History Literature / DeathOnTheNile

Christie adapted the story as a stage play titled ''Murder on the Nile'' in 1944. The story was later adapted as [[Film/DeathOnTheNile1978 a 1978 film]] boasting an AllStarCast that included Creator/PeterUstinov (the first of six times Ustinov played Poirot in film or television), Creator/MaggieSmith, Creator/BetteDavis, Creator/MiaFarrow, Creator/DavidNiven, and Creator/AngelaLansbury. It was directed by John Guillermin. The story was also adapted for BBC Radio 4 in 1997, with John Moffatt playing Poirot. In 2004 it was adapted for the ninth season of the television series ''Series/{{Poirot}}''; tropes for the adaptation are listed on the series page. A [[Film/DeathOnTheNile2022 second feature adaptation]], directed by and starring Creator/KennethBranagh as Poirot, was released in February 2022.

Christie adapted the story as a stage play titled ''Murder on the Nile'' in 1944. The story was later adapted as [[Film/DeathOnTheNile1978 a 1978 film]] boasting an AllStarCast that included Creator/PeterUstinov (the first of six times Ustinov played Poirot in film or television), Creator/MaggieSmith, Creator/BetteDavis, Creator/MiaFarrow, Creator/DavidNiven, and Creator/AngelaLansbury. It was directed by John Guillermin. The story was also adapted for BBC Radio 4 in 1997, with John Moffatt playing Poirot. In 2004 it was adapted for the ninth season of the television series ''Series/{{Poirot}}''; tropes for the adaptation are listed on the series page. A [[Film/DeathOnTheNile2022 second feature adaptation]], directed by and starring Creator/KennethBranagh as Poirot, is set to be released in February 2022.

** Many people who do not have Linnet's best interests at heart are together on the same boat: [[spoiler:her husband and his ex-fiancée want to kill her; Tim Allerton wants to steal her pearls; Andrew Pennington wants to rip her off; one of the ship's engineers is still angry after Linnet revealed he was attempting bigamy]]. Moreover, even if Cornelia Robson does not mean any harm, her father was ruined by Linnet's.]]

** Many people who do not have Linnet's best interests at heart are together on the same boat: [[spoiler:her husband and his ex-fiancée want to kill her; Tim Allerton wants to steal her pearls; Andrew Pennington wants to rip her off. Moreover, even if Cornelia Robson does not mean any harm, her father was ruined by Linnet's.]]

* LeaveAPistolBehind: [[spoiler:Poirot manages this, in a way. He deduces that Jacqueline had brought a pair of pistols with her, and suspected that she would use the remaining pistol to escape punishment.]]

* LadyDrunk: Mrs. Otterbourne, much to her daughter's frustration.

* LastMinuteHookUp: [[spoiler:Cornelia Robson and Dr. Bessner, Rosalie Otterbourne and Tim Allerton.]] Agatha Christie tends to do this often, with Poirot as TheMatchmaker.

%% ** Miss Van Schuyler

%%* TheSummation

* TheUnfairSex: Inverted; everyone talks about how much of a jerk move it was for Linnet to steal Simon away from Jacqueline. No one ever points out that Simon was a free agent, and he made the choice to dump a woman he supposedly loved. [[spoiler:More so when Simon said he still loved Jacqueline and only married Linnet for her money and to murder her. That makes him ''way'' more culpable]].

* AssholeVictim: Linnet isn't one of the worst Christie examples, but stealing her best friend's fiancé makes her easy to dislike. In the beginning of the book, she mentions to Jackie that she's having a number of houses on her property knocked down and the people moved, because they make her property look unsightly. It's slightly zigzagged in that she says that she's having new and better houses built for them, and that most of the people agreed, but she mentions too that some of the residents don't want to move, and she just can't fathom why. Essentially, she comes off as spoiled and thoughtless but not really deserving of death [[spoiler: particularly since she turns out to have been the victim of a rather ruthless and meticulously planned murder.]]

* DyingClue: The "J" written in blood on the wall would seem to be Linnet's way of naming Jackie as the killer. Unlike most examples of this trope, this is never taken seriously as a possible clue, because it's obvious Linnet died instantly and wouldn't have had time to write anything on the wall. It's actually considered evidence in Jackie's favor, since the killer must have been the one who wrote the "J" and Jackie obviously wouldn't have done that. [[spoiler:This was exactly what the killer was counting on -- Simon did the J to make it look like someone was trying to frame Jackie. It later turns out it was improvised -- Jacqueline refers to it as "melodramatic" in her confession. It's implied that the melodrama of the "J" actually puts Poirot on guard.]]

