Knives Out

The trailer promised an old-school whodunit, and that's what the film is. I was very entertained until about halfway through, liking how completely but utterly everyone was lying and how Daniel Craig's character (who took me a while to get used to, at the time) accepted all the lies with a knowing smile. But somewhere in the second half it all started to get a bit scratchy, I suddenly felt like I was ahead of the investigators when I shouldn't have been, a feeling that was gradually confirmed and confirmed... until it was confirmed. I don't mind too much if the ending of a mystery doesn't shock me or at least surprise me, but I don't like it when it doesn't satisfy me at all and leaves me completely cold because it gives a terribly twisted impression. In a story by Agatha Christie or A. C. Doyle, on whose legacy Knives Out is based, this would never have happened. (08/01/2020)

A spectacular modern crime movie that bends the rules of the genre. Johnson is the narrator, so it’s hard for the audience to get lost. The tension could be cut with a knife almost throughout the movie. An incredible acting recital. Craig’s investigator removes all memory of Bond and Ana de Armas carries the heart of the entire story on her shoulders. This movie is like a donut with a hole in which there is another donut…with a hole…with a great climax inside. (07/02/2020)

I can't be enthusiastic about it, but for me it's absolutely similar to Murder on the Orient Express. The cast is perfect no doubt about it, Daniel Craig as the detective is decent and Ana de Armas is as always adorable, but it didn't draw me in at all. It's not funny and certainly not entertaining, nothing much actually happens for the two hours, until the final minute twist that saves the whole film to at least average, but by then I was looking forward to getting out of the cinema. Disappointment of the year and Rian Johnson has definitely confirmed that he will never make a film that I will like. 5/10 (19/12/2019)

It's a beautiful film. An imaginative case with a good bunch of interesting characters, some of them played by great actors. Needless to say, even those who were less known or completely unknown to me fit in with them easily. The whole thing is orchestrated by Daniel Craig, who leaves Bond behind completely and kicks things off as a very charismatic detective. The kind with real insight that you trust will crack the case in the end, but you still have to watch him do it. For me, it's basically a perfect show. 5 stars. (11/04/2020)

I've always liked Rian Johnson and I like how inventive his films are, and I think the best word to describe Knives Out is ‘cunning’. Johnson manages to lull the audience initially by making the film look more or less like a classic whodunit, with several suspects and a killer hiding among them. But after about twenty minutes, Johnson starts playing with genres, procedures, story and overall directorial delivery. He makes several drastic style changes, manages to poke fun at the audience, the clichés and his own characters, and is one step ahead of everyone in the room the entire time, for just when you think you've got Knives Out figured out, you find that Johnson has once again outsmarted you. And you're going to love it. By the way, I haven't seen a movie in a long time where it's so terribly obvious in all the actors how much they are enjoying their work and characters. (07/01/2020)