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A great scene in the movie to add to this point is the game of go. Harlan asks how does Martha always beat him, and she says it is because he is trying to beat her, while she is just trying to make a beautiful picture. She is great at the game, not despite but, because, she is not trying to win.
That quote interested me so much, maybe a good life lesson for us all, why compete and try to beat people when you can just try to make our world a better place.
@@Para2normal It's almost a concentrated version of this video. And that is because while beating others you're focused on the opponent and not on your goal. In essence, Harlan was not trying to win, he was trying to not lose. Just like the rest of his family.
This tells me that Harlan maybe even knew what would happen upon his death and knew that she *could* "win" the game. The only way you win the game of kindness is by not trying to win it.
I still think my favorite part of both Knives Out (and Glass Onion) is just how much Benoit Blanc cares. It would be so easy to make him another BBC Sherlock or pompous unattached douchebag, but instead he cares so much about the people in his cases that he goes out of his way to help them, between his speech to the Thrombeys which gives us the title drop to [DATA EXPUNGED] in Glass Onion. He is such a delightfully engaging character not just because of his mannerisms and Daniel Craig's stellar performance, but also his kindness and emotional intelligence.
Yes! the genius savant so far removed from humanity trope is so done! let the emotionally gifted shine with empathy and show insights into human nature and murder motives! he is gay. he is married. he has a domestic life. he is vulnerable. he is easily bored. he has friends. he gets despondent. he is fashionable. he is Southern. he feels awkward in strange situations. he places trust in people he has a radar for. he makes mistakes. he feels frustrated. he gives confidence to the vulnerable. he is so human. i love benoit blanc!
Yeah u really appreciate how compassionate he is. Honestly after Knives Out was so good I was worried I wouldn't like Glass Onion because almost all of the characters I liked wouldn't be returning, but Blanc is such a good character (qnd Ryan a great writter) that i shouldn't have worried haha
Agreed! One of my favorite Poirot's is David Suchet's "Murder on the Orient Express", specifically the ending scene with him walking away from police captain where the range of emotions walk across his face with the final feeling a one of shame and sorry at his betraying his honor for the sake of the justice he chooses. This scene, for me, edges out this Express from the others.
The best glossed over joke is how none of the thrombeys know where martas family is from despite claiming she’s basically part of the family. Some say she’s from Ecuador, some say Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil, it dosnt really have an impact on the plot but it’s such a funny detail
It goes to show that as much as they see Marta as "Part of the family" none of them even bothered to know what country she immigrated from. Helps deduce that as nice as they acted, if she renounced the inheritance they would likely chuck her out without a dime.
@@mateusmachadomartinsjunior4309 They speak Portuguese, and the reason I know that is from a Simpsons gag. The episode where the family goes to Brazil to search for a missing orphan Lisa sponsers, Bart spends the whole plane ride listeing to Spanish language tapes and declares he's completely fluent in the language. Marge commends him, until she corrects him Brazil speaks Portuguese. Bart curses in eloquent Spanish for wasting hours and Homer coerces him to forget everything, which Bart complies by whacking his head with a phone.
Blanc didn't confront her about the blood on her shoe, because *he* wasn't all about winning either. It could have been a "gotcha" moment, but he waited ♥️
This. He wanted to solve the mystery and understand the ins and outs, the motivations, and etc. He only worked to the police not because he believes in justice but because it would be fun.
As he put it, he is a PASSIVE observer of the truth. He knows the entire truth with be revealed, he does not want to jump at every detail and show off as other detective characters would.
The contrast between Marta's philosophy and the Thrombeys' philosophy is shown right before we're shown how Harlan dies, when Harlan and Martha are playing that board game, he complains about always losing to her, and she says that this only happens bc he is always focused on winning, while she only cares about making the pieces form a pretty pattern :)
Fun fact: Professional Go players play the same way as Marta less focused on taking their opponent's pieces and more focused on making a pattern with theirs
I think the cool thing about Nana is that we know Harlan is self-made, and that means she's the *only* character in the family who likely wasn't raised rich.