* GracefulLoser: Near the end of the story, Poirot has a conversation with one of the killers who respectfully and candidly explains to him the murder and everything leading up to it, without a hint of anger or malice.

* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: [[spoiler: After TheReveal, Jacqueline tells Poirot that she encouraged Simon to dump her for Linnet so that he could have Linnet's money if that was what he really wanted. However, Simon refused because he loved Jacqueline while Linnet was not his type. Then it occurred to him that he could have his cake and eat it.]]
* LastMinuteHookUp: [[spoiler:Cornelia Robson and Dr. Bessner, Rosalie Otterbourne and Tim Allerton.]] Agatha Christie tends often to do this, with Poirot as TheMatchmaker.

* TheAlcoholic: Mrs. Otterbourne.
* AlcoholicParent: Rosalie's mother, Mrs. Otterbourne, is an alcoholic. Rosalie tries to make her stop, but Mrs. Otterbourne keeps finding ways to get her hands on a drink.

* StalkerWithACrush: Jacqueline on Simon. [[spoiler: Turns out she was pretending, and actually in cahoots with Simon.]]

* SuddenlySHOUTING: Simon starts yelling at Mrs. Otterbourne to tell them ''everything''. [[spoiler:He was shouting to warn Jackie in the next room that someone saw her kill Louise.]]

* TheSummation
* TalkativeLoon: Mrs. Otterbourne.

HeKnowsTooMuch: The reason that [[spoiler:Louise Bourget and Salome Otterbourne]] were killed; they both separately witnessed a culprit entering and leaving the room where a murder took place.

%% * AffablyEvil: [[spoiler: Both Andrew Pennington and Simon Doyle.]]
%% * TheAlcoholic: Mrs. Otterbourne.

%% * BrokenBird: Poor Rosalie Otterbourne.

%% * CoolOldGuy: Poirot, as always. Mrs Allerton and Colonel Race too.

%% * EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Jacqueline de Bellefort.

* HeKnowsTooMuch: The reason that [[spoiler:Louise Bourget and Salome Otterbourne]] were killed; they both separately witnessed a culprit entering and leaving the room where a murder took place.
%% * HerrDoktor: Dr. Bessner.

%% * InnocentBlueEyes: Simon Doyle has bright blue eyes, [[spoiler: but is definitely not innocent.]]

%%* TheSummation
%% * TalkativeLoon: Mrs. Otterbourne.

%% * TooDumbToLive: Pretty much everyone who is killed. [[spoiler: And the murderer himself, Simon Doyle. His lover Jacqueline de Bellefort knew this and decided to help him to kill Linnet.]]

%% * {{Tsundere}}: Rosalie Otterbourne, so much.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Linnet and Jaqueline were best friends. Until Linnet stole her best friend's fiancé. Linnet, you bitch.

* TogetherInDeath: [[spoiler:Murderous lovers Simon and Jackie die in a double suicide.]]

Christie adapted the story as a stage play titled ''Murder on the Nile'' in 1944. The story was later adapted as [[Film/DeathOnTheNile1978 a 1978 film]] boasting an AllStarCast that included Creator/PeterUstinov (the first of six times Ustinov played Poirot in film or television), Creator/MaggieSmith, Creator/BetteDavis, Creator/MiaFarrow, Creator/DavidNiven, and Creator/AngelaLansbury. It was directed by John Guillermin. The story was also adapted for BBC Radio 4 in 1997, with John Moffatt playing Poirot. In 2004 it was adapted for the ninth season of the television series ''Series/{{Poirot}}''; tropes for the adaptation are listed on the series page. A [[Film/DeathOnTheNile2021 second feature adaptation]], directed by and starring Creator/KennethBranagh as Poirot, is set to be released in September 2021.

* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: Simon starts shouting at Mrs. Otterbourne to slow down when she claims to have seen who killed Louise. [[spoiler:Simon went NoIndoorVoice to warn Linnet that Mrs. Otterbourne is onto her, and [[HisNameIs to kill her before she can reveal it]].]]

* SuicideWatch: Cordelia is forced to stay with Jacqueline all night after Jacqueline shoots her ex-fiancé Simon in the leg. [[spoiler:This is a carefully-arranged alibi for the murder.]]