Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery

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-

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.