@@nazreidsburner8805 she speaks once or twice, plus if Harlan’s 80(ish?), Nana’s probably in her early 100s and probably just doesn’t have as much to say as the high-and-mighty grand children she has to be around
@nazreidsburner8805 what do you mean only one born poor? The main character is an immigrant, a servant. Her mother as well. The cops? The other lady Hue kills? Even excluding the middle class characters there's several born poor.
When they talk about Marta, there is always somebody either lying or not caring. Each family member who confidently mentions where she is from refer to a different country. Everyone who address the fact that she was not allowed to go to the funeral states that they lost the vote. And it remains uncertain whether someone is right about her country of origin or if someone voted for her to attend the funeral. I particularly liked how the family itself is portrayed as an unreliable entity both to us and to Marta by this clever use of ambiguity.
None of them were actually right about where she’s from. She’s Cuban, but they say she’s from Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay. But her accent is Cuban, her family’s last name is common in Cuba and the actress is Cuban/Spanish
I'd really like to know who ACTUALLY lost the vote. I think out of all the members only 2 people in that family I know who would definitely vote for Martha, while the rest are in the morally grey-to-black area.
@@PramkLuna I'm now curious about who are these 2 people. I suppose one is the college girl but I'm not sure who'd be the other - her mom? The Real Estate woman? (I'm sorry I don't remember anyone's names I haven't watched it in ages)
Literally just watched the movie tonight, and I noticed the "I was outvoted," thing as well. I was sitting there thinking, "well, who the fuck outvoted them all?"
@@hcxpl1 I mean it’s possible nobody voted to have her there, and that they all lied. Yeah, I think the college girl would’ve wanted her there, but it’s not certain that anyone actually did vote for her there.
I just realised another trope subversion in this film. A big problem with some of the old Agatha Christie books is that the servants are often not even treated as characters (for example, in Death on the Nile Poirot only interviews the passengers of the cruise without asking any of the crew if they saw anything as far as I can remember). But in Knives Out, the “help” is a crucial part of the story: Marta as the protagonist & Fran as the second victim.
You are absolutely right, just wanted to note Poirot's blindness toward "the help" comes back to bite him in later mysteries, especially in ABC. The first thing Miss Marple always does (or nearly) is talk to the maids.
In A Mysterious Affair at Styles, the servants are explicitly excluded from suspicion. One of the characters - a police officer, I think, almost literally says not to bother with them. It seems Christie’s style evolved over the years.
@@brookb5890 Miss Marple, in many ways, is a keener fictional observer than many of her more famous counterparts because she understands the enormous role of those who lives in liminal spaces: Maids, governesses, the helps, etc...
Pretty cool you mention that, because Rian Johnson said in an interview (sorry I can't remember where) that class consciousness is a big part of the Christie universe, and Marta's character is an updating of those themes.
Knives Out only bills itself as an Agatha Christie mystery, but it's actually Columbo. There's never a question about who killed Harlan, only how the detective will discover it. Knives Out's brilliance is having us root for the "murderer" only to have a last minute twist explain how she was truly innocent the whole time. It's frankly amazing and I don't know how they'll top it with Glass Onion.
@@TheDaniel9 I'll watch Glass Onion, but from the preview it looks as though it will be a step above Netflix's Murder Mystery and below Knives Out or Murder on the Orient Express.
@@TheDaniel9 I think the real brilliance in the film is it’s playing around with the formula. This is a part where Rian Johnson’s tendency of trying to be too smart for his own good really works because we are convinced for the first two thirds of the movie that we know exactly what happened, it was all a mistake, and we just want to step in and explain everything ourselves. Then, Benoit reads the Medical Examiner’s note and the entire conceit of the film suddenly gets flipped on its head. It opens as an Agatha Christie story, becomes a Columbo mystery, and then turns right back around into a Christie story. It’s good stuff.
There was a small detail that you missed, in the scene where Jamie Lee Curtis's character is crying for her father DID have an important detail. Take a close look at the letters she is holding, there are burn marks on them. These letters are the exact same as the one that her father left for her in the end that reveal her husband's infidelity. The papers that appear to be blank until fire reveals what is written. One last game between Father and Daughter.
I thought that game spoke to a bond between father/daughter. The video analysis makes it sound like the game they play reveals a distance between them...a reinforcement of winner/loser. But, the game is simply secret codes. She probably was a favorite child, which made her a different type of haughty.
