The Woman in Cabin 10 is not a novel I’ve had the pleasure of reading, so my experience with this film will be from the perspective of just that. However as I do with book adaptations, I have researched after the fact just how faithful it is to the source and this one… is interesting. 

 

The film makes some drastic changes to details around the mystery, removes key characters, the psychological elements (aka the gaslighting on our lead) and completely alters the ending. In fact fans of the book may be incredibly shocked by just how much is different. 

 

There are red herrings galore and obvious twists based on specifics of one new plot device inserted here separate from the book. The scenery is beautiful for the bits we get off the yacht, but within the confines of, for the most part, a singular hallway of rooms - the film is a little barebones visually. Sometimes the way a film is shot can elevate the experience, especially make for a little leniency for any extreme choices made along the way - The Woman in Cabin 10 sadly doesn’t have enough flair to distract from these decisions. The most obvious comparison in terms of its execution over the source material  is The Girl on the Train, which also used a similar level of gaslighting (before it was the hip thing to say in pop culture) surrounded by an unsatisfactory mystery. 

 

The adaptation dials back many of the characters, and in doing so it should theoretically make time to fully invest in these characters with openings for clear suspicions to leak through. Unfortunately, the entire cast of characters (including to a degree our lead) are unlikeable to watch either 1) try to solve the mystery of the woman overboard or 2) ignore and belittle any suspicions that something may have happened. The stakes may have been a bit higher as a viewer if the twist wasn’t so obvious from the jump, no matter how much it tried to point fingers one way - it was clear as day what the answer was. 

 

So with that in mind, does the film hold up if you know how it’s going to play out? Not exactly. The film becomes a game of rinse and repeat of the same tried denials and accusations, until the film decides to reveal it all to us (even though we already knew). The performances are a tad underwhelming considering the caliber of actors on board, Kiera Knightley as Lo plays a journalist with a serious death wish as she is anxiety ridden, paranoid beyond belief and in the business of finding the truth. Ben (David Ajala), her old photographer acquaintance is the only common occupant on the ship, with everyone else being crew, security or the wealthy. Other supporting cast includes Guy Pearce, Hannah Waddingham, Art Malik, and David Morrissey. 

While I appreciate that The Woman in Cabin 10 didn’t overstay its welcome beyond the mystery at hand - the poor rewrites from the source to try to “do away” with the convoluted ending of the novel made for a far too simple narrative here. Stuck on a ship for several days with a potential murderer on board, where you’re clearly not welcome to throw accusations out - everyone’s a suspect (as long as you don’t think about it too long) should be automatically an engrossing mystery. In a world of Benoit Blanc and Hercule Poirot cases, this is one lackluster murder investigation that falters at properly blending psychological thriller with whodunit.