A Haunting in The Venice Summary and Ending Explained – Detective Hercule Poirot is back again with a murder case, but this time it’s different, as you will get the feeling of horror in it. A Haunting In Venice is the sequel film to Death on The Nile, and the story takes place in 1947, where we see Hercule Poirot solving a new case with a supernatural angle.
A Haunting in The Venice Ending Explained
In 1947, Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) retired from his detective life, and now he is living his life in Venice. He hired Vitale Portfoglio, an ex-police officer, as his bodyguard. One day, Hercule’s old friend Ariadne Oliver (Tina Fey), a famous mystery novelist, meets him, and asks for his help.
She wants to uncover the truth behind Joyce Reynolds (Michelle Yeoh), a Medium who claims she can speak with spirits. Joyce Reynolds is in Venice for a work-related trip. Oliver takes Hercule to a Halloween Party where Joyce will come. The Halloween Party was hosted by opera singer Rowena Drake at her palazzo for children only.
The palazzo itself was haunted, as there are rumors that the palazzo used to be an orphanage where doctors and nurses left children locked in a room to die after a virus spread in the city. So, the ghosts of those children haunt any nurses and doctors who step into the palazzo. Rowena Drake’s only daughter, Alicia Drake, died by suicide.
Rowena invited the medium Joyce Reynolds to the party so she could talk with her daughter. The palazzo looked very old because Rowena couldn’t afford to repair it. In the palazzo, we meet Dr. Leslie Ferrier, the family doctor, his son Leopold, and the housekeeper Olga Seminoff. Joyce came there with her assistant, Desdemona Holland, and at night they went to Alicia’s room to start the séance. Rowena didn’t remove anything from Alicia’s room to keep it the same.
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Alicia’s ex-fiancé, Maxime Gerard, comes to the palazzo as he receives an invitation, but Rowena doesn’t send it, so she is confused.
The famed opera singer and the mother of Alicia Drake, Rowena Drake killed the medium Joyce Reynolds and the doctor Leslie Ferrier under the suspension of blackmailing. Rowena killed Joyce by herself while she blackmails Dr. Ferrier to kill himself otherwise she is going to kill his child Leopold.
Was Joyce Reynolds a Fraud?
As Hercule Poirot questions the brother and sister, Desdemona said that Joyce was a phony, and all the stuff they did was a show and nothing real. But the brother, Nicholas, thinks she wasn’t a fraud as she knew stuff that no one else knew, which is true, as Hercule never talked about his wife with Joyce. Hercule then questioned his bodyguard, asking Vitale why he left the police service.
Vitale said that he never wanted to become a policeman; he had the body but not the brain, so he left the police service after a shocking case. Hercule saw Vitale using a telephone in the palazzo, and he knew perfectly where the telephone was. Vitale’s last case was the death of Alicia Drake. He was appointed to this area, and he took the body of her after she drowned in the canal.
Vitale was working with Ariadne Oliver all this time. Ariadne wanted a new mystery novel, so she made a plan to confuse Hercule by joining with Joyce Reynolds. Ariadne shared personal information about Hercule with Joyce, which is why she knew about Katherine. Vitale was a police officer when Alicia died, so he knew all the details of it, and he shared it with Joyce. Joyce was going to get fame from this case, while Vitale was going to get some money, and Ariadne sought fame and reputation as a writer.
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Desdemona came to Hercule and asked him to open the music room where Leslie is because she heard something. As he opened it, they found Leslie’s dead body. Now two murders had happened, but who was the Killer?
What happened to Rowena Drake?
Rowena tries to run from it, and Hercule also follows her. Rowena is now on the top-floor balcony of the palazzo. Hercule asks her to surrender herself, but she doesn’t listen. Hercule then sees someone levitating in the sky, and it was Alicia’s ghost. The ghost touches Rowena, and she is frightened and slips from the balcony into the canal. Rowena died in the canal by drowning.
Who was the Blackmailer?
The Blackmailer was Dr. Ferrier’s son, Leopold Ferrier. Leopold got to know about the symptoms of Alicia from his dad’s notebook. Leopold read a lot, and he knew it was “Mad Honey” at first glance. So, he started blackmailing Rowena Drake to pay bills, as his father was psychologically weak after the war.
What happened to Desdemona Holland and Nicholas Holland?
Desdemona and her brother, Nicholas, want to go to Missouri, and it’s their dream place. They worked with Joyce to earn something and use it to go to Missouri. After the death of Joyce, they are now living with Olga and Leopold. Olga Seminoff is taking care of Leopold after his father died. Olga and Leopold tell the Hollands to live with them until they go to Missouri.
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Is Hercule Poirot Retired?
After solving the Haunting case in Venice, Hercule Poirot is back again to solve a new case. It will be very interesting to see which story 20th Century Studios picks for the next Hercule Poirot movie. You can tell your favorite Hercule Poirot story in the comments.”