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Well, praise be, Daniel Craig's sleuth is back, this time investigating an immaculate deception in a seemingly impossible crime, but Film Brain has to make a few confessions...
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00:00Hello and welcome to Projector and on this episode there's a seemingly unsolvable mystery
00:04which means the only man for the job is Benoit Blanc in the Knives Out mystery, Wake Up, Dead Man.
00:12Boxer turned priest Judd DiPlentisi, player Josh O'Connor has been assigned to Chimney Rock in upstate New York
00:34to the Church of Monsignor Jefferson Wick, player Josh Brolin who is notorious for his abrasive style
00:39that has willed his congregation down to those most loyal to him.
00:44On Good Friday, Wix is somehow murdered during the service despite being alone in a locked room
00:49and the only person who can solve it has just arrived.
00:53The legendary Benoit Blanc, played by Daniel Craig.
00:57Knives Out may not have been the first to revive the murder mystery genre,
01:00Kez Branagh's murder on the Orient Express can lay some claim to that,
01:04but the franchise has certainly led the way.
01:07We've had a deluge of cosy murder mysteries in the last few years from books like the Thursday Murder Club
01:12itself adapted into a film earlier this year
01:14to TV shows like Only Murders in the Building and Rian Johnson's own Poker Face.
01:20And the first Knives Out is genuinely brilliant and fun,
01:23packed with a star-studded cast all competing to steal scenes,
01:27brilliantly biting dialogue and the satire of American conservatism
01:30coming to the air to create something very watchable even after you knew who did it.
01:36But the most merrill part of it was Daniel Craig in his foghorn leghorn southern drawl
01:41as the master detective Benoit Blanc, whose reputation very much precedes him.
01:47Craig is perfectly cast and is clearly having so much fun getting to show off his funny side
01:52and excellently timed for launching a new franchise
01:55just as he was getting off the James Bond train and not letting that role define him.
02:00Annoyingly, despite being a sleeper hit in cinemas,
02:03Netflix bought the rights for the two sequels,
02:06thereby robbing multiplexes as some obvious hits.
02:09And the first sequel, Glass Onion, I still enjoyed,
02:12but it was definitely much broader in terms of tone and comedy.
02:15I found Glass Onion to be absolutely hilarious,
02:18and its very unsubtle commentary on idiotic and self-absorbed billionaires
02:22has only gotten more accurate in the years since, let's put it that way.
02:26It's also one of the very few films actively set during COVID that actually worked,
02:31and these Knives Out films are very much shaped by the moment of their release.
02:36Like the previous two films,
02:37Wake Up Dead Man has its own particular tone,
02:40while still keeping the overall feel of the series.
02:43In some ways, I would say that it sits somewhere between the satire of the first film
02:47while having some of the scale and comic exaggeration of Glass Onion,
02:50but has an utterly darker tone than either of them.
02:54But is it the best Knives Out entry?
02:57I don't think it is.
02:59In fact, I would argue that this might actually be the weakest of the three so far.
03:03Now, don't get me wrong, I enjoyed Wake Up Dead Man a lot.
03:06I had plenty of fun with it.
03:09It's more, the previous two outings set such a high bar,
03:12but there are issues here that I couldn't ignore.
03:15But even a slightly lesser Knives Out film is still very enjoyable.
03:19One of the ways this feels like a return to the spirit of the first film
03:23is the focus has shifted away from Benoit Blanc again.
03:26Although Craig was the top bill star in Knives Out,
03:29he wasn't the main protagonist there,
03:31instead focusing on Anna D'Armes' martyr,
03:34who was trying to stay one step ahead of him
03:36because she feared she was the guilty party.
03:39Craig became very much the centre of attention in Glass Onion,
03:42in part because of the character's popularity,
03:45and we saw much of the film from his perspective.
03:47It's a move that could potentially overexpose the character,
03:51especially as Craig deliberately hammed it up,
03:54but him and Johnson got away with it there.
03:57But I think that Johnson knew that he couldn't do that again,
04:00so he does something rather bold instead.
04:02He removes Blanc from the first act of the film.
