My Thoughts on the Film, Knives Out (2019), 2/23/2026….

I read mystery novels and watch selfsame films for the characters, the plots, and the plot twists. It’s all inspirational for me. I especially enjoy it when I encounter a good example.

Knives Out (2019) is just such an exemplar. It takes all the tropes of a locked-room mystery: the impossible crime, the isolated setting, the “howdunit” instead of “whodunit,” the über-logical detective, and the deceptive setup. Writer/director Rian Johnson (Brick) obviously loves this genre, because this film is nearly perfect.

Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), an incredibly rich and successful writer of mysteries, is found dead in his room the day after his 85th birthday party, with a knife in his hand and a slit in his throat—he apparently committed suicide.

Or did he?

Enter the family: an entitled group of egotists, portrayed by (in no particular order) Jamie Lee Curtis (True Lies), Chris Evans (Captain America), Michael Shannon (Nuremberg), Don Johnson (Miami Vice), and Toni Collette (Hereditary). Obviously, they all want their inheritances. What’s not obvious is how each family member has a secret that strains their relationships with their father. They all mistreat, suspect, and demonize their father’s nurse and caregiver, Marta Cabrera, portrayed by the radiant Ana de Armas (Ballerina).

And, of course, the über-logical detective enters the scene. Daniel Craig (No Time To Die) portrays Benoit Blanc, a Southern dandy gentleman of a sleuth, who, obviously, channels Hercule Poirot in his eccentricities. Craig obviously relishes this role; the fun he has with it is almost infectious.

All in all, Knives Out is a lot of fun. I highly recommend it. And, if you’re like me, you’ll rewatch it to pick up hints and strategies for your own writing.