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A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Friday 29 November 2019
Review: In 'Knives Out,' a

whodunit for the Trump era

By JAKE COYLE fabulously ornate and his finale. But for a movie
AP Film Writer much-paneled setting — with so many fine actors
Rian Johnson's "Knives Out" a Clue board come to life having so much fun, we
unravels not just a good and a home that could get surprisingly little of the
old-fashioned murder mys- rival the modernist abode Thrombeys as a whole.
tery but the very fabric of of "Parasite" for movie Instead, our detective
the whodunit, pulling at house of the year. calls almost immediately.
This image released by Lionsgate shows Katherine Langford, loose threads until it has in- Thrombey is extremely Enter Benoit Blanc (Daniel
from left, Toni Collette, Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, Michael tricately, devilishly woven wealthy with an expansive Craig), a flamboyant Loui-
Shannon, Riki Lindholm and Jaeden Lieberher in a scene from together something new family of spoon-fed, enti- siana investigator of such
"Knives Out." and exceedingly delight- tled eccentrics that would renown that he's already
Associated Press ful. likely mix well with the dy- been profiled in the New
For all the detective tales nasty of HBO's "Succes- Yorker as "the last of the
that dot television screens, sion." And as much intrigue gentleman sleuths." Even
the Agatha Christie-styled as there is about Harlan's with such immaculate set
whodunit has gone curi- death, for his children dressing all around him
ously absent from movie there's even more about (the mystery writer's house
theaters. The nostalgia- his inheritance. There's his is decorated through-
driven "Murder on Orient relator daughter Linda out with murder weap-
Express" (2017), popular (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her ons, including a throne of
as it was, didn't do much cheating husband Rich- knives), Craig still manages
to dispel the idea that ard (Don Johnson), a vo- to chew plenty of scenery
the genre has essentially cal Trump supporter; his with his heavily accented
moved into retirement, son Walt (a sweater-wear- Southern-style Poirot. One
content to sit out its days ing Michael Shannon) who calls him "Foghorn Leg-
in a warm puffy armchair, runs his father's publish- horn," another "CSI: KFC."
occasionally dusting itself ing house; lifestyle guru He's accompanied by an-
off for a remake. daughter-in-law Joni (Toni other detective (an under-
But Johnson has since his Collette); and his playboy used Lakeith Stanfield) but
2005 neo-noir debut "Brick" grandson Ransom (Chris he quickly makes Marta his
shown a rare cunning for Evans), the black sheep of sidekick; she has a useful
enlivening old genres with the family. aversion to lies, throwing
densely plotted decon- There are others, too, most up every time she tells one.
struction. He makes very notably Harlan's trusted There isn't much that isn't
clever movies ("Looper," caregiver Marta (Ana de knowing in Johnson's dia-
"Star Wars: The Last Jedi") Armas). The Thrombeys logue. He delights in play-
that sometimes, like in casually refer to her as ing by the genre's rules
the madcap caper "The "the help" and, in a run- and remaking them at
Brothers Bloom," verge on ning gag, are all over the once. There are winking
showy overelaboration, of map when it comes to her references here to "Ham-
being too much. native South American ilton" and "Baby Driver,"
But in the whodunit, too country. A deeper politi- and "Knives Out" more
much is usually a good cal dimension slowly takes than once risks being over-
thing. Give us all the movie shape as the family's cav- whelmed by self-satisfac-
stars, plot twists and mur- alier indifference to Marta tion. But "Knives Out," in the
der weapons you can find. plays a role in the movie's end, believes earnestly in
When done well, there unspooling mysteries. Jug- the whodunit, it just wants
is almost nothing better. gling themes of class privi- to turn it inside out. To say
And "Knives Out," while it lege, immigration and eth- more about that would
takes a little while to find nocentricity, "Knives Out" is spoil the fun. But keep an
its stride, sticks the land- a whodunit for the Trump eye here, and elsewhere,
ing, right up to its doozy era. on de Armas. The "Blade
of a last shot. The who- Some mysteries first sub- Runner 2049" actress (soon
dunit turns out not only to merge themselves in set- to be seen in the next
still have a few moves left up, the crime in question James Bond film, also with
but to be downright acro- and the entrance of its Craig) isn't the biggest star
batic. central detective. John- in a film awash with A-list-
The film begins like many son is too restless for such ers. But with neither cloak
before it: with a dead an approach. He favors nor dagger, she seizes
body that needs account- flashbacks, by the boat "Knives Out." It's hers.
ing for. Harlan Thrombey load, to go along with "Knives Out," a Lionsgate
(Christopher Plummer), a elaborate plot mechan- release, is rated PG-13 by
bestselling mystery writer, is ics of reversals and per- the Motion Picture Asso-
found with his throat cut in spective switcheroos. ciation of America for the-
a small upstairs room in his That gives "Knives Out" a matic content, some dis-
sprawling Victorian man- somewhat clunky and im- turbing images and strong
sion. Production designer perfectly paced first act, language. Running time:
David Crank deserves something Johnson makes 126 minutes. Three and a
much credit for the film's up for with the payoff of half stars out of four.q