04:05We see him right at the very start for just one shot,
04:08just so we know what film we're watching,
04:10but otherwise, the film begins with a lengthy Daniel Craigless flashback.
04:15If we're at risk at having a bit too much of him,
04:18then keeping Blanc off-screen builds an absence that makes the heart grow fonder.
04:23When Blanc does Farley show up at around the 40-minute mark,
04:27it feels like an event,
04:28especially the way he just strolls into the action
04:31because an inexplicable murder demands his immediate attention.
04:35Like the series itself, Blanc is sporting a new look,
04:38this time with much longer hair that further sets Craig apart from his Bond persona,
04:42and if you're expecting an explanation for that, don't.
04:46But what this does is firmly put Blanc back into part of the ensemble,
04:50rather than being the focal point,
04:52who is part of the narrative and links the films together,
04:55but isn't necessarily driving it.
04:58Now, make no mistake,
04:59Craig does get a lot of screen time here,
05:01and he's having as much fun as usual,
05:03especially in a humorously gross-out moment in an autopsy,
05:07but he's used for just the right amount.
05:09But there are parts where he dips out of the movie
05:12because, at the end of the day,
05:14it isn't really Blanc's story.
05:17Instead, the protagonist here is Josh O'Connor's Judd,
05:20and it's another example of his understated malleability as an actor.
05:24Judd used to be a boxer until he killed a man in the ring,
05:28and his shame over that and his need to atone for that sin
05:31has led him towards the priesthood.
05:34Judd's got an optimistic view on faith,
05:36but he's also got a pretty short fuse with that right hook,
05:40hence why he's reassigned by Father Langston,
05:42played by Craig's Bond co-star Jeffrey Wright,
05:45who manages to steal his handful of scenes that bookend the movie.
05:49Judd memorably describes himself as
05:50young, dumb, and full of Christ,
05:53so he's well-suited to having to face the Monsignor,
05:55who clearly doesn't want him there,
05:57and is determined to get rid of him,
05:59or at least turn everyone against him.
06:02But that clash of personalities means that when Wicks turns up dead,
06:05everyone thinks that Judd is the prime suspect,
06:09as he's the one that bears the most obvious grudge.
06:12And also, let's face it,
06:14he's killed before.
06:16And that certainly doesn't help Judd's already guilty conscience,
06:20and puts us back in a similar vein to Marta previously,
06:23who also wrestled with her complicity,
06:26despite being fundamentally honest.
06:28But if she was trying to hide her involvement,
06:30then Judd is trying to prove that he really wasn't the killer,
06:34but the evidence is so stacked against him,
06:37that even he starts to doubt his own innocence,
06:40which serves as a metaphor for how he struggles with his faith.
06:44O'Connor is a brilliantly versatile actor,
06:46and a very likeable one,
06:48and he's well-suited for being a Hitchcockian wrong man,
06:51straight out of a film noir.
06:53I'd imagine that Hitch's 1956 film is a direct influence.
06:57Johnson gives him an excellent showcase here,
07:00and he's compelling,
07:01so much so that you really don't feel the absence of Craig in the earlier sections,
07:05and you're rooting for Judd.
07:07Even more so than Andy Armas or Janelle Monáe previously,
07:11Wake Up Dead Man absolutely belongs to O'Connor ultimately.
07:15I do think it's interesting the way that Johnson structures these entries,
07:19particularly the way they use flashbacks.
07:21The first Knives Out had a key flashback early on,
07:24and then peppered them throughout,
07:26whereas Glass Onion kept his biggest flashback in the second half with a perspective shift.
07:31In a way, because the first two-thirds or so of the movie play out in flashback,
07:36this is the most a film in the trilogy has played out in linear order,
07:40playing out in the lead-up to and over the Easter holiday,
07:44although we do get flashbacks within the flashback,
07:47and several scenes do get replayed several times.
07:51But the structure, in a way, also reminded me a little bit of Johnson's own poker face,
07:57where many episodes have the recurring sleuth pop up midway through the story,
08:03and that does seem like it might be the trajectory these films will have if they continue.
08:08However, that flashback does lead me to one of my issues with the film,
08:11in that as a mystery, I felt this was perhaps the weakest.