@@kathyp1563 Interestingly enough, Linda Drysdale (Nee Thrombey) was the one member of the Thrombeys that actually did build something on her own, She's the real estate Mogul.
I was thinking that as well when he said that in the video but I don’t think he meant the scene has no actual importance in the grand scheme of things, especially after saying a few minutes ago that every other line of dialogue and almost all of the visual story telling is a setup for a later payoff… I think he meant that as the viewer watching the movie for the first time that scene does feel out of place and seemingly doesn’t move the plot itself forward in any way unlike all of the other scenes around it. So it’s just a scene to show the humanity in the characters Yea you could say that it moves the subplot of the cheating thing forward but if I remember correctly, she doesn’t even read the note until after the main plot is over. Her reading the note could’ve been left out of the movie and the movie would honestly be almost exactly the same, just with one less payoff. And the scene of her in the room reading the notes would still work as a scene to showcase her humanity
@@riolufistofmightas pointed out by Ransom in the film she did that with a “small loan of a million dollars” from her father(and yes its a reference to Trump getting a small loan of a million dollars)
@@deeznoots6241 Sure, but at least Jodi used that loan to build an actual company. the character you're comparing her to has taken in way more money than her and burned it all in a big pile. and that's more than Ransom, Walt, or Jodi (the principle "cut off" characters) ever did
what i hated about a genre that i love so much (detective stories) is that so many authors make it impossible to the viewer to guess correctly with logical explanation because said authors don’t trust their viewers to have all the clues available to them. You cannot believe how incredibly happy and excited i was when at the end there was no magical clue that only the detective had and i was being “rewarded” for paying attention and following the movie. I really hope more stories like this are gonna come out
I personally think that a surprise ending is the product of bad writing, or at least lazy writing. This all made perfect sense, just the way it should. When something surprising happens (ie, someone else did it) just for the sake of a surprise, I lose a LOT of respect for the creators.
I might be getting ahead of myself here, but perhaps this is a product of authors not believing their readers/viewers to find entertainment value in a solvable mystery, thus cornering themselves into writing outlandish twists and mechanics, each one more magical than last. Almost like they have made ...a game (I'm getting pretentious) out of this endless chase, when mystery novels don't have to be solely about solving intellectual mysteries.
The best scene is the ending when Marta is looking down at the Thrombeys from the balcony with that mug in her hands, "My House, My Rules..." And all the the Thrombeys are looking up at her with bewildered looks on their faces. Priceless! Because throughout the whole movie, they treated her like a second-class citizen. Some of them were nice to her (or had that exterior niceness), but they still had their prejudices against her. I love that comeuppance for her because she outsmarted & outwitted them. I love how she gets to look down on them for a change and she has the upper hand because she legally owns the house & the family business & fortune, and they are at her mercy. She has power over them.
It makes it all the more irony when, during Ransom's tirade about "our family's home" falling into Marta's hands, Benoit throws most nonchalantly the fact that the house was purchased by Harlan from some oil billionaire no longer than only a few decades back. Ransom and his entire family's entitlement to Harlan's wealth as if it was some kind of legacy of their own was staggering.
Which is funny because Rian Johnson was brought into the rich family of Disney and their ownership of the Star Wars. He claims it's his to ruin because his boss told him he could.
Yes! I feel like half the reason the movie works is that we've all been indoctrinated into the idea that Chris Evans is a good guy, and so we want to trust him the way Marta does. Brilliant casting.
@@miriam8376 Highly agreed. And even the script helped lean into that misdirection. By the time Ransom truly enters the plot, we get a scene with all of the Thrombeys where he tells each of them to "Eat shit". By this point, we know how bad the family is, so his moment to turn tell them off feels cathartic to the audience. So we end up liking him more because we mistake his behavior as someone honestly calling bad people out when it's more due to him being just one more antagonist playing the game.
@@miriam8376 I think this probably works more with younger viewers. Before taking the role of Captain America, Chris Evans played mostly douchebag characters. This movie was mostly a return to form for him.
