TIFF 2025: Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery Review

This will be one of many reviews during this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, to keep up with our latest coverage, click here.

The ‘Knives Out’ franchise is the gift that keeps on giving. Sharing a special kinship with TIFF, the third film in the franchise, Wake Up Dead Man, also world premiered at this year’s festival. A worthy successor, writer-director Rian Johnson throws something different at audiences, imbuing the film with a style that makes it distinct from the other films, while keeping its trademark charm and Daniel Craig’s irresistible investigator, Benoit Blanc. Delivering another murder mystery that will keep audiences guessing until the end, and populating with a new quirky cast of characters, the film marks its darkest entry yet. Toning down the quirk in favor of tension and character development, the film also wrestles with the question of faith, religious or otherwise, as that line of demarcation made for an interesting dynamic between Blanc and the other characters.

At this point, where Blanc stood has been clearly established, but this murder case would push him like none before. While Craig continues to delight as Blanc, the true unsung hero of the film is Josh O’Connor who, in his own right, delivers one of his best performances as a priest at the middle of the case, taking heat from all sides. In a story full of quirky characters, Blanc included, the quirk that defined him was his connection to his faith. Though plenty flawed, his arc over the course of the film is among one of its many highlights.

Setting the stage for Wake Up Dead Man, young priest Jud Duplenticy (O’Connor) is tasked to assist the charismatic yet controversial Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin). Besides his unorthodox views on religion, it became clear early on that there was something more going on there. Seen as a nuisance by Wicks and as an outsider by his small, but loyal, flock, Jud faced a fair share of detractors. However, a sudden murder shook up the town and put him under a microscope. Seemingly impossible and with no suspect, local police chief Geraldine Scott (Mila Kunis) would call upon the help of Blanc to solve a murder that defied all logic. Using Jud as a conduit between himself and the complicated town and church dynamics, he and Blanc made a pair that was fun to watch together as they challenged the other’s beliefs while trying to unravel the tangled web that was Wicks’ loyal flock.

Within that flock laid devout church lady Martha Delacroix (Close), watchful groundskeeper Samson Holt (Thomas Haden Church), tightly-wound lawyer Vera Draven, Esq. (Kerry Washington) and her aspiring politician son Cy (Daryl McCormack), town doctor Nat Sharp (Jeremy Renner), best-selling author Lee Ross (Andrew Scott), and concert cellist Simone Vivane (Cailee Spaeny), characters whose quirks were played against each other for some laughs, but they mostly served to establish motive and advance the plot. The key to solving the case ultimately lied in that core flock dynamic that Jud and Blanc worked together to understand and unpack.

While figuring out the who proved to be a challenge, the how was the bigger challenge. That outcome will not be revealed here for obvious reasons but due to the complexity of this latest murder, this added yet another dimension to the investigation. The dynamic between Blanc and Jud presented a compelling lens to view it all. Challenging each other’s beliefs through the process of the investigation, in the end, they couldn’t go against their nature. Pushed to the brink, the pieces would come together in fantastic fashion, leaving audiences satisfied. On the technical side, Wake Up Dead Man embraces its gothic setting with beautiful cinematography accentuated by a strong score to establish the kind of atmosphere befitting of the genre.

Offering much of the same wit audiences have grown accustomed to from Johnson, he continues to wield a steady hand with the script and behind the camera. The solid performances from another all star cast contribute to the story nicely, however, the best part of Wake Up Dead Man is the aforementioned performances from Craig and O’Connor. Craig has certainly not lost a step as Blanc, once again charming up the screen. Meanwhile, O’Connor shows great resolve, standing toe-to-toe with Craig as the conscience of the film and carrying the pressure Jud faced with ease. Their playful chemistry makes for a fun dynamic that only made both characters better.

At the end of the day, Wake Up Dead Man shows off the versatility of one of the most consistent franchises today. Taking the story in a darker direction for its latest murder mystery, the formula still works, lifted by terrific performances from Daniel Craig and Josh O’Connor.

still courtesy of Netflix

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.