Movie Review: Knives Out (2019)

Good day to everyone!

I hope that you are all staying safe and healthy! Today I am going to review for you the latest movie that I saw in the theater, and that was back in January. I love mysteries and this one was a fun time. I hope that you enjoy this review!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!


Knives Out (2019):

"The guy practically lives in a Clue board."
The famous detective Benoit Blanc is hired by an anonymous person to further investigate the suicide of the 85 year old mystery writer Harlan Thrombey. He finds that Harlan's family aren't telling him everything and tension grows as Harlan's will is going to be read. He finds himself in a mystery equal to the ones the man used to write, but is there a solution?
"I keep waiting for the big reveal."

Genre: Mystery, Crime, Drama.
Length: approx. 131 minutes.
Costumes: 8, just usual clothing.
Script: 5, so there was a lot of swearing. There are quite a few arguments where people yell bad words. One insult that I thought was hilarious was "Weak sauce."
Crew:
Directed by: Rian Johnson.
Written by: Rian Johnson.
Starring:
Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc.

Christopher Plummer as Harlan Thrombey. "You had to find a game to play with him."

Michael Shannon as Walt Thrombey.
Riki Lindhome as Donna Thrombey.
Jaeden Martell as Jacob Thrombey.

Toni Collette as Joni Thrombey.

Katherine Langford as Meg Thrombey.

Jamie Lee Curtis as Linda Drysdale.
Don Johnson as Richard Drysdale.
Chris Evans as Ransom Drysdale.
Ana de Armas as Marta Cabrera.
Edi Patterson as Fran.
K Callan as Greatnana Wanetta.
Noah Segan as Trooper Wagner.
LaKeith Stanfield as Lieutenant Elliott.
Frank Oz as Alan Stevens.
Cinematography: 10, I'm going to give it a 10 because it was really cool to me. Most movies I think about the cinematography afterwards and say, "Eh, it was the normal." But it is rare that I find a movie where while watching it I think, "Wow! This is so neat!" Yep, those stick with me and this did exactly that. I love the aesthetic that goes with it and from the first it pulled me in.
Cinematography by: Steve Yedlin.

Music: 9, this music, like the cinematography, helped get me hooked! My first comment to my sister who went with me was "Creepy music!" (and that was a compliment). The score has a great amount of mystery, tension, and surprise, while being a little spooky at times.
Music by: Nathan Johnson.
"Physical evidence can tell a clear story with a forked tongue."
Quotes: 7, okay, so the reason that this has a lower rating is because of this one time where the dialogue was trying to sound really cool, but it didn't work and was hilarious to me.
It's when Jodi asks Benoit, "Do you suspect foul play?" There is a pause, then he replies, "I suspect foul play." She literally just asked you that, you could have just answered yes. Or, she could have asked, "Do you think something's wrong?" then he could have been all dramatic with the answer. Usually I'm not this picky, so I was surprised that I noticed this. Other than that, my sister and I quote this a lot, but I can't put most of them here because they are spoilers.
Oscars won: It was nominated for Best Original Screenplay, and I thought it was going to win because to me it was more complicated than another mystery Gosford Park (2001) which won the award in 2001, but it didn't.
Content: 6, it is a mystery involving death and some violence, scary scenes, along with a lot of smoking. Another thing is that one character vomits a few times, so there are several disgusting times. There are also one or two suggestive and racist comments.

Source

Originality: 8, this was an epic mystery. The way it was told was so great, I can't recall seeing anything like it! But, one note is about a name. When my sisters and I were little my mom would sometimes read us Choose Your Own Adventure stories, and our favorite was Who Killed Harlowe Thrombey? - by Edward Packard. When we heard about this movie for the first time, we immediately thought of this book. This movie is a mystery about a man who has died named Harlan Thrombey. I don't think that you can get much closer than that! While it is pitched as an original story and I really liked it, I'm suspicious about the coincidence.

Good For: Mystery fans!
Age Range: It's rated PG-13 and I agree with that just because of what the language and content that I mentioned. As always, it depends on each person's comfort level.
Overall Score: 8!
"Close the book with a flourish."
Bonus thoughts:
I went to see this because of the great cast and director Rian Johnson (who directed one of my favorite STAR WARS movies, The Last Jedi (2017)), and came out really impressed. My older sister and I had talked about what we thought was going to happen but we weren't ready for this. Ah, it was so good! I mean, my only problem with it was all the bad words and smoking, but other than that it is one of my favorite mysteries because while it is a fun time and complicated, it also has a great message.
I'd never seen Daniel Craig in anything, but he did such a great job, I totally wasn't expecting it. And, he pulled off a southern accent!

I need to talk about Marta. She is now one of my favorite fictional characters! She is so sweet, kind, honest, and great. If nothing else that I have said has convinced you, you should all watch this for her.



