Knives Out is a magnificent and genuinely funny middle finger to the patriarchy as Ana de Armas shines in the dark comedy.
The whodunnit, starring the likes of Chris Evans (Ransom Thrombey), Jamie Lee Curtis (Linda Drysdale), Don Johnson (Morris Bristow) and Daniel Craig (Detective Benoit Blanc), follows wealthy family after the death of patriarch and millionaire Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer).
When Detective Blanc is hired to get to the bottom of the mystery after sensing foul play, he enlists the help of downtrodden nurse Marta Cabrera (de Armas).
While the upper-class family are keen to keep skeletons firmly in their closets and isolate anyone they see as an outsider, their picture-perfect existence quickly falls apart.
And it’ll leave you enthralled long after the credits have rolled.
While the big reveal seemed to come jarringly early on in the movie, it quickly becomes apparent that that was just the start and, honey, you’ve got a big storm coming.
By the end, you might be left exhausted by the twists and turns but it could not be more worth it.
Let’s face it – armed with a stellar cast and his impressive film-making credentials, director Rian Johnson definitely had all the ingredients to make an incredible movie.
However it could have very well gone wrong.
American-central comedies all too often fall into the trap of catering too specifically for a US audience, leaving the rest of the world half-heartedly chuckling at humour that clearly wasn’t meant for us.
But, at the same time as covering topics like sexism, xenophobia, and even grief, the tone manages to stay genuinely funny, heartfelt and relatable throughout.
That’s down, in no small part, to relative newcomer Ana. Despite playing a pretty mousey character, she holds her own, and even often outshines, her co-stars which is clearly no easy feat.
An honourable mention also has to go to Chris. Despite the entire world knowing him as Marvel’s Captain America, he shed the hero costume effortlessly, suiting the ‘vile’ character of Ransom perfectly.
It’s a genuine challenge to find anything bad to say about the movie – if we ignore Daniel’s dubious American accent, that is.
As a whole it’s complex without being confusing or trying to do too much, heartfelt without being cheesy, and genuinely funny without any real cringe moments.
And that’s without even mentioning the iconic final shot, which will stick with you long after the movie’s ended.
We’ll be needing a re-watch of this as soon as possible, please.
Knives Out is released 29 November 2019.
MORE: Daniel Craig, Chris Evans and Ana de Armas among stars turning it out at the Knives Out premiere
