SHARP AS A KNIFE

MOVIE
Knives Out
Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director Rian Johnson
Review Ray Chan

Renowned crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead under suspicious circumstances, after a family gathering to celebrate his 85th birthday.
    Everyone present, including Harlan’s personal carer and nurse Marta (Arna de Armas), are possible suspects, with local police officers joined on the case by famed sleuth Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), who, as it turns out, was hired by an anonymous client to solve the crime, just to add more mystery to proceedings.
    The incredible ensemble of respectable actors inhabit their characters snugly, who all have a motive for murder and something to hide.
    The most interesting personality is immigrant Marta, who has a condition which causes her to throw up whenever she tells a lie, a virtue appreciated by Blanc, who enlists her to help lead the hunt for the evildoer.
    Personally, this reviewer found the big reveal a little underwhelming and perhaps a tad unsatisfactory, and the denoument quite drawn out as Craig delivers a lengthy soliloquy about the culprit in a weird Texan twang that irritates more than engages.
    But while his performance occasionally teeters under the weight of its contrivance, the momentum created by the multiple plot twists and turns corrects his balance each time.
    Ultimately, that really doesn’t matter, because the main enjoyment from the movie is being part of the case and wondering how to solve it. It’s not about the ending, it’s about the journey and soaking up every little detail, every foible, every clue and red herring.
    Director Rian Johnson has made no secret of his admiration of Agatha Christie-esque murder mysteries, and his script is almost a tribute to the traditions and elements that make up this genre.
    He even throws in some potent moments of contemporary political commentary, notably focusing on how the US treats immigrants.
    Tellingly, a recurring punchline is the fact that none of the Thrombeys know what country Marta hails from, while Harlan’s son-in-law (Don Johnson) makes an agst-fed speech about government policy.
    Social analysis aside though, this unpredictable briskly-paced 130 minutes serves as a nicely-constructed modern reinvention of the whodunnit, and, despite the odd gripe mentioned above, is by far the sharpest movie puzzle of the year.


#knivesout