by: Tori Schubert

People Editor

Combining comedy, tragedy, and mystery, writer and director Rian Johnson once again saw great success with the release of his most recent film on Dec. 12: Dead Man Walking: A Knives Out Mystery.

Debuting first in select theaters prior to Netflix, audience members immediately praised the film, earning it a 92% Rotten Tomatoes score and receiving much attention from the public. Following the release of Knives Out in 2019, Netflix paid 450 million dollars for the rights to the next two movies, Glass Onion (2022) and Wake Up Dead Man. Rather than traditional sequels to Knives Out, the trilogy shares only one common character, Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig). 

Wake Up Dead Man follows Father Jud (Josh O’Connor), who recently accepted a new position as pastor at Our Lady of Perpetual Fortitude Church prior to the film’s taking place. Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin) is the leader of the church, manipulating his followers with both faith and fear. The church members soon find Wicks dead in a seemingly impossible crime scene and assume Father Jud is at fault. Detective Blanc takes on the case, hoping to vindicate Father Jud of the murder accusations. 

The director portrays the mystery in an elegant and intriguing style, tying in multiple aspects of history and religion. As the movie is centered around a church, there are occasional scenes that could prove difficult to follow, depending upon one’s knowledge of religion. However, these aspects of the film simultaneously provide different outlooks, stories, and opportunities for viewers to learn about the history of the church. Additionally, the director incorporates ethics into multiple facets of the film, constantly prompting the audience to view and understand situations from a unique perspective. 

Contrasting with the typical murder movie, the Knives Out series focuses on intertwining humor with angst, catering to a variety of preferences. In times of fear, viewers can count on a sarcastic comment or witty scene to break the tension and provide some comic relief. However, fans could not have appreciated this, had the producers not originally projected a sense of dread upon the audience. With various film, lighting, and music techniques, Wake Up Dead Man evokes emotion and portrays realistic scenarios. As cinematographer Steve Yedlin explains to Filmmaker’s Academy: “We use the luminance from the photography… and then we set the color on set…allowing us to create the perfect, dancing reflection of fire in an actor’s glasses or eyes, with total control over the shape and intensity.” With the unexpected found in each new scene, Dead Man Walking is both cunning and original, creating a crafty balance between a comedy and a murder mystery.

(Sources: Filmmaker’s Academy, NY Times, Variety)