I adore all the Agatha Christie novels, with Hercule Poirot as my favorite sleuth. This Hollywood production comes across as a highly entertaining and worthy adaptation of Christie's Death on the Nile. Peter Ustinov with his mustaches is wonderful as the renowned and meticulous Belgian detective, Poirot. He is assisted here in this investigation by his sidekick, Colonel Race, portrayed by classic actor and gentleman, David Niven, who basically serves as Poirot's foil. <br /><br />The story typically deals with the 1930's British upper crust. The mystery revolves around the murder of an heiress, Linnet Ridgeway Doyle, who is honeymooning with husband, Simon, on a cruise along the Nile. Typically, there is no lack of probable suspects, all fellow cruisers and very questionable characters with a good reason for wanting the lovely Linnet dead...<br /><br />Mrs. Van Schuyler (Bette Davis)...a sharp tongued, elderly dowager who covets Linnet's jewels <br /><br />Miss Bowers (Maggie Smith)...her sullen but loyal nurse companion, who has been forced into a servant's life as a result of her father's career being ruined by Linnet<br /><br />Loise Bourget (Jane Birkin)...Linnet's French maid, angry with the murdered heiress for refusing to provide the dowry she had promised her<br /><br />Salome Otterbourne (Angela Lansbury)...a sex obsessed, drunken writer facing a lawsuit brought on by the heiress after Otterbourne uses Linnet in one of her erotic books<br /><br />Rosalie Otterbourne (Olivier Hussey)...Mrs. Otterbourne's daughter, who wants to protect her mother <br /><br />Andrew Pennington (George Kennedy)...an American embezzling from the Ridgeway family <br /><br />Simon Doyle (Simon MacCorkindale)...Linnet's husband and former fiancé to Jacqueline (see below)<br /><br />Jacqueline DeBellefort (Mia Farrow)...Simon's vengeful jilted fiancée, who is furious with her former friend, Linnet, for stealing him from her and follows the newlyweds along on their honeymoon<br /><br />The famous stars all seem to be having great fun with their roles. There is lots of witty banter between Bette Davis and Maggie Smith here in their portrayals of mysterious wealthy dowager Mrs. Van Schuyler and her companion, Miss Bowers. Angela Lansbury wears outrageous outfits and puts in a brilliant performance as the tipsy, man hungry author. The beautiful raven haired Olivia Hussey became one of my favourites back in her Romeo and Juliet days.<br /><br />The unstoppable Poirot has lots of sleuthing to do, taxing his little grey cells, before the unraveling of this particular whodunit with all the various plot twists expected of Agatha Christie in her murder mysteries. This crime proved a complicated one at least for me to ferret out on my own. The Oscar winning period costumes are fabulous and the locale exotic, the Egyptian scenery magnificent with the pyramids, sphinx, and Nile River itself all serving as breathtaking backdrops. It's a wonderful suspenseful film, full of good old fashioned fun. With Agatha Christie and this stellar cast, you couldn't possibly go too far wrong.