Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

Manuel São Bento 10/8/2025 5:21:35PM 8.4

FULL SPOILER-FREE REVIEW @ https://fandomwire.com/wake-up-dead-man-review/ "Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery exceeds expectations by diving into a darker register without losing the layers of humor and captivating mystery that define the franchise. The howdunnit mechanics become unnecessarily complex before the climax, but given the brilliance of the whydunnit — exceptional character work and rich thematic exploration — every minute is a valuable experience.The witty banter between Daniel Craig and Josh O'Connor, coupled with the depth of their discussion on what it means to "believe," is one of many proofs in this sequel that a whodunnit doesn't need to be perfect to be a resounding success. Rian Johnson offers a worthy continuation of the saga, surpassing expectations by delving into a somber register. The truth may be winding, but in this mystery, faith and forgiveness are the biggest plot twists of all." Rating: A-

Brent Marchant 1/28/2026 1:30:19PM 8.4

How refreshing it is when a movie turns out to be better than expected. And such is very much the case in this third installment in the “Knives Out” murder mystery franchise, arguably the best offering in the series. In the interest of full disclosure, I was not particularly looking forward to watching this release. While the first two films were modestly entertaining, they had occasional tendencies toward silliness and incredulity that detracted from their core focus and overall quality. However, this latest effort is a pleasant surprise, primarily due to a noteworthy maturation of the material, with better writing, better storytelling, deeper and more believable character development, and solid performances across the board. In addition, the narrative has made a deliberate attempt to incorporate more substantive, more thoughtful content in the story and script, a notable improvement over the two previous pictures. Also, in an attempt to add a sense of relevance, the screenplay includes references to contemporary events and trends, elements noticeably lacking in the franchise’s two prior works. While the story here is too complicated to address in considerable detail, it essentially marks the return of unconventional private detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) in an investigation of the murder of a dubious monsignor, Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin), a killing that’s believed to have been committed by his parish’s junior priest, Fr. Jud Duplenticy (Josh O’Connor). Given Duplenticy’s checkered past as a boxer and his combative relationship with the monsignor, he’s seen as the prime suspect, but did he do it? And can Blanc prove his innocence? That’s a legitimate question in light of the possible motives of a handful of allegedly loyal parishioners, all of whom carry secrets that could prove devastating if revealed – and that the shady monsignor could readily do if he wanted to, his vows of confidentiality notwithstanding. The result is a complex tale full of twists and turns on its way to the revelation of the truth, one with ties to the parish’s colorful past. Admittedly, some of those misdirections and other plot devices seem a little forced to carry the narrative forward. In addition, the pacing tends to sag a bit in the middle, which some viewers may find a little tedious. But these modest shortcomings are easily overlooked given the picture’s many other strengths, most notably its genuinely funny humor, the fine portrayals of the three principals, and the excellent performances of supporting players Glenn Close, Andrew Scott, Jeffrey Wright and Daryl McCormack. Writer-director Rian Johnson has turned in a better-than-expected outing with “Wake Up Dead Man,” qualities that one can only hope will be apparent again in any future installments of this franchise.

CinemaSerf 12/11/2025 6:55:25PM 8.4

Pugilistic priest “Fr. Jud” (Josh O’Connor) has lost his temper with a deacon and been consigned to a remote country parish where his plain-speaking bishop (Jeffrey Wright) hopes he can do less damage. Upon his arrival, though, he realises that this is quite an eccentric little congregation led by the mildly megalomaniacal “Monsignor” (Josh Brolin) and his ever so slightly menacing factotum “Martha” (Glenn Close). The new arrival isn’t universally welcome, especially when he tries to impose his own more religious approach to parish affairs, and then somewhat out of the blue, the older churchman is mysteriously killed. Of course, “Jud” is the obvious suspect but the arrival of the Poirot-esque “Benoit Blanc” (Daniel Craig) to help with the investigation soon reveals that just about anyone from this tightly knit community had some sort of axe to grind. It also transpires that there’s a missing eighty million dollar fortune, a bit of illegitimacy, a secret romance and even an acid bath to be factored in, too! It’s Cluedo on steroids! Brolin reminded me of Kris Kristofferson the whole way through as his behaviour gets wackier and more manipulative and he does gel well with an O’Connor who’s clearly having some fun as the plot thickens nicely, and suitably convolutedly. I could have done with a little more from Miss Close, and neither Andrew Scott nor Jeremy Renner really have enough of the plot either, but the writing and pacing of this quirky and personality-driven mystery keeps it quite enthralling in the best tradition of Agatha Christie as it mixes some good old fashioned detective work with some provocative religiosity; technical wizardry and even a little biblical mythology. Don’t be put off by it’s lengthy duration, it’s the best of these “Knives Out” tales so far.