MOVIE REVIEW — Knives Out
A New Age Whodunit Done Masterfully — ★★★★1/2
I said this in my reviews for Parasite and The Irishman (though that may be released after this is posted), but I got extraordinarily lucky with my first film festival experience, at the 28th Philadelphia Film Festival. With advanced tickets being sold out for the two aforementioned films and the one this review is for, Rian Johnson’s Knives Out, the only showings I managed to score advanced tickets to were Jojo Rabbit (Read my Review for that film here) and Portrait of a Lady on Fire (still to be seen). With this being my first time attending a film festival, I had no idea what to expect or how to plan ahead of times in terms of being successful with Rush Tickets, but sure enough, I got into the showings for Parasite (My Review for Parasite), The Irishman, and Knives Out by using Rush Tickets. I feel so lucky. Anyways, with any formalities completely non-existent in this opening, let’s actually talk about Knives Out.
In this Rian Johnson flick, marketed as a “Whodunit”, Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) dies under mysterious circumstances leading an investigation to be opened, with foul play suspected. With his incredibly dysfunctional family all ready to slice each other’s necks, both the paranoia surrounding the suspected murder and stakes of his final will could not be higher.
Featuring an all-star ensemble, the Thrombey family is quite immense in size, and more importantly is made up of a number of… colorful characters. The goal here is going to be listing them off quickly, but effectively getting their character across. Ready? GO! Joni Thrombey (Toni Collette) is a self-care guru who marries into the Thrombey family becoming Harlan’s daughter-in-law. Meg Thrombey (Katherine Langford), Joni’s daughter, is a stereotypical college hipster/activist. Walt Thrombey (Michael Shannon) is Harlan’s son and the person chosen to oversee his massive publishing company, with Walt’s son Jacob (Jaeden Martell), being described as an alt-right troll by the rest of his family, leading to major clashes between he and Meg. Linda Drysdale (Jamie Lee Curtis) is Harlan’s eldest child, choosing to take her husband Richard’s (Don Johnson) last name following their marriage, as she runs her own real estate company having made her own way in the world. Rounding out the Thrombey family is Ransom (Chris Evans), the son of Linda and Richard, who had never held a job in his life while still accumulating an abundance of wealth from his grandfather and parents. Whew, that is A LOT… but wait, there is more! The housekeeper, Fran (Edi Patterson), Harlan’s nurse Marta (Ana de Armas), Lieutenant Elliot (Lakeith Stanfield), Trooper Wagner (Noah Segan), and the mysterious Private Investigator, Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), round out one of the most impressive ensembles in recent memory. OKAY, now we are done on that front. Each one of the names listed above deliver anywhere from good to amazing performances, with Ana de Armas, Chris Evans (really holding out hope that this is a positive start to post-MCU Chris Evans), and Daniel Craig all landing in the latter. I mean come on, who is not interested in a douchey Chris Evans turned up to 11 and Daniel Craig playing a southern detective that will immediately draw comparisons to his CRAZY performance in Logan Lucky? Seriously, pardon my French, but this film is so fucking fun.
Eat Shit. Eat Shit. Eat Shit. Definitely Eat Shit. — Ransom Drysdale
With Johnson both writing and directing the film, the dialogue here is so sharply written with each bit of witty banter between characters feels like a knife stab of comedic genius. The balance between genuine suspense in the pending investigation and the laugh-out-loud comedy from character moments leads Knives Out to being one of the most standout, original films of the year. Say what you want about what Johnson did with his entry into the Star Wars franchise with The Last Jedi, but it is undeniable how great of a writer/director he is with films like Brick, Looper, The Last Jedi, and now Knives Out, while also being behind two of the most acclaimed episodes of the Breaking Bad series (those being Ozymandias and Fifty-One). With Johnson sticking around after the screening for a Q&A, he did bring up how he was influenced by Agatha Christie stories in the process of making this, but also how he wanted to put his own spin on the “Whodunit” film, mentioning how Clue (1985) serving as a parody of the genre, while also doing new things within it. The influences can certainly be felt throughout, but if you are a Rian Johnson fan or someone who just wants to be kept on the edge of their seat for an increasingly fun ride, this is the movie to see.
With the writing already being superb, Johnson also knocked the direction of the film out of the part. Managing to make a film that is predominately set in one location for two hours and ten minutes so thrilling and lively, while mainly moving forward off of dialogue rather than actions (at least in the first two acts), is a tougher feat that some would care to admit, and yet the film is so wildly engaging from start to finish thanks to brilliant directing and extremely witty and poignant writing. Keep in mind, this is only Rian Johnson’s fifth feature length film and already it feels as if we are seeing the birth of a new auteur in cinema.
If you have read any of my other reviews, you know how big of a sucker I am for a great combination of strong cinematography and a memorable musical score. Like Johnson’s other work, Knives Out delivers in spades. The Director of Photography for the film was Steve Yedlin (Brick, Looper, Star Wars: The Last Jedi), and as expected from his previous work with Johnson, the result is spectacular to say the least. So many shots throughout the film ooze with style, feeling as if they were lifted straight from a murder mystery comic book or graphic novel. The emphasis on kinesis through the camera lens is so on point over the course of the film, specifically in the sequence of the reading of the Last Will and Testament. As for the score, it was composed by Nathan Johnson, longtime collaborator and cousin of Rian. From the very opening, the music falls off the screen, overtaking your hearing, and sticking to your brain with a very strong usage of violins to set the tone of the film. While not as great as the scores for Ad Astra and Joker, Nathan Johnson’s composition for this movie is a highlight and something I cannot wait to re-listen to over and over again upon its release.
Just an aside, but I fully expect the toxic Star Wars “Fans” to come out in spades when the film releases at the end of November in trashing the film online without seeing it or trying to bombard review websites with negative reviews, again, without actually seeing the film. As a self-professed Star Wars fan, I will admit how awful that fandom is. Who knows though, maybe I am totally wrong and this will go off without a hitch, people will go see Knives Out and actually have dignified discussions rather than sending death threats to actresses. This is without a doubt Johnson’s most political film to date, bringing in his beliefs in regards to class, race, and the American political system all into the backdrop of the film, while also imbuing each of the key cast with their own personal ideologies that play out over the course of the film either overtly in their dialogue, or subtly in the background of scenes. To say this may raise a few eyebrows from some of his harsher “critics” would be an understatement *cough cough Jaeden Martell’s character cough cough*.
Knives Out is one of the most original, funny, thrilling, and engaging films of the year, with a colorful cast of characters and a story so bonkers that you physically will not be able to forget it after seeing it. Rian Johnson proves once again why he is one of the most interestingly talented writer-directors working in cinema today, adding another impeccably strong entry into his remarkable filmography. If you are looking for a fun time, that will keep you interested and invested throughout the movie, Knives Out is the film to see this fall/winter season.
Be sure to go see Knives Out when it releases later this year, in theaters on November 27th, 2019.
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If you are interested, I also got to see Jojo Rabbit at the Philadelphia Film Festival and wrote up an official review which you can check out here:
