When “Knives Out” came out in 2019, it was a smart and fun ensemble mystery to which Daniel Craig’s character, detective Benoit Blanc, played an important but not essential part to the proceedings.
He was just another piece on writer/director Rian Johnson’s colorful chessboard and left most people wondering, “Why does James Bond sound like Foghorn Leghorn?”
But when “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” came out in 2022, it became clear what Johnson was up to. It was another star-studded mystery with Craig positioned right in the middle and it didn’t take a master detective to figure out that Benoit Blanc was Johnson’s Sherlock Holmes or Hercule Poirot.
Blanc and Johnson are now back for their third go-around, “Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery,” which just might be the best of the lot.
Craig has now settled into the role of Blanc like a comfortable tweed jacket in a story that wrestles with matters of faith and brilliantly holds space for believers and nonbelievers alike.
The story settles on a young priest, Father Jud (Josh O’Connor) who is sent to a remote parish in New England that is led by the fiery and flamboyant Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin).
Wicks is confrontational and divisive, leaving only a core group of devoted parishioners dedicated to his cause. But when a body turns up under impossible circumstances, local police chief Geraldine Scott (Mila Kunis) calls in Blanc to question the suspects and uncover the killer.
Johnson’s wit and playfulness are on full display in “Wake Up Dead Man,” along with his ability to find some thoughtful space to reflect on life’s greatest mysteries.
Craig clearly enjoys playing Blanc and brings his all to the role, but he’s given an assist here by three other powerhouse performances. O’Connor and Brolin are both fantastic as both the light and dark side of organized religion. Each brings a charm and spark to their performances that keep you engaged for the stretches that Blanc is off-screen.
The other notable and probably best performance in the film is by Glenn Close as true-believer groundskeeper Martha Delacroix. Close is both fearsome and frail in a role that could wind up generating some awards consideration.
Just listing the rest of the cast is an embarrassment of riches with a couple of impressive up-and-comers in Daryl McCormack (“Good Luck to You, Leo Grande”) and Cailee Spaeny (“Priscilla,” “Civil War”), salty veterans in Thomas Haden Church and Jeffrey Wright, and a trio of prime-time-players in Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott and Jeremy Renner (just months removed from nearly being crushed to death by a snowplow, no less!).
There’s something special here that makes these movies feel like a gift. Maybe it’s just the thrill of seeing a very talented group of people giving their all to something that is wholly original and clearly having a great time while doing it.
“Wake Up Dead Man” shows that Johnson and Craig are just hitting their creative stride and as far as I’m concerned, Benoit Blanc can hang around and solve as many murders as he wants.
“Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery” is rated PG-13 for violent content, bloody images, strong language, some crude sexual material, and smoking.
