Knives Out

A delightfully entertaining, Robert Altman-esque, Agatha Christie-type whodunit that was smartly written and well directed by Rian Johnson. The film moved along smoothly, although admittedly there was a slight pacing lag in the second act, but otherwise it did keep you guessing to the end. Clues were peppered throughout and attention needed to be paid to the things that were being said if you would like to solve the crime instead of being told (it was just like reading a book); and it could be solved. However, the secret to this film’s brilliance was not the script but its cast. Johnson had masterfully assembled, and wrangled, a great cast who had good chemistry and worked fantastically well with each other, but importantly, could also deftly balance the wicked blackness of the comedy with the campiness of a dysfunctional family and alt-serious drama of a murder thriller. Kudos to Daniel Craig who seemed like he was having so much fun, Chris Evans and his fantastic knits and sweaters, Jamie Lee Curtis and her campy overacting, Michael Shannon for always being able to find something menacing about any character he plays, Toni Collette and her blonde flooziness, and Ana de Armas for being the effective emotional heart of the film. If there are ten films nominated for Best Picture Oscar, “Knives Out” could be #9 or #10.