Runtime 2 Hours 10 Minutes
Capsule Review, minimal spoilers:
Knives Out is a whodunit film. The day after a birthday celebration for the wealthy patriarch of a family, Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead in his room, which was pretty isolated. It would appear to be a gruesome suicide, and police are convinced. In walks Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), a detective hired by someone, to confirm this is a murder, not a suicide. None of the family flaims to know what happened, and they’re forced to stay around while everything is checked.
This film is replete with characters, and they all know something of the events leading up to the death. It’s up to Blanc to put it all together. The story unfolds, but not necessarily from his viewpoint, and that’s a mild twist on the usual theme of films like this.
There’s a lot of interplay, a bit of sass and sarcasm, and your typical twists and turns. Most of the characters are fully fleshed out, but there are some weaker ones, less important to the story. The payoff was interesting, to say the least, and not at all what I expected. I did, however, have an issue with Craig’s accent. I can’t say why, but all I know is it bothered me. Besides that, I rather enjoyed Knives Out, and definitely recommend it.
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Standard Review, some spoilers:
Being a wealthy patriarch is dangerous business, where family is concerned. Almost all of his children have lived off of Father’s financial support, and they all seem to believe that he was going to be less forthcoming in the future. The implications start flying as Benoit questions them all.
Besides Benoit, the film focuses on Thrombey’s nurse, Marta (Ana de Armas). She had a close relationship with Thrombey, and was privy to his thoughts and feelings about his family. She is the key to the family secrets, and Benoit tries to use her to get to the truth of the matter. She is quite forthcoming, but it’s not enough to implicate anyone specifically.
It was a good story, leading up to the last minute revelation. With a large cast like this, it’s difficult to balance them all out, to give them enough screen time to establish them. Of particular note were Walt Thrombey (Michael Shannon), Joni Thrombey (Toni Collette), and Ransom Drysdale (Chris Evans)Some of the peripheral family members aren’t in the spotlight, so they don’t get much time to shine, but for everyone else, you really get a sense of who they are, and what their situation is. Almost everyone has a reason to want him dead, but there’s not enough direct evidence to prove any of them did it. It’s quite baffling.
I have to congratulate whoever found the home that Knives out DID an excellent job. The house really fir the mood of the film. Dark and cold, but also warm, in a way. Kind of like the Thrombeys. It’s a house that you’d consider buying if you won the lottery. It was very elegant inside, and felt lived-in. The way it was laid out fit the setting of the movie, and made for some interesting moments.
You don’t see too many of these whodunit films any more, and most of them are screen adaptations of novels (like the relatively recent Murder On The Orient Express remake. It’s hard to craft an intricate plot, such as this, and have it be unfamiliar material. Knives out succeeds on that level, and manages to be properly played out on screen.. I suspect it might receive an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay, but maybe I’m overestimating its content.
I do recommend this, and if you wait to see it at home, you won’t miss out too much by seeing it on the small screen, except for the whole movie-going experience. I found it fun and entertaining.