Director: Rian Johnson
Genre: Crime/ Comedy
Runtime: 130 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, Christopher Plummer, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, Frank Oz
Description: A detective investigates the death of a patriarch of an eccentric, combative family.
Review: An old-fashioned murder mystery of Agatha Christie-like allure. That's what filmmaker Rian Johnson advocated when he took care of the story and direction for “Knives Out”. The director of “Brick” and “The Last Jedi” has stuffed all the standard elements of the genre into this classic whodunit: an immense mansion, a rich family full of intrigues, only striking characters and of course the murder of an authoritative man. As one of the characters makes clear, it looks like a lifelike game of Clue. So: who killed Harlan Thrombey with the knife in the study?
Successful thriller author and multimillionaire Thrombey had just called the family together before his death in order to tighten the ties again. Because it's hatred and envy within the family ranks. And with all those fights and conspiracies, the motives immediately come to the surface. His daughter-in-law made money back because of the study costs of granddaughter Megan, whom she cashed twice. Son-in-law Richard cheated with Thrombey's knowledge. A grandson (who by the way has the first name Ransom) was in turn disinherited and Thrombey's youngest son worked for the company. And then there is the South American nurse who may have tampered with medication.
One by one, Johnson will take care of the suspects. He does this with a series of interviews with a very special spectator. Private detective Benoit Blanc, a fantastically smooth role for Daniel Craig, who sounds like Francis Underwood's brother because of his southern American accent, has more than earned his spurs in a number of high-profile cases. Initially he is only used as an observer, but he always makes his presence known to potential suspects in an irritating way by pressing a piano key. It doesn't take long before Blanc completely takes over the murder investigation, although he leaves the detective under the illusion that it isn't so.
Knives Out is indebted to the genre that made Christie great and is therefore a tribute to the work of the highly productive British thriller author. There are studies that have shown that Christie suddenly built up her sentences in such a way that it is impossible to stop reading. Johnson's thriller may not have this hypnotic effect, but it is full of intriguing characters who all have their reasons to get rid of the pater familias. As it should be. It also helps a lot that next to Craig, famous faces like those of Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, Chris Evans, Michael Shannon, Christopher Plummer and Toni Collette make their appearance. But Craig is the one who owns this movie. It’s a very tongue-in-cheek performance, over-exaggerated, but therefor delightful to watch.
Knives Out is, with its beautiful scenery and camera work, above all a tribute to the classic murder genre, in which nothing and nobody is what it seems. It's a wonderful puzzle and therefore an escape from the daily grind. The ensemble cast is a pleasure to watch, because it must be wonderful to get absorbed in the dysfunctional family dynamics at a crime scene full of secret corners, spaces and doors.
Rating: 5/ 5
