So you’ve gathered all the evidence, you’ve interviewed all the suspects, and what does that mean about Wake Up Dead Man?

Well, before we get to the grand reveal, we’ll have to set the stage as Benoit Blanc does just before his big reveal and unraveling of the mystery. There are the central players, the reasons why, and of course what goes into making a murder mystery into something much more. So if you can only imagine a southern drawl or maybe a Hercule Poirot accent while reading this, it’ll help with the fun.

As with the previous Knives Out films, the only threads following through are Daniel Craig and Rian Johnson. Craig returns as Benoit Blanc, the world’s greatest detective, while Johnson returns to write and direct the film. Surrounding them are a new cast of characters in Josh O’Connor as Father Jud, Glenn Close as Martha, Josh Brolin as Jefferson Wicks, Mila Kunis as Chief Geraldine, Jeremy Renner as Dr. Nat Sharp, Kerry Washington as Vera Draven, Andrew Scott as Lee Ross, Cailee Spaeny as Simone Vivane, Daryl McCormack as Cy Draven, Thomas Haden Church as Samson, and Jeffrey Wright as Bishop Langstrom.

So, how exactly does this story unfold? Well, it starts with Father Jud. He’s a man that finds faith after a difficult youth, Josh O’Connor handles this role with passion and grace, stealing the show from Benoit Blanc. Unlike the previous two movies, this one heavily features Father Jud, with Blanc taking a backseat in the storytelling and the big finale. That wrinkle extends to the ensemble cast, who don’t quite get as much development, but still keep the pace of the story going along.

The thing that separates Wake Up Dead Man from other murder mysteries though is the central tenet of the film: faith vs. truth. For almost every character in the movie, this is about a crisis of faith. Whether that’s faith in a God above, faith in what you find to be true, or just faith in yourself and the people you love. There’s a darker feeling throughout this film, there’s no real whimsy or that lighter feeling of Knives Out or Glass Onion. This is very much Father Jud’s story rather than a Benoit Blanc adventure.

The ensemble has some real highlights, including Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, and Andrew Scott. For those who like Johnson’s biting commentary of the society of today, Scott’s character, an author who’s turned into a “Q” pilled culture warrior, is where a lot of the laughs in the film come from. There are still moments of levity in the film, but they’re fewer and far between. It’s still a dark comedy, but it’s definitely darker than anything.

The rest of the ensemble surrounds the cult of personality that Monsieur Jefferson Wicks has built. He leads a small parish in Chimney Rock, and these people are his flock. Father Jud is transferred there and upsets the balance in some big ways. This film also upsets the balance of murder mysteries in a big way.

So what makes Wake Up Dead Man a great murder mystery and something that makes you think about your own faith? Well, with the story focusing more on Father Jud than Benoit Blanc, it makes the audience relate more to the proceedings. We’re not the greatest detectives in the world, even if I’m pretending to be one for this review.

So when you add it all up, you get to the following conclusion.

Wake Up Dead Man is one of the most thought-provoking films of the year. Through a blend of comedy, a crisis of faith, and some really tremendous character work from Daniel Craig and Josh O’Connor, you get something that transcends that murder mystery tag. The questions that arise through Rian Johnson’s biting script and the plot of the film are ones that stick after the lights in the theater go up.

This isn’t a cheap attack on religion, it’s taking a magnifying lens to the human condition. And I never thought that a murder mystery could do that before. Wake Up Dead Man is haunting, and even after the mystery is revealed, there’s plenty to learn from this one.

Wake Up Dead Man releases in theaters on November 26th and on Netflix on December 12th.

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