Knives Out (2019)

There's a moment early in Knives Out where you realise Rian Johnson isn't playing by the usual rules. He hands you information you're not supposed to have yet, smugly folds his arms, and dares you to figure out where he's going with it. That kind of confidence, that willingness to mess with genre convention rather than just coast along inside it, is what makes this film such good fun, even if it doesn't quite stick the landing as boldly as it could.

The setup is irresistible. Harlan Thrombey, a wildly successful crime novelist, turns up dead the morning after his birthday party. His family, every last one of them a magnificent specimen of entitled dysfunction, are all under suspicion. Into this chaos waddles Benoit Blanc, Daniel Craig doing a thick-as-molasses Southern drawl and absolutely loving every second of it. Craig is outstanding here. He's playing against type in the best possible way, and there's real joy in watching him lean into the theatricality of it all, a man performing the role of the great detective while genuinely being one. It's the kind of performance that makes you wonder why he wasn't doing this sort of thing all along. I've seen Craig do cold and brooding across several Bond films, including my review of Skyfall, but this is something else entirely. Warmer, funnier, more alive.

The ensemble around him is stacked and everybody knows exactly what kind of film they're in. Chris Evans is clearly having the time of his life. Jamie Lee Curtis and Michael Shannon bring real sharpness to their scenes. And Toni Collette, playing a wellness-obsessed, Instagram-therapy-quote-spouting character with pinpoint comic precision, is a genuine standout. Every time she opened her mouth I was half-wincing, half-grinning, because we all know someone like her. The family dynamics are toxic in that very specific, very recognisable way, and Johnson uses them to say something genuinely pointed about class and inherited privilege. The satire has real teeth.

Rian Johnson has always struck me as a director who's most interesting when he's working within a genre and quietly dismantling it from the inside. I felt something similar watching Brick, his debut, which transplants hardboiled noir into a high school setting with complete deadpan commitment. Knives Out has that same spirit, a real love of the form it's playing with, paired with an eagerness to pull the rug out. The production design is lush, the pacing tight, and the script crackles. There are reveals here that are genuinely well-engineered.

But here's my honest gripe: the central mystery is surprisingly predictable. I don't mean that as a casual boast, just a genuine observation that sharp viewers are likely to piece things together well before Johnson wants them to. The film telegraphs certain things with what feels like a smirk rather than a sleight of hand, and the final act, while satisfying in its themes, doesn't deliver the gut-punch of a truly great whodunit. It's more rewarding as social commentary than as a puzzle box. When you compare it to the best of Agatha Christie, which it's clearly paying homage to, there's a slight hollowness at the mystery's centre.

That said, I don't want to be too harsh. There's an argument that Johnson is more interested in character and class dynamics than in genuinely bamboozling you, and on those terms the film succeeds brilliantly. It just could have taken bigger risks. A film this clever, with a cast this good, had room to be genuinely daring rather than just very good.

Three and a half stars. A near-great modern mystery, immensely entertaining, stylishly made, and anchored by a Craig performance I'd happily watch again. Go in expecting a fun, satirical ride rather than a mind-bending puzzle and you'll have a brilliant time.

Rating: ★★★½  | Year: 2019  | Watched: 2025-12-01

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Where to watch

Watch in the UK
Rent: Amazon Video · Google Play Movies · Sky Store · Curzon Home Cinema
Buy: Amazon Video · Google Play Movies · Sky Store · YouTube
Physical: Amazon UK · Zavvi

Watch in the US
Stream: Lionsgate+ Amazon Channel
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Buy: Amazon Video · Apple TV Store · Google Play Movies · YouTube
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Related on Movies With Macca

More from Rian Johnson: Brick (2005) · Looper (2012) · Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)
More with Daniel Craig: Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) · Spectre (2015) · Skyfall (2012)
More from the 2010s: Wonder (2017) · Beautiful Boy (2018) · The Witch (2015) · What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
More comedy: The Eagle (1925) · The General (1926) · Americana (2023) · The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
More crime: A Better Tomorrow (1986) · Angst (1983) · Stolen Face (1952) · Cairo Station (1958)