Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery (Rian Johnson 2025)⭐⭐

Benoit, I say, MISTAH Ben-wah Blanc does make his ree-turn to cogitate upon a most intriguing... oh sod it I'll just do it normally. It's Knives Out 3, this time set in a small parish in upstate New York (actually, High Beach in Epping Forest, Essex) where a local preacher (Josh Brolin, somehow more sinister here than as Thanos) has been puzzlingly murdered during one of his fire and brimstone services and his younger would-be replacement (Josh O'Connor) is the chief suspect.

Daniel Craig's self-described World's Greatest Detective, Benoit Blanc, is on the case and gradually wheedling out the truth from an all-star cast including Glenn Close, Cailee Spenny, Jeremy Renner and literally several others.

The actual mysteries in the Knives Out films have never really been up to much and the formula is basically that of Blanc coming to the aid of a young and good-looking 'obvious' suspect and proving their innocence. So too here, although this time the mystery element is somewhat more far-fetched than before with a scheme involving a sealed tomb, hidden treasure and similar nonsense that never quite gels.

What makes these films work is the characters, from the quirky parishioners to Benoit Blanc himself. They need to keep us interested and entertained and have just enough depth to suggest a backstory full of secrets. Johnson has once again pulled this off, just about, by throwing together some good actors, adding a scoop of fun dialogue, a sprinkling of religious imagery and a few lumps of ham to whisk up a smoothie that, although lacking in nutrition, at least sparkles on the tastebuds.