08:15Knives Out suffered from being a little bit too obvious who the real villain was,
08:18this doesn't have that, but Johnson spends a lot of time early on setting up all the pieces in the story.
08:25He puts the clues in plain sight.
08:27And maybe I'm a little bit too experienced with these stories,
08:30but I found it to be slightly too telegraphed.
08:33There's certain details, and I'll be extremely careful here and not even hint at what they are,
08:38that as soon as they were introduced, I thought,
08:41I know where this is heading.
08:43And it turned out I was right.
08:45And it made the viewing experience a bit odd for me,
08:48because I felt like I was ahead of the movie somewhat.
08:51I might not have figured all of it out, and I defy anyone to do that,
08:55but part of the joy of the Knives Out films is being surprised and outwitted by Johnson,
09:00at least on the first viewing, and I didn't get as much of that here.
09:04I don't think it helps there isn't the only mystery at play here,
09:08as he stacks several of them on top of each other,
09:10including a prominent subplot involving a missing family inheritance
09:14that Wicks' late mother Grace, played by Annie Hamilton in flashbacks,
09:18was searching for.
09:19Grace is often referred to as harlot, and often much stronger than that,
09:24by much of the congregation,
09:25which serves as something of a commentary on misogyny in the church
09:29and the film's larger themes of forgiveness.
09:32But in that middle act of the film, because there's so much plot going on,
09:35I do think the movie starts to lose some of the momentum of its strong start,
09:39and the blow to being the longest entry to date can be felt.
09:43The film does recover in time for the last act, but even then,
09:47there are a lot of involved and convoluted explanations to tie up the loose ends
09:51that it can be a little bit hard to actually keep up with it all.
09:56But maybe the reason why it isn't as tight as a mystery
09:58is that Johnson is arguably more interested in religion.
10:02In some ways, it goes back to the themes of the first Knives Out,
10:05given that conservatism in the church,
10:07or at least a certain kind of prosperity gospel at least,
10:10go hand-in-hand in America, so there is a bit of overlap.
10:14Josh Brolin's Wix is all fire and brimstone,
10:17a monsignor who probably thinks the Old Testament was too mild,
10:21less about goodness and kindness towards others,
10:24as casting judgment upon anyone.
10:27He leads not by hope, but by fear, isolation, and self-righteousness,
10:32and in so doing, creates a cult of personality.
10:36You're either with him, or you're against him.
10:39It's hard not to think of a few other figures if you catch my drift.
10:44Brolin may make an early exit.
10:46That said, he probably has more screen time here than he did in The Running Man,
10:49but he's perfectly cast as a forceful, intimidating figure,
10:53and getting a few amusing moments of his own
10:55by forcing Judd to sit through lengthy confessions
10:58for his own, ahem, gratification,
11:02if you know what I mean.
11:04Again, another reason why I feel like this is a weaker outing
11:07is that I don't think it makes a stronger use out of the ensemble cast
11:10as some of the previous films did,
11:12especially Glass Sun in where everyone got a moment to shine.
11:16I mean, the Kunis in particular is given very little were largely expositional role
11:20as the local police chief, Geraldine,
11:22who's also pretty certain that Judd did it.
11:26But Wicks also has a bunch of followers
11:28who all become potential suspects
11:30with possible motives for seeing him dead.
11:33The indomitable Glenn Close plays Wicks' right-hand Martha,
11:37who has a very funny running gag of sneaking up on people,
11:40and has a bit of a thing for Thomas Hayden Church's groundskeeper, Samson.
11:44There's Kerry Washington's lawyer Vera,
11:46and her adoptive son, Cy,
11:48played by Daryl McCormack,
11:49a failed Republican politician who hopes to use Judd
11:52to make a career comeback on social media,
11:55and he's often hiding in the background of scenes
11:57with a phone and camera ring recording people's conversations,
12:00whether they want him to or not.
12:03Andrew Scott is sci-fi writer Lee Ross,
12:06who has become a complete devotee of Wicks
12:08and hopes to turn his substack into a book
12:10to restore his flatlining career.
