Mystery Movie Review - Knives Out

If you weren't part of the crowds that saw this movie in the theaters, let me introduce you to the movie Knives Out.  If you packed in to watch it on the "big screen", revisit it for Halloween.  Released November 2019 and rated PG-13.

What it's about

"The night after his 85th birthday, after a party with his combative family, the wildly popular mystery author, Harlan Thrombey (played by the legendary Christopher Plummer from The Sound of Music) dies a sudden and suspicious death. The police arrive to investigate with a well known private investigator named Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig of James Bond fame) sporting a Southern drawl.  The assumption is Harlan committed suicide and cut his own throat - or could it be murder?  Benoit was hired by an unknown person to investigate which adds to the mystique.  The family members are all shown to have reason to kill the author.  The film centers around the author's nurse, Marta, who will literally vomit if she tells a lie.  The all-star cast includes Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, Chris Evans, and Ana de Armas (Blade Runner 2049) as the nurse. 

Rotten Tomatoes: 97%

Critic Leonard Maltin: "Knives Out is never, ever dull and offers the kind of classy entertainment we could use more of on the big screen. And I have a feeling we'll see more of Daniel Craig's colorful character down the road."

• 3 nominations at Golden Globe Awards
• Best Original Screenplay nomination Academy Awards  AND British Academy Film Awards
• Selected for top ten films of 2019 by American Institute and the National Board of Review.
• Plus many, many others

The director, Rian Johnson, wrote the screenplay and specifically wanted to make a Christie inspired murder-mystery film.  Filming was in and around Boston, Massachusetts with the exteriors of the house filmed at a mansion located in Natick, west of Boston. The interior shots used The Ames Mansion in Borderland State Park a lot.

 

My thoughts:

This is perhaps one of the best Hollywood takes on a traditional mystery in the vein of Agatha Christie (but updated) with a powerhouse ensemble cast.  It exceeded my expectations, and most peoples.  The acting reflects that everyone on set was enjoying their roles and the directing and camera angles created the tension and intimate feel.  The mystery has plenty of red-herrings, twists, and a surprise ending.  It is meant to be funny in parts, and pulls it off great.  This is a really good, fun, and clever adult-oriented movie.  

It is an "original" movie, meaning there was no book or comic book with a fan base already existing, it had to stand it on its own merit, and it did.  As one person in the industry noted for a Buzzfeed article: "It’s the stars, but it’s more. It’s the genre, but it’s more. It’s a solid script, a savvy director, attention to detail, and excellent casting." 

Another highlight to this movie is it wasn't generated, like the majority of movies these days, to be the basis for an exploitable merchandising campaign, but solely for the craft of the movie itself.  Sadly, Hollywood hasn't taken the lesson to create and support more original adult-oriented good content, but rather are running with this.  So, there will a Knives Out 2, trying to recreate the magic of the first and will be another Benoit Blanc investigation.  Please don't turn this into a series trying to milk this for every dime.

I highly recommend, make a night of it to watch the movie.

https://youtu.be/sL-9Khv7wa4

If you want more, here is the director going in depth into one scene of the movie and his insights on what the scene took.  https://youtu.be/69GjaVWeGQM