Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery
Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery
Starring Daniel Craig, Josh O'Connor, Glenn Close, Josh Brolin
Directed by Rian Johnson
Reverend Jud Duplenticy (Josh O'Connor) is sent to a small church upstate after getting into a fistfight with a deacon at his old church, as he keeps running from a dark past that led him to the cloth. This church is run with a vengeful hand by the Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin) and his increasingly smaller congregation. Wicks tells Jud that the church is under attack and they must use force and violence to bring it back, and preaches fire and brimstone to the congregation, whereas Jud believes in the power of love, forgiveness, and faith - something the small flock seems to not want to understand.
When Wicks is murdered under very mysterious circumstances, the fabled detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is called in to investigate and meets the congregation/potential suspects - Martha Delacroix (Glenn Close), the devout church lady who's been around since she was a child; Dr. Nat Sharp (Jeremy Renner), a doctor turned alcoholic; Vera Draven (Kerry Washington), a successful lawyer who helped her adoptive brother Cy (Daryl McCormack) grow up and become an aspiring politician; Lee Ross (Andrew Scott), a former best-selling author; Simone Vivane (Cailee Spaeny), a former cellist who's now disabled and wishing for a miracle; and Samson Holt (Thomas Hayden Church), the kindly groundskeeper and Martha's husband who was saved from the bottle by Wicks. Together with police chief Geraldine Scott (Mila Kunis), Blanc and Jed investigate and hope to uncover the mystery before Jud is charged with the murder himself.
The "Knives Out" franchise is heightened by Johnson's ability to weave in the current narrative into his stories, with the first focusing on immigrants and their marginalized societal views, and "Glass Onion" about the over-excess of wealth and privilege. "Wake Up Dead Man" focuses on religion and how it's become a polarizing force in today's society. The far right wing and Christian Nationalists have weaponized Christianity and use it as a way to forcefully implement their ideologies on the masses, but true Christianity still exists in a more silent form: a religion based on love, faith, forgiveness, and welcoming everyone no matter their past. Fortunately, while this movie is centered around the topic, it's not preachy nor is it blatant in-your-face, but rather the cause for the murder itself as well as the steps Blanc takes to solve it.
Are we ruled by anger or love? That's the main question the movie asks, and is shown through the actions of the characters involved. Jud, a former boxer, killed a man in the ring due to his anger, and now has become a Reverend to welcome all and show love and compassion, but is still haunted by his past. On the other end, Wicks is a vile, hate-filled preacher who rules with an iron fist, and who demands the church rise up against its oppressors and take over by force. It's interesting to see these two sides duke it out, because it's also how Christianity has been re-shaped in today's political climate - the right wingers want to demonize the left, while true Christians want to welcome all with love. Obviously, Wicks is the one who is murdered in this scenario because of how he screwed over everyone in the movie, leading the way for Blanc's finely tuned detective work to deduce the culprit.
The cast is as stellar as it is large, with Johnson utilizing everyone's talents exceptionally. Josh O'Connor is the main focus, and you see the struggle he goes through in trying to be faithful while also battling his past, and eventually the congregation who thinks he murdered Wicks. Glenn Close is darkly comedic as the ever-stern and zealous church lady, while Josh Brolin steals the show as the evil Wicks. The remainder of the cast also excel in their smaller roles, each one given a fully flushed out storyline and a clear motive for murder that makes it almost impossible to solve. It's a great whodunit, but also a great whydunit that only Johnson can concoct.
Sadly, this movie (along with "Glass Onion") are Netflix exclusives, but there's some theaters playing "Wake Up Dead Man" before it premieres on the streamer on December 12, and Johnson really took the time to shoot the film for the big screen, especially using his frequent collaborator cinematographer Steven Yedlin who makes every scene gorgeous. If you get the chance to see it in theaters, do yourself a favor and do it.
The Score: A+
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