Im pretty sure that was the intention of the director and the casting crew. Even though we had suspensions that it could be him, we doubted it everytime because how could cris evans be a bad guy when he had always been associated as the good guy 😂
I thought he did a great job of playing a pompous jerk. I didn't trust him, because he transferred to 'best buddy" too soon. But, I'm not the type to ever solve a murder mystery while I'm watching it. So, I didn't think "he'd dune it."
The best part of the movie for me is when Blanc explains why Marta gave the "wrong" meds. I think a lot of us assumed the movie would end with her giving the right meds even after Ransom switched them, but to get there, it seemed like a coincidence was needed, which isn't satisfying. Blanc's explanation that Marta instinctively went by the viscosity of the liquid made perfect sense. If there are bottles with similar liquid inside, a good nurse is going to recognize a difference between them, perhaps subconsciously without realizing it.
I love the detail of Blanc having his tie tucked into his shirt in the reveal scene. He's at the terminus, he knows trouble is inevitable and violence likely. It's such a small detail that alerts us to danger without ever consciously telling us.
Two things I like about Blanc's role in the whole film: 1) Protector of the truth: When first asked who he was he basically states he only cares about the truth, so in that regard he will protect the truth at all costs. Marta is the truth because she cannot physically lie. Meaning Blanc would protect her at all costs and he does countless times. After the car chase, during the toxicology reveal, when he first met her and saw the blood on her shoe, etc. His first goal is to keep her safe. Especially at the end when Ransom is going to kill Marta, he's the one who tries to jump into action to stop him, while the other two police officers just stand there watching, barely even reacting. 2) Not the main character: Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, Sherlock Holmes, Nancy Drew, etc. They're the center of the story that unfolds around them. The mystery, while not directly linked to them most, if not all, of the times, makes them the protagonists following the clues and finding out the criminals. Benoit Blanc has that same flair of the famous detectives, but he is never treated as the main cast. We don't know anything about him, we do not care about him besides his role as a detective, we don't really follow him outside the scope of following Marta except for when he talks to Nana. He doesn't really solve the mystery or discover the big piece of evidence in Fran's stash. Marta does it all. Blanc acts more like an assistant to her in which he puts the pieces together for her to solve her own "crime". He didn't even get the true killer to confess his crimes. Marta did all that with his help. And even, at the end, we don't see him leave onto his next case or whatever. Instead, we see her at the top of the house, crowned the winner of the game she didn't want to play. This was always Marta's mystery to solve, not him. She needed to know the truth of what really happened and who the Thrombeys really were, ALL of them. They weren't good people, they never were, and she needed to see the truth herself to actually believe it. When she asks Blanc if she should still help them, she's having doubts because now she's seen their true colors exposed. In her eyes no one cared about Harlan's death, she wasn't in the funeral so she didn't even see them mourn his death, they presented themselves as vultures trying to leech off of Harlan one last time.
Halfway through, and this is so on-point. Marta is just the antithesis to every other character and makes her a perfect pylon to build the filme around, for her to be "the culprit" is so genius. Loving it so far.
This is all great but the seen with Linda and Walt actually did serve a purpose in the plot, albeit a side plot. It showed how she communicated with Harlan so we know the blank paper Richard discarded isn’t actually blank.
@@PramkLuna it's lemon juice. Heat from the lighter makes it oxidize and colors brown so it's visible. Also a very classic and somewhat antiquated and now childish method to hide writing. I can't help but feel like that's also an intentional detail
@@MRdrPROkeithSR I think in here, Harlan's game is more childish and fun instead of being about winning or losing. Just shows that while he failed as a parent, he still has a humanized side to him
Great video, one little point. Knives Out was never a Whodunnit, it is a Howcatchem. Its' brilliance is that it bills itself as an Agatha Christie mystery, but it's actually Columbo. We know who did it (until we actually know who did it) and the tension comes from trying to see if the detective will figure it out. Its' amazing skill is in making us root for Marta to get away with the crime throughout and then giving us that amazing catharsis when we are told why she's been innocent all along. More people need to watch Columbo, it holds up surprisingly well.
@@owlegrad No, in a whodunnit the reader/viewer is in the dark alongside the detective. Some of the joy of a good whodunnit is trying to figure out the mystery before the detective. In a howcatchem, the reader/viewer knows who the killer is, often viewing the crime in progress, and the joy comes in watching the detective's process. Howcachems are significantly rarer and so most people don't know about them.