12:13Presumably after Fleabag,
12:15Scott heard that this had a hot priest in it
12:16and asked if there was a role for him.
12:19Jeremy Renner, in his first film role after his near-faithal accident,
12:22plays the local doctor, Nat Sharp,
12:24who has turned to Drink and Faith after his wife left him.
12:27And it's pretty funny that Renner actually pops up in this,
12:30as his fictional hot sauce
12:32was one of the most memorable gags of Glass Onion.
12:35And Kaylee Spaney plays Simone,
12:37a famous concert cellist
12:38whose career has been halted by a disability
12:40that mostly confines her to a wheelchair,
12:43who is looking for some faith,
12:44or maybe a miracle,
12:46to try and help her condition.
12:48And that last one is likely a hint
12:51at where the movie's sympathies truly lie.
12:54Don't be confused.
12:55This is an attack on religion.
12:57Far from it.
12:58Benoit Blanc may be a loud and proud atheist.
13:01He believes in facts and evidence,
13:04but the movie doesn't necessarily share that conviction.
13:07What the film argues is the belief in something,
13:11religious or not,
13:12is vital and important,
13:14that it can help us in our darkest moments of need,
13:17even if most of us won't have a sudden
13:19come-to-Damascus moment of conversion and realisation,
13:22like some of the characters do.
13:24But those beliefs,
13:26our ideas and values,
13:28shape who we are and our communities.
13:30And what's surprising is how serious
13:33and introspective wake-up dead man is
13:36when it comes to its subject,
13:38which is apparently quite personal to Johnson.
13:41There's a moment where Judd calls up someone for a clue,
13:43and then the person he asks suddenly asks for help of their own,
13:47because they need some advice on their own personal difficulties.
13:50And Judd takes the time to listen,
13:53even with everything hanging over him.
13:55It's a scene that goes from advancing the plot
13:57to an unexpected character moment.
14:00And I think it's one of the most important bits of the film
14:03that demonstrates its heart,
14:05but also what the function of religion should be.
14:08It has a compassionate view about it,
14:11and while you can believe whatever you want,
14:13it makes a case for it.
14:15What it is critical of is those that exploit religion
14:18and twist it for their own ends,
14:21and to spread prejudice and division like Wix does,
14:24the kind that Judd describes as a cancer to be cut out.
14:28You can even see this in the church where the film is set,
14:31which is effectively desecrated and damaged,
14:34and crucially missing its cross,
14:36an obvious allegory for the way that Wix's ideas
14:39have corrupted the values it should represent.
14:42Blanc describes it as a neo-gothic Disneyland,
14:46and that describes the film itself,
14:48that it plays with those gothic trappings,
14:51but ultimately, it is still a ride.
14:53There are some plot terms that I was a bit less on board with.
14:56When I realised where the film was going,
14:58I thought, that's a little bit too much for me,
15:01that's a little bit too exaggerated,
15:03but I do agree with what the film is saying overall,
15:06which is that we need much less intolerance,
15:09fighting and judgement,
15:11and far more understanding,
15:13and especially forgiveness.
15:15As I said previously,
15:17Wake Up Dead Man isn't my favourite Knives Out movie,
15:20but that doesn't mean it isn't good.
15:21Johnson has created something which is ambitious and complex,
15:25and feels as timely and relevant as the series usually is,
15:28if a little bit more uneven and messy.
15:31I don't think it works as much as a whodunit this time out,
15:34but I think the exploration of religion is unexpectedly nuanced.
15:39Sometimes it gets a bit mired in its own plotting
15:41at the expense of its themes and characters,
15:43but trust me when I say it,
15:45this is still entertaining and hilariously funny,
15:48with some great quotable lines.
15:51If you didn't click with Glass Onion,
15:53and I know that some people didn't,
15:55this might convert you again.
15:57And I have faith that Johnson and Cray will be back
15:59for more of this in the future.
16:01I hope, at least.
16:03If you like this review and you want to support my work,
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16:09which is right below the video.
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16:20Or you can just simply like, share, and hype the video.
16:23It all helps.
16:25Until next time, I'm Matthew Buck, fading out.
16:28And I'll see you next time.
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