Thanks for reading this far! Now I need to know if any of you have seen this! What are your thoughts? If you haven't, does this look interesting to you now? Stay safe everyone! And, Happy Mother's Day!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

Hello, everyone!

Christmas is less than 10 days away! How is that even possible? This is the time of year where everyone starts watching Christmas movies, so I had better get reviewing some of them! For my first review for this Christmas season I will be talking about a movie about the writing of one of the most famous Christmas stories of all!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning.

The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017):

Based on: a true story & The Man Who Invented Christmas - by Les Standiford.
"I will finish on time."
The famous writer Charles Dickens needs money and has to write a story in six weeks. He wants it to be meaningful and represent Christmas, but he isn't sure how. After hearing a story that a young nurse tells his children about fairies and spirits coming alive on Christmas Eve, he gets an idea. He struggles with getting it exactly as he wants it with illustrations and everything and on top of that his father comes to stay. Charles is battling his own past while he is trying to answer the question of, how does this story end?
"Christmas should be a time when men and women open up their hearts." (paraphrase)

Genre: Biography, Comedy, Drama.
Length: approx. 105 minutes.
Costumes: 8, there are some interesting costumes that fit the time period, but nothing extravagant.
Costumes by: Leonie Prendergast.
Script: 9, only one bad word.
"Nonsense, you just like a good cry."
Crew:
Directed by: Bharat Nalluri.
Written by: Les Standiford, & Susan Coyne.
Starring:
Dan Stevens as Charles Dickens.

Christopher Plummer as Scrooge.

Morfydd Clark as Kate Dickens.
Justin Edwards as John Forster & the Ghost of Christmas Present.

Anna Murphy as Tara & the Ghost of Christmas Past.

Jonathan Pryce as Mr. John Dickens.

Miles Jupp as Thackeray.
Ely Solan as Young Charles.
Jasper Hughes-Cotter as Walter Dickens.
James Heffernan as Charley Dickens.
Aleah Lennon as Mamie Dickens.
Ella Mai Delaney as Katey Dickens.
Katie McGuinness as Fanny Dickens & Mrs. Cratchit.
Marcus Lamb as Rev. Henry Burnett & Bob Cratchit.
Pearse Kearney as Henry Jr. & Tiny Tim.
John Henshaw as Butcher & Mr. Fezziwig.
Annette Badland as Butcher's Wife & Mrs. Fezziwig.
Pat Mooney as Garrick Club Waiter.
Ger Ryan as Mrs. Dickens.
Donald Sumpter as Haddock & Ghost of Marley.
Simon Callow as Leech.
Aideen Wylde as Charlotte Wigmore.
Adam Dolan as Warren's Factory Boy.
Amelia Crowley as Mrs. Grimsby.
Bill Paterson as Mr. Grimsby.

Cinematography: 9, it was really neat how they did some things!
Cinematography by: Ben Smithard.
Music: 7, I can't recall what it was.
Music by: Mychael Danna.
Notes: This movie is based on the writing process of Charles Dickens's famous work, A Christmas Carol. Because of this, there are a lot of spoilers for A Christmas Carol, so if you haven't read that or seen a movie version of it, you'll want to wait to see this movie until after you have done that.

Quotes: 7, "No one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of another."
Content: 9, there is only some mild drinking, and that's it!
Originality: 7, I love how they showed the writing process and as a writer myself (well, sort of one) there were a lot of things that I have done! You definitely look for inspiration everywhere, your characters follow you around, and you hate it when people disturb you! Though, it is not the first story that I have experienced like this. I have read a fictional book before about how Charles Dickens came up with the story.

Good For: fans of A Christmas Carol, writers, and fans of Charles Dickens.
Age Range: It is perfectly clean and fine for any age, but as I said, only watch this after reading or watching A Christmas Carol!
Overall Score: 8!

Bonus thoughts:

"I say a lot of things that are nonsense when I'm working."
I was looking forward to watching this ever since I had heard that it was coming out! I knew that Dan Stevens would be a fabulous Charles Dickens. My younger sister saw it in April of last year and I couldn't believe it because I kept telling her that you can only watch Christmas movies in December and January! Oh well.
The title implies that Charles Dickens made up Christmas, though in the movie it never claims that and as a Catholic I know the real story of Christmas, but this movie shows the creation of one of the best Christmas books ever written. A Christmas Carol shows the joy we need to have during Christmas, and always! There were a few random things that I would have liked to have been tied in better, but overall this is a very sweet movie, and I look forward to watching it again.

Sorry, I meant to have this post up yesterday, but at the time when I usually write my posts I realized that it was Jane Austen's birthday so of course I had to watch one of the movies based on her books.

Have any of you seen this movie? Do you love A Christmas Carol as much as I do? Thanks for reading!

MovieCritic