When renowned crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer) is found dead at his estate just after his 85th birthday, the inquisitive and debonair Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is mysteriously enlisted to investigate. From Harlan's dysfunctional family to his devoted staff, Blanc sifts through a web of red herrings and self-serving lies to uncover the truth behind Harlan's untimely death.
- Lionsgate
If I could describe Knives Out in one word, it would be Clue. The movie is a modern adaptation of the game Clue. In fact, in the movie they even mention the house looks like it came right out of the game Clue.
The cast includes Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, really do I even have to say anyone else at this point?
I love murder mysteries and there are not very many made these days. I think the last one I watched was a remake of Murder on the Orient Express (I never saw the original).
The movie does a good job of keeping you wondering what is happening and whodunit. Daniel Craig is a private detective called on to the case by an unknown party with an envelope filled with cash.
As the movie develops, you realize everyone has a motive in a typical clue fashion. The private detective questions everyone which just makes the suspect even more elusive.
I found every character in the movie brought a certain something to the movie and created a quality whodunit story line. Everyone had motive and ability to commit the murder but how it plays out is not what you would expect. The writing does a good job of keeping you guessing through out the movie but you are given key information well before the big reveal changing the direction of the movie quite a bit.
This movie did rely on a crutch to make it work and for that I was kind of disappointed, in all honesty it was kind of lame in that respect. It also had an unbelievable plot hole that gets revealed near the end of the movie that just doesn't make much sense.
While I am a big fan of Daniel Craig, his accent in the movie was a bit distracting as it wasn't really believable.
Out of everyone in the movie, I kind of liked the victim the most, I wish more time was spent developing his character.
Knives Out comes in at a 7.9 out of 10 on IMDb and I think that is a bit high. Anything near 8 are typically the best movies of the decade. I think Knives Out is great, but not quite sure I'd give I a 7.9. It is a great movie though and I would highly recommend it. If I was to rate it, I'd give it more of a 6.8 maybe 7 at best.
While I liked the movie, I would say it is greatly over-hyped. You can't go wrong watching it, but I don't feel like it fits as one of the greatest movies of this decade. In the end you won't spend days thinking how clever it was.
The user reviews for the movie fall into two categories, either they claim it is the greatest movie of the year or they recommend lowering your expectations. While I do thing the truth is some where in the middle, I'd lean more towards lowering your expectation amidst all the hype, but don't let that stop you from seeing it.
All images are from Knives Out IMDb page
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