Year of Release: 2025
Director: Rian Johnson
Starring: Daniel Craig, Josh O'Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Thomas Haden Church, Cailee Spaeny, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Daryl McCormack, Jeffrey Wright, James Faulkner, Annie Hamilton, Bridget Everett, Noah Segan, Cecilia Blair,
Genre: Thriller, Drama, Crime
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 9
Watch it on Netflix
Synopsis and Review
2025 marks the 20th anniversary of Rian Johnson's feature directorial debut, "Brick", which launched him into a stellar career. His latest installment for the "Knives Out" series, may well be the best one yet. The narrative positions the young priest by the name of Jud at the center of the events. He's sent to a parish in upstate New York, following a physical altercation with one of the deacons. His passion for what he does renders him the protection of Bishop Langstrom. He gets sent to the Our Lady of Perpetual Fortitude parish, one that is led by the forceful and iron willed Monsignor Jefferson Wicks. Wicks has a long standing history with the parish, as his grandfather was also a Reverend there. Jefferson's mother, dubbed a "loose woman", had him out of wedlock, and his grandfather forced her to stay in town with the promise of getting his considerable inheritance. Upon his passing, there was nothing to collect and she destroyed the interior of the church. Jud realizes he's going to have a steep battle with Wicks, but soon realizes that the Monsignor alienates most of the parishioners, except for a group of people who come in every week and seem to hang on his every word. As Jud tries to show everyone another side of faith and of the church, he's met with derision, particularly from Martha, who runs the entire church affairs and has known Wicks all her life. Things take a dark turn when Wicks dies in a storage closet near the pulpit, he is in fact murdered there. All eyes land on Jud even though there's no proof of his wrongdoing. Police chief Geraldine Scott asks Benoit Blanc to investigate what is apparent a perfect murder.
One of the most interesting traits of Rian Johnson's accomplished career as a writer and director (and producer) has been how he intelligently peppers his view of the current world, the political, economical, social challenges we all face in a daily manner into his work. That once again appears in this chapter of the "Knives Out" series, a more somber chapter than the previous ones for sure, but also quite possibly the most potent one of the three thus far. Topics like religion, radicalization of populism, lack of principles and ethics, misogyny, amongst many others, are illustrated in this film in a way that is neither preach-full nor self-important. The writer/director is able to embed points of reflection on what is happening in society these days in this format of a quasi Agatha Christie inspired and highly entertaining whodunit. Another remarkable aspect of this film is in fact its pacing: the film flows almost effortlessly between the set pieces, like a perfectly timed clockwork, allowing for all the events to take place without lulls, peppering the narrative with just enough dark humor to keep everything in perspective. The fine cast of this feature also makes it that much more riveting, starting with Josh O'Connor who truly embodies the central character to perfection, leading the film with charisma, energy, and conviction. He gets great support from Daniel Craig, and the wondrous Glenn Close who once again steals the film with her portrayal of a character who has seen everything and knows everything (her characterization is reminiscent of the Férula character she portrayed in Bille August's "The House of the Spirits"). The rest of the cast is solid in their portrayals, though Josh Brolin's characterization, in particular his wig and beard are at times a bit distracting. The production team is as always impeccable, with highlights going to Nathan Johnson's score, Rick Heinrichs' production design, Jenny Eagan's costumes, though Steve Yedlin's cinematography, particularly during daylight shots, feels almost devoid of any dimension (the nighttime shots are far better). It's a superbly well crafted film from a great film maker.
0 comments:
Post a Comment