Over the past few weeks a number of high-profile releases have hit cinema screens, and they have struggled to make an impact at the box office.
Terminator: Dark Fate opened to decent reviews, but audiences failed to show up. Doctor Sleep proved popular with critics, yet made very little impact – in fact, your average cinemagoer probably doesn’t even know it is out. And this weekend, Charlie’s Angels opened in the UK and, well, the jury is still out on that one.
While the box office figures have yet to be released for Charlie’s Angels, I’m not holding out any hope of this movie being a financial hit. The movie has already bombed in the US and that doesn’t bode well for its success over here.
So, why are audiences skipping the cinema?
Who knows – maybe it’s simply because the films mentioned above are not offering anything new. I’ll be honest, I didn’t show up for Doctor Sleep and tonight I skipped out on seeing Charlie’s Angels too. I just didn’t have a strong desire to watch the movie.
However, I didn’t skip out on going to the movies altogether – tonight I swapped out Charlie’s Angels for an alternative film instead. And boy, it was a good one.
The movie that got me out of the house and into the cinema was Knives Out. And if you’re finding yourself disinterested in the current crop of cinematic releases (in the same way that I am), then I recommend you give Knives Out a try – you won’t be disappointed.
Knives Out is a ‘who dunnit?’, similar in style to an Agatha Christie murder mystery. The film – directed by Rian Johnson – boasts a tightly written story, a touch of dark comedy, and a hugely impressive cast.
And let’s start there – the cast of Knives Out is so, so good. These guys were worth the ticket price alone.
Jamie Lee Curtis, Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Katherine Langford, Michael Shannon, Christopher Plummer, Toni Collette, Don Johnson – I could go on. Heck, even Frank Oz and K Callan popped up in small roles, adding something to the story.
Each member of the cast was given the opportunity to craft their own unique character and each took the chance and ran with it. Especially Daniel Craig, who got to play a private investigator as a sort-of modern take on Poirot (with a faint whiff of Clouseau).
At times Craig was bizarre, yet also perfect – fitting in with everyone else in the cast, including the ever reliable Toni Collette and the superb Jamie Lee Curtis.
As a result of the casting choices made in this production, I found that there was never a dull moment on screen, as the narrative moved from one dysfunctional and/or quirky character to the next. This really helped sell the ensemble, but also helped sell the central mystery too.
From the opening moments, all the way throughout its 130-minute running time, the mystery at the heart of Knives Out was so damn compelling. I had my suspicions about its resolution, and I was partly right, but I couldn’t quite crack it – and I’m glad I couldn’t as it formed the backbone of this entire tale.
It wasn’t quite what I expected, but it certainly didn’t disappoint. The story kept me guessing with every new development, and spooled out partial answers here and there, before sidestepping with new story beats.
And while it was doing this, the narrative even found time to drop in a little social commentary too.
Bravo.
Outside of the cast and the story, Knives Out was also gorgeous to look at. The visuals in this movie really helped it shine – from the backgrounds to the costume choices, there was a real attention to detail throughout.
Again, bravo.
It’s fair to say I loved this movie. In fact, I’d go so far as to say Knives Out is easily one of my favourite movies of the year and I’m glad it convinced me to go to the cinema.
Will it perform well? Who can say – but I’m hopeful.
If you are suffering from franchise fatigue, or you simply want to watch a deliciously dark winter warmer, Knives Out is the movie for you. It is the perfect way to spend a couple of hours and it is a breath of fresh air in an endless sea of reboots, sequels, and badly marketed films.
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9 Responses to Review: Knives Out
I’ve not been to the cinema for a couple of months as I’ve been off recovering after an operation, but I’ve noticed recent releases like Dr Sleep and Terminator Dark Fate haven’t exactly been a hit. I think it probably a bit of fatigue, there’s been so many blockbusters this year. I must admit, I don’t like going to the cinema in the winter that much, as the weather is colder, and its a long way to go for me. Although I will make an exception for Star Wars. I like the sound of Knives out though, I do love a good murder mystery, so might go see that next week now I’m feeling a lot better.
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Sorry to hear you’ve not been well – I hope the operation went well.
Yeah, there has definitely been a drop off in cinema attendance and I say that even from my own point of view. I’ve just had no desire to see some of the films that have come out recently, and ordinarily I go to the cinema once every two weeks (usually weekly during the summer).
Knives Out seemed to offer a break from the sequel/franchise mentality of other recent releases, and that made it a draw for me.
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Thank you Alex, yes all went well, and I’ve been recovering well. Its taken time but I’m getting there. Agree, I haven’t felt like going to the cinema much either, some of the recent movies haven’t really grabbed my attention as much as films earlier in the year. I think its just that time of year, and I’m sure things will pick up again, especially with Star Wars on the way b soon.
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Yeah, Jumanji & Star Wars interest me and will get me in the cinema before the end of the year, and it is likely that I will see Frozen II at some point over the festive period.
I agree that the time of year has a big impact on what people watch and I think it is partially responsible for the poor performances of Terminator, Charlie’s Angels and Doctor Sleep.
For me, Terminator & Charlie’s Angels should have come out in the summer as they seemed like big action blockbusters. As for Doctor Sleep, it opened on Halloween in the UK and in November in the US. This movie should have come out in the run-up to Halloween, rather than post-Halloween. The poor marketing of the film also didn’t help.
I also feel that the launch of Disney+ in the US has had an effect. Why go to the cinema in November when you can watch The Mandalorian or countless Disney films at home.
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Yes, I agree, Terminator Dark Fate should have been out in the summer. TBH I didn’t know there was a Charlie’s Angle film out at the moment!? With Disney + and other streaming services having lots of offer, there’s not much to get people out to the cinema. Mind you, I’ll make an exception for Star Wars, that’s going to be an epic end of an era!
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Yep, I can’t wait. Tickets are booked. 🙂
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[…] Alex Wiggan: “It is the perfect way to spend a couple of hours and it is a breath of fresh air in an endless sea of reboots, sequels, and badly marketed films.” […]
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We went to see this movie. The bit we felt
Unsure about was Daniel Craig. We kept thinking
that’s James Bond, he doesn’t sound and look like
the person he is supposed to be playing.
Saying that it is defiantly worth a watch.
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Daniel Craig was certainly a standout actor in the movie.
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