Rian Johnson preceded the TIFF world premiere of Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery with the kind of crowd-pleasing intro meant to jazz an already-eager audience. But the mood grew a bit more contemplative as Johnson talked about some of the movie’s gothic influences, such as Edgar Allan Poe, and issues of faith that he’s been grappling with. The speech ended with a “Can I get an amen?” that the crowd heartily responded to. By the end of the screening, you might’ve heard the occasional “Hallelujah” in between the laughs and yelps of shock at Johnson’s most deep and emotional whodunnit yet.
Part of the beauty of Johnson’s Knives Out trilogy is that each brings something different to the table, and thus each can be someone else’s favorite. I love a good mystery, but I like mine broad with a hint of silliness and adventure, which is why Glass Onion appeals to me most. Wake Up Dead Man is the most intricate mystery of them all, grappling with issues of faith, redemption, revenge, and forgiveness. While there are a few lulls that last longer than they should, and the runtime is a stretch, Johnson keeps us entertained and glued to our seats until the riddle is solved.
While Daniel Craig returns as the slick, theatrical detective Benoit Blanc, Wake Up Dead Man doesn’t really belong to him. Instead, it’s an incredible Josh O’Connor as Rev. Jud Duplenticy, a priest and former boxer with a penchant for losing his temper and knocking people out. This gets him sent to a small parish run by Trumpian firebrand Msgr. Jefferson Wicks, played by Josh Brolin. Wicks is a power mad charlatan, with a small flock of devotees who will do anything he says. He also has some other gross indiscretions that are funny but unbecoming of a man of the cloth. Things take a serious turn for the unholy when someone turns up dead, and that’s when Blanc come in.
Blanc doesn’t actually utter a word until nearly 30-45 minutes later, but you don’t miss him because of the incredible ensemble that includes O’Connor,Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Jeremy Renner, Glenn Close, Cailee Spaeny, Mila Kunis, Daryl McCormack, and Thomas Haden Church. Without saying too much about their characters, each brings something complicated and weird into this religious crisis. There are a couple of fun cameos, too, that like the bulk of the plot shouldn’t be spilled easily.
Cinematographer Steve Yedlin has been with Johnson through it all, from Brick to The Brothers Bloom, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Looper, and of course, each Knives Out film. But Wake Up Dead Man might be the most visually brilliant of them all, and this comes from someone who has seen The Brothers Bloom so many times I could recite it verbatim. Here, Yedlin’s use of light and shadow to hint at something darker within the church, to outright gothic horror in the shadowy wilderness, is simply astonishing. Wake Up Dead Man takes place basically in one location but it feels like we are going on a sinister journey.
Speaking of journeys, Blanc continues to evolve from one movie to the next. It seems we learn something new about him with each case, but this time we get to bear witness as he experiences a personal revelation that changes our understanding of him. Craig continues to play Blanc beautifully, revealing new layers to the grandiose sleuth when we least expect it.
There’s a lot of dancing around the plot because Wake Up Dead Man is better the less you know going in. Johnson wisely doesn’t try to outsmart the audience, because that route will always lead to a screenwriter’s eventual demise. Instead, his Knives Out films are like going to an amusement park with rides that spin you around like a top. While Johnson weaves in some heavy commentary about using religion as a weapon rather than for spiritual healing, he never forgets that these movies are meant to be enjoyed first and foremost. It seems like an easy mystery to be solved, but you’d be surprised at how many of them are waylaid by a filmmaker trying to do too much. It’s unclear if Wake Up Dead Man is the last we’ll see of Benoit Blanc, but Johnson can rest assured that his flock will be ready and waiting to receive him if he returns.
Wake Up Dead Man opens in select theaters on November 26th and then Netflix on December 12th.
*NOTE: An earlier version of this review was part of our TIFF50 coverage.
