discussed as intentional modernization.
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Scattered reviewer notes that racial elements feel forced or hollow additions absent from the source; complete absence of significant social media firestorms, news headlines, or public debate accusing activist or left-wing messaging. Complaints remain weak and non-widespread.
Creator track record context
Branagh and Green made deliberate, documented choices to diversify the cast and weave explicit racism/xenophobia commentary for added resonance, with Green tying diversity directly to better storytelling and Branagh repeating the approach in sequels; reflects a clear pattern of identity-conscious updating.
Production
