Rian Johnson reinvented the murder mystery with 2019’s “Knives Out,” but with the series third installment, “Wake Up Dead Man,” he flips the narrative once more – only this time, in on himself. The strong willed pastor, Jud Deplenticity, played by Josh O’Connor, is the lead suspect in a murder case after the Monsignor Jefferson Wicks he vehemently disagrees with, played by Josh Brolin, is killed in an unsolvable locked closest case – unsolvable to anyone except for the brilliant Detective Benoit Blanc, played by Daniel Craig. Through their investigation, ideas of faith, redemption and grace are called into question and lead to the unraveling of a town-wide conspiracy. “Wake Up Dead Man” subverts audience expectations from the previous entries by infusing the film with gothic elements as well as cutting away the traditional ensemble to instead hone in on an individual narrative heavily inspired by the director’s own struggles with faith.
Two films into the “Knives Out” franchise, fans know what to expect – a witty blend of a smart detective mystery and light comedy. But with Johnson’s love of subverting expectations, he incorporates gothic components to play off of and heighten the previous genre conventions. These new elements are a blend somewhere in between Edgar Allan Poe and Zach Cregger. Johnson’s sensibilities take on a Poe-esque quality with the dark, twisted and intense monologues as well as the grandeur in with the gothic steeples of the church’s inner sanctum of put on screen.
Going more contemporary, while “Dead Man” has horror conventions, and one incredible jump scare that had the audience in shock, very much in line with Cregger’s filmography – creating the horrific through unsettling and intense atmospheres. In light of these dark tonal influences, when the murder happens, there is more weight behind it because it feels like a murder in a work of Poe. When Blanc makes a smart remake or there is a moment of slap stick, it makes the crowd laugh all the more harder since it cuts the tension from the previous foreboding.
Simply by incorporating these touches of gothic horror into his established franchise, Johnson managed to heighten previously masterful mystery and comedy conventions by allowing them to contrast against a more serious set of tropes.
The most noticeable difference between “Dead Man” and the previous two films is the lack of a defined ensemble. In the 2019 kickoff, every member of the family was distinct and fleshed out in their own way. We, as the audience, got to watch how Chris Evans’ character was different from Jamie Lee Curtis’ and had different potential motives than Don Johnson’s. Same for “Glass Onion” where Dave Bautista had a completely different vibe from Edward Norton, different from Janelle Monáe. But in “Dead Man,” the traditional ensemble feels more like a supporting cast.
Even though everyone plays their parts well, with only one notable exception, all the other characters mainly feel like one note personalities. There’s a jerky kid who wants his inheritance. One guy is an author, another a depressed doctor. Outside of these singular traits, the ensemble, outside of Blanc, Deplenticity and the notable exception, are not nearly as fleshed out as in the previous two films. However, all of this time was not lost in the film, but put into exploiting the theology of our primary character.
For Deplenticity, his innocence isn’t the only thing at stake for him, but his faith as well. He commits sin to protect the legacy of Monsignor Wick because he believes the town’s perception of him is more important than the truth of his misdeeds. A murder is such a black and white scenario, but where Blanc sees murders as someone to be brought to justice under the law, Deplenticity advocates that they can be reformed via the guidance of the Lord. And because our two primary characters are coming from such distinctly opposite places – one sees the possibility of salvation, the other who sees sin as a chess game to win – Blanc actually becomes a better character out of it.
Craig’s southern detective, Blanc, is a main reason for this series’ popularity. He always has the scene stealing comeback, the best wardrobe and gets to be the victor of the story by cracking the case – Blanc is the best, simply put. However, Blanc doesn’t change because why would he? He’s always right. So by contrasting him with someone who is morally just in a different way, it forces him to see how there are some things more important than proving he is the best detective alive with a climatic third act monologue. This ability to influence such a pivotal character without undermining them is why Deplenticity works so well as a character, because he forces Blanc to reflect on why he is the way he is – a duality that would not be possible without Johnson pulling from his own life experience.
After the 2025 Austin Film Festival screening, there was a Q&A where the director talked about how Deplenticity represents his evangelical upbringing, where Blanc is a stand-in for how he feels now. Johnson’s inner turmoil between his belief in a higher power versus a more reason-based approach to problem solving, are the baselines of Deplenticity and Blanc and because he believes in both of these sides so vehemently, he is able to make compelling cases for why both are equally beneficial. By constructing his film upon these counterbalanced view points it gives a franchise of straight forward murder mysteries an impactful message for viewers to reflect on long after the killer has been caught.
Once again, the master of expectation subversions has successfully done just that to deliver what is probably the strongest entry in the cutting “Knives Out” franchise.
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Featured Image Courtesy of Austin Film Festival