A mystery without a clue

Rating: 5/10 (25 December 2019)

As a lover of the old "whodunnit" genre, I really had high hopes for "Knives Out." It does, after all, have many of the essential ingredients: an all-star cast, a big house, a slew of self-interested characters, an unexplained murder. However, the biggest mystery in "Knives Out" is how it murdered itself.
There are several suspects. Was it the casting director, placing such a well-known English actor into the role of a Southerner with a drawl? I mean, Daniel Craig isn't just British, he's James Bond.
Was it the cinematographer, designing grandiose camera moves into every scene, including simple dialogue scenes?
Was it the actors who-outside of Toni Collette-didn't seem to understand this was meant to be a comedy?
Was it the producers, who couldn't decide what this movie should be, a comedy, a thriller, a satire, an homage?
In the end, I suspect it was the writer-director who did it, on the page, with a fountain pen. Only he decided that each character needed to explain their story to the viewer, rather than leaving us guessing. Only he failed to add the humorous touches that could have made it entertaining-and extract some truly lame jokes. Only he was responsible for hiring actors who couldn't deliver the right quirk or humour.
It's a shame, because I really loved certain elements-the homage to "Sleuth," the not-so-subtle political message, some of the twists. But I couldn't help feeling I wished it was a bit more like "Hot Fuzz," with its humour, memorable characters and witty dialogue. And a bit more like "And Then There Were None" in terms of its suspense and mystery.
Normally, I'd recommend a mildly entertaining film, especially one with a good message, but this one is way too much of a mess.