Death on the Nile

Death on the Nile (1978)

Timing: 2:20 (140 min)

7.143/10
877

6.855/10
1002

6.2/10
4000

All about film

Video 3

Photo 55

Actors and characters

Release date

1978-09-29

Country

United Kingdom

Production

EMI Films, Agatha Christie Limited, Mersham Productions

Genre

Mystery

Budget

$7 920 000

Revenue

$7 500 000

Website

Director

John Guillermin

Actors

Peter Ustinov, Jane Birkin, Lois Chiles, Bette Davis, Mia Farrow, Jon Finch, Olivia Hussey, I.S. Johar, George Kennedy, Angela Lansbury
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Agatha Christie

Producer

John Brabourne, Richard Goodwin

Operator

Jack Cardiff

Composer

Nino Rota

Artist

Audition

Dyson Lovell

Editing

Malcolm Cooke
All team (41)

• A film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Agatha Christie, published in 1937.
• "Fatal Journey" was the title under which the film was released in Soviet cinemas in 1981.
• The film starred no fewer than 5 actors who were Academy Award winners – Peter Ustinov (1960 and 1964), George Kennedy (1967), Bette Davis (1935 and 1938), Maggie Smith (1969 and 1978), and David Niven (1958).
• According to the actors and crew members themselves, the filming conditions were simply atrocious. The film was indeed shot on the Nile, in Egypt and Sudan, on the real paddle steamer 'Memnon', one of the few surviving cruise 'riverboats' that sailed the Nile at the time. Practically, filming took place 'in one take' between 4 and 6 am; by noon, when the temperature reached 54 degrees Celsius, it was sometimes stopped for 6-8 hours.
• Due to the hot climate, Albert Finney refused the role of Poirot, as he had problems in the previous film, "Murder on the Orient Express," with the long makeup process, which was very hot under the artificial lighting. For the same reason, Poirot, who was always a brunette in Agatha Christie's works, was portrayed by Peter Ustinov as a blond with wheat-colored mustaches – otherwise, the actor risked heatstroke.
• Due to the limited space on the paddle steamer, the actresses shared a single dressing room.
• Mr. Pennington, as in the novel, says, "I always take a gun with me abroad." Before the start of World War II, the regulation of personal firearms in the British Empire was comparatively lenient, and carrying one like this was quite possible.
• James Ferguson (John Finch) in a scene with Rosalind Otterbourne (Olivia Hassie) in the sphinx alley, holds a book in Russian titled "Technology of Film Production" (author B. Konoplev, year of publication 1956).
• Angela Lansbury played the role of the writer Salomea Otterbourne. Later, the same actress would become famous for playing another writer – Jessica Fletcher. Lansbury also starred in the adaptation of Agatha Christie's "The Mirror Crack'd," where she played Miss Marple herself.
• The film was released in Soviet cinemas under the title “Fatal Voyage” in 1981.
• The film featured no fewer than five actors who would later become Academy Award winners: Peter Ustinov (1960 and 1964), George Kennedy (1967), Bette Davis (1935 and 1938), Maggie Smith (1969 and 1978), and David Niven (1958).
• According to the actors and crew members themselves, the filming conditions were simply atrocious. The film was indeed shot on the Nile, in Egypt and Sudan, on the real paddle steamer “Memnon,” one of the few surviving Nile cruisers of that era. Practically, filming took place “in one take” between 4 and 6 a.m.; by noon, when the temperature reached 54 degrees Celsius, it was sometimes halted for 6-8 hours.
• Mr. Pennington, as in the novel, says the phrase, "I always take a gun with me abroad." Prior to the Second World War, the circulation of personal firearms within the British Empire was regulated relatively leniently, and carrying one like this was quite possible.
• James Ferguson (John Finch) in the scene with Rosalind Otterbourne (Olivia Hassie) in the sphinx alley, holds a book in Russian titled "The Technology of Film Production" (author B. Konoplev, year of publication 1956).
• Angela Lansbury played the role of writer Salomea Otterbourne. Later, the same actress would become famous for playing another writer – Jessica Fletcher. Lansbury also starred in the Agatha Christie adaptation "The Mirror Cracked," where she played Miss Marple herself.