I have heard from some interview about writing, it was something like "don't try to make your story complex. In fact, make it as simple as it can be, like who, do what, and why. Then as the story goes on, make that simple establishment onto the same character. The layers and complexity will build up from that on its own"
Here I was thinking Knives Out was a great movie... Then you go and point out every little detail that makes it so much better and highlights the amazing craft poured into every frame of this film.
I think Meg is an interesting character bc she’s the one who, at least on the outside, has the most heart but is so insecure and scared of losing the life she has. It would be interesting to see where the character goes in a cameo or something in another movie in this universe
@@rigelb9025 I've rewatched it several times and enjoyed it every time. It's like a well-written book that you can read again and again, even knowing the ending -- you're just enjoying the ride.
When you said you’d be focusing on one detail in particular, I thought it might be the Othello board, but then when you said it was Blanc’s glance at her shoes, I got so excited bc every time I’ve shown someone this movie, that’s the thing I bring up at the end. His little glance and that pause he takes as you see him register what it means is beautifully subtle and is my favorite part of the whole fim
Yes I always point that out at the end too! I don't know if this was actually planned or not, but I think when Blanc told Marta "a mystery is afoot, eh Watson" the foot line was a reference! So many details😁
This was the last film i saw in theaters before the pandemic hit, and i went with 9 family members and family friends before our relationships broke down. Not only was it a GREAT movie, but it holds a special place in my heart for being "the last good day" so to speak. Thanks for a wonderful breakdown of a great film.
Similarly, this film was released in China around Thanksgiving; and by Lunar New Year, the pandemic broke out here first. It was my last memory of cinema (an genuinely laughing out loud and enjoying every minute of this great film) for a very long time. I enjoyed Glass Onion at a film festival post-pandemic too! Fond memories for both
@@prozorozo hahaha nah, you're good. It was "the last good day" because I'm the one who cut family out 😂 they're all still really bitter about it from what little I've heard about them from an auntie, but I've genuinely never been better
I get (and agree with) what you meant about Martha being unremarkable and in Hollywood land where everyone looks like a model that's true but if I went past someone as ridiculously good looking as Ana de Armas in the street, I'd definitely be noticing her
But that is also because you already like her. When you pass a random person on the street, even if they were dressed up and typical model pretty, you wouldn’t remember them anyway unless you had a personal reason to be invested.
A good point about the family feeling like actual people you could know. The entire time I watched this movie they all felt familiar to me because they act like my family does. They aren’t rich, but the mannerisms, the talk, it all felt like the parts of the family everyone tolerates and then talks trash about later on the way home. They’re horrible people, but in such a realistic way that one of my selling points of this movie to my parents was “the family acts like our cousins”
I really loved your analysis, but there was one very small detail I contest, and that is the nature of Fran's blackmail. She didn't want money; she also wanted the truth. She was very loyal to Harlan, and extremely upset that Ransom was involved in his death. The key to why she committed blackmail was in her earlier dialogue about Hallmark movies. She believed that when she confronted the killer with his misdeeds, it would end in the manner of one of those movies. It never even occurred to her that it would simply give the killer an opportunity to tie up loose ends. In addition, she is a contrast to Marta's character; while Marta was forced to play the game, Fran actively chose to. But Marta also understood the rules. Fran did not, and paid the price for it.
This is by far my favorite movie of recent years because of everything you said here. It's refreshing to see someone like Marta win over a cynical bunch like the Thrombeys (deeply entertaining to watch, but you wouldn't want to have Thanksgiving with them) simply because she's a good person. I think Ana de Armas' acting in this movie doesn't get the credit it deserves, thanks to the loud personalities around Marta. She has to be more subtle, and those beautiful brown eyes of hers do a lot of the work for her in showing her conflict, grief, guilt, and kindness.
I remember I had figured out it was Ransom so early because the movie drops a couple big clues but by showing me it was Marta, I completely forgot about those clues until the very end. Somehow it surprised me by making the twist that it was exactly who I thought it was at the beginning.
