Knives Out (2019)

Rating: 8/10 (9 December 2019)

Directed by Rian Johnson. Starring Daniel Craig, Ana de Armas, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson, Toni Collette, Chris Evans, Christopher Plummer, Lakeith Stanfield, Katherine Langford, Noah Segan, Edi Patterson, Riki Lindhome, K Callan, Frank Oz. (PG-13)
When the rich patriarch (Plummer) of a family of avaricious eccentrics dies (by suicide, it appears), private detective Craig--replete with a thick Southern drawl ("CSI: KFC," per Evans)--is on the case, trying to figure out what really happened and why. Entertaining mystery with a heavy dose of humor and social commentary keeps the twists coming at a fairly consistent clip throughout, modernizing the classic Agatha Christie-style potboiler without sacrificing the elegance and idiosyncrasies (wealth aside, this is not a family one would like to be a part of). Some of the surprises can be guessed pretty easily, others may prove challenging, but it's great fun no matter how good a sleuth the viewer is. Well-cast, with Craig, Collette, Curtis and de Armas being the standouts; because of the size of the ensemble, it's not always easy to keep everyone sorted out in relation to where they all fit on the family tree and beyond, but like solving a mystery, it all becomes clear by the end. Despite saying only a handful of words throughout the entire movie, Callan steals most of her scenes by virtue of vacant gaze alone.
83/100