Don't believe the haters!

Rating: 10/10 (25 November 2019)

Here we have-again- the perfect example of a great film being undermined by haters who regard the flm from the perspective of his work on the Star Wars franchise. Let's get this out of the way and let me make clear that the only good parts of the franchise-according to me-are the original trilogy with Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford. So I presume that the lowest ratings here were from the SW fan community. "Knives out" turns out to be a mix of "The Royal Tannenbaums" and "Hercule Poirot's Christmas". Just like Meghan Markle who's in for a lifetime of unnecessary comparisons with Diana, you'll inevitably-if subconsciously- compare Craig to David Suchet. Here we have a rich patriarch in his mansion cramped full with all sorts of exotic paraphernalia; a dysfunctional family, each with his own motif to do away with Dad. He is brilliantly portrayed by Christopher Plummer, determined and clear-minded even in the face of his own demise. The only one who seems to genuinely care for him is his immigrant nurse Marta Cabrera, and after the will is read, it turns into a witch-hunt against the unexpected beneficiary of Harlan's fortune. There are delightful details, like the ornamental assemblage of knives in the background of the chair in which members of the family are seated during the questioning. There's Benoit Blanc , a dapper detective on his own quest for the culprit. He's played by Daniel Craig who clearly enjoys showing us his capability for comedy and something beyond James Bond. Cabrera's inability to tell a lie without throwing up is at once brilliant and cliche, but her overall performance shines throughout the whole film-not that she lacks in serious adversaries, like the larger-than-life Jamie Lee Curtis, a charismatic businesswoman who proudly exclaims she "built her business from the ground up", which her son Ransom (a handsome and funny Chris Evans) dismisses as a million-dollar loan from Grandpa (a subtle nod to Trump). Harlan's attempt to discredit his flesh and blood as blood-sucking losers is also a challenge for the the viewer-albeit not a really difficult one, but that's not really the point here. The mystery is like a baklava, layered in parallel mysteries to be deciphered. Daniel Craig isn't David Suchet-but on the other hand-he doesn't attempt it anyway, and we can see that he did succeed to build an autonomous, authentic persona, admittedly with a much more pronounced inclination to humor. Which is definitely a good thing. The perfect example of this is a scene where he informs Ransom that his "ancestral" family home was in reality purchased by Grandpa in the 1980s. "Knives Out" is definitely value for money, whatever the haters say. Let's hope more directors will tap into whodunnits. Not just because I have a soft spot for Poirot and Sherlock.Don't believe the haters!