Film Review: Knives Out

Knives Out is a film I’ve been looking forward to since it has been announced, and for a couple reasons. For one, who doesn’t love a good ensemble murder mystery? It’s a genre that we don’t see often, likely because there’s only so much you can do with that format, but I find them to be a treat. And second, Knives Out is the latest from writer/director, Rian Johnson, one of my favorite filmmakers working today. Johnson has a knack of tackling different genres in ways that are self-aware, yet sincere, deconstructive, yet embracive of all the qualities that make it special, and it can be seen through his entire excellent filmography.

Following a classic whodunnit formula, Knives Out starts off with a housekeeper finding the wealthy mystery novelist, Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), dead on the morning after his 85th birthday party, with his throat slit, seemingly as a suicide. Detective Lieutenant Elliot (Lakeith Stanfield), Trooper Wagner (Noah Segan) are brought in to investigate and question the various family members who all present during the birthday party the night before. However, along with the detective and the trooper is the famous Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), a quirky private investigator with a massive case of Foghorn Leghorn voice. The case was brought to his attention under mysterious circumstances, and he believes there may be foul play involved.

Given Johnson being the guy behind everything here, it would be absurd to imagine him simply playing things straight as you might think with this setup, and sure enough, the film is quick to take turns into places that you might not have anticipated. In fact, I would go as far as to say calling Knives Out a whodunnit is a bit misleading since – not to give too much away – the answer to the big question is practically given away almost halfway through, and the film proceeds to go into a different kind of mystery, much of which involves Marta Cabrera (Ana de Armas), Harlan’s personal nurse and perhaps one true friend. She is brought on to assist Benoit in getting an understanding of the family dynamic, but finds herself entangled in something much bigger and more dangerous than she anticipated.

Unsurprisingly, the film is a total blast from start to finish. The mystery is intriguing, the questions that are set up have compelling and satisfying payoffs, it’s thrilling, and it’s also really, really funny. The pieces are all placed with the various family members played by an incredible all-star cast including Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Toni Collette, Don Johnson, Katherine Langford, Jaeden Martell, Riki Lindhome, and K Callan. Each of them are in some way reliant on Harlan’s wealth, many are given believable motivations, and the actors do a wonderful job of crafting a unique and engaging presence for these characters on screen. Some are certainly given more screentime than others, but they are all clearly relishing in the material, and having a good time, and that that enjoyment in infectious.

It’s a beautifully made film as well. Johnson once again utilizes his longtime collaborating cinematographer, Steve Yedlin, to create a sense of claustrophobia within the extravagant mansion that much of the movie takes place in. The editing from Bob Ducsay is tight, and keeps the film going at a solid clip, while giving the characters breathing room, and the story moments to linger long enough to make a strong impact. If I had any qualms at all, I would say there are aspects of Marta’s character that I found odd. For as important as she becomes, I wish the film allowed us to get to know her more. For example, there is an admittedly funny running gag where family members keep saying different countries when talking about where she is from, but since we, as the audience, don’t get to find out where her family is from, the joke almost comes across like it’s at her expense as opposed to being at the expense of the family showing off their ignorance. Marta’s mother is an undocumented immigrant, and the things that Marta has to deal with in regards to her family are treated with an appropriate amount of seriousness compared to the affairs of the Thrombey family, but much of it feels like it is simply exploiting topical issues for drama. Even Marta as a character, not to take away from Armas’ wonderful performance, feels like the kind of ridiculously nice, devoid-of-any-flaws minority character that could only come from a white filmmaker trying too hard, even with good intentions.

Aside from that one element that gave me pause, Knives Out is an otherwise brilliantly entertaining piece of filmmaking. It’s sharp, it’s hilarious, and the cast is so much fun to watch. Daniel Craig in particular is enthralling, but Ana de Armas is the best she’s ever been. The way Rian Johnson takes the classic whodunnit formula, and twists it into something more modern and complicated is endlessly fascinating to watch unfold, and in terms of sheer craftsmanship, he and his crew are firing on all cylinders here. I saw it with a packed crowd, and the film does a wonderful job at playing with the audience, so that even when you do see certain moments come, you’re not annoyed that you figured it out, and you’re instead giddy to see how that revelation will play out on screen. While the social commentary might not be as strong as I would like, it’s still some of the most fun I’ve had in the theater all year.