Despite its all star cast and multi million dollar budget, I had little enjoyment in the latest Agatha Christie based film, A HAUNTING IN VENICE. Indeed, I had much more enjoyment attending the current production of Agatha Christie’s THE HOLLOW presented by the Genesian Theatre Company.

A HAUNTING IN VENICE is the third time around for Kenneth Branagh portraying Hercules Poirot, following Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile. He also directed all three productions.

It is now a well worn trope that these murder mystery movies be populated by big names to give them some box office attraction and the drawcards here are Michelle Yeoh and Tina Fey.

Yeoh plays a medium asked to conduct a séance by the bereaved mother of a daughter suicide. Fey plays a writer of detective fiction who persuades Poirot to attend to see if he can categorically denounce the spiritualist as a fraud.

Both actors do a fine job but are nearly wiped off the ouija board by Camille Cottin as the suicide’s nanny, an ex nun now a married woman and still a devout.

A HAUNTING IN VENICE also reunites two members of the cast of Belfast, Branaugh’s biographical triumph of a couple of years ago – Jamie Dornan and Jude Hill, once again playing father and son.

Michael Green’s screenplay is perfunctory, Sammy Sheldon’s costumes unremarkable, while there is some textural interest in John Paul Kelly’s production design and Haris Zambaloukos’ gloomy cinematography.

Frustratingly flat, as hollow as a Halloween pumpkin, with suspense as sodden as the sinking city it is based, A HAUNTING IN VENICE is a mysterious case of styles over substance.

Those in need of a Christie fix would be better served by attending The Hollow at the Genesians till September 23.