All I can think about is how when Martha lies when the hospital calls, how confused and horrified the doctor must have been. “Ah, Martha… your co-worker sadly passed, if you could come to the hospital soon we need to give you the de-“ _Oh that’s wonderful doctor! We’ll be there soon!_ *static…* “What the fuck…”
I know! I think about that moment way too much. Imagine being on the other end of that. If it was me it would have sent chills down my spine at first, if I only focused on the 'that's wonderful!' part. Like, wtf, woman. In reality I imagine the person at the hospital probably just thought afterwards that Marta misunderstood, or they weren't clear or something, but I still can't stop thinking about it
@@VultRoos the explaination would be worse too “Sorry, had to convince a murderer that his victim was still alive so he would confess to her attempted murder, thereby confessing to her murder.”
For films like this to work, I think you need to have the side character who truly has zero stakes in it to add that perspective. For this film, I think that falls on Nana - because the absolute favorite scene in the movie for me was when Martha was lead out of the room by Blanc in front of the entire family, while the rest stand there confused, and she just starts laughing. And it was that moment of audience synergy for me. The timing was so perfect. We stand for Nana in this house. ^^
I very much saw myself in Marta. It was so nice to see a quiet, genuine person with a calm personality and no ulterior motives -- a comparably "bland" character, if only because she's not trying to stand out or be somebody. And to have her take center stage as the protagonist...I really love this movie.
Martha is one of my favorite characters of all time, which I think is telling because she is so... canonically pure in the story. I think what works for her character is that she isn't driven by some moral code that requires the audience to agree with it; instead she operates on a pretty good approximation of what the general person would consider "being good." It might seem like a frivolous distinction but even comparing Martha with the protag of the next movie, Glass Onion, you can see how long the movie spends on establishing why the protag is justified. As far as the audience is concerned, Martha is the murderer even if it was accidental and despite being shit birds, the entire family are innocent and were robbed of an expected inheritance. The story doesn't say "it was okay for Martha to murder because she can't lie and is a good person," it says "Martha has the most to lose and is the only character who is playing the game with real stakes" with her whole "throwing up when lying" bit actually serving against this narrative antagonistically. Also, Ana De Armas is criminally slept on as an actor and I honestly don't think this movie works without her portrayal of Martha. See: The panic when she thinks she got the wrong medicine, the ending balcony scene with the "you dug your own grave, idiots" expression, the diner scene with Evans where she exudes both suspicion and relief. She is far too doe-eyed to pull off the kind of roles made for women these days, but I have yet to see her underperform (and I believe I've seen nearly everything she has been in, including her spanish films earlier in her career. I uh... don't recommend some of them but I'm noticing she has a tendency towards movies built around unpredictable twists lol)
I feel like Blanc did say something about the shoe thing. But very cheekily. He says to Marta ‘the game is afoot’. I know a reference to Sherlock Holmes for one. But. The game being a-foot. Her shoe. He was subtly telling her he knew all along. But he’s just playing along
The scene of just grieving is MOSTLY without setup. She is, however, looking over her letters which - if you pay attention - have marks from fire and you can figure out how she'll read the blank letter at the end.
I love your analysis and to add: I think Rian Johnson uses this idea of the Thrombey's obsession with this game of win/loss in the persuit of power, and their lack of basic empathy towards Marta, a woman of color, as a way to represent race and class in America. That sounds dense but what struck me in the film was how (as highlighted thematically through those racist conversations at the birthday party) the Thrombey's are a rich, wealthy, white family spanning generations, who all feel entitled to keep their power and wealth over anyone else. They pretend to support Marta until she is given that wealth and the same privileges as them, in which case they switch to calling her a thief, accusing her of random crimes, and saying she doesn't deserve it. As the only POC person within this household, they see her as an outsider, and an immigrant (and I love how in different scenes, each family member says she's from a different foreign country- none of them actually care). As a lot of white upper class folk like to think they're virtuous like Joni, when it comes down to it, they see life in America as a game that they deserve to win. They deserve to be on top, get the most money, that they're entitled to this home (which in a nice detail is pointed out was actually taken bought from a nonwhite owner) and that's ultimately their downfall. They don't see that Marta could be at all deserving of their father's fortune by simple virtue of her kindness. They were never kind to each other, or their children, or to Harlan and just don't value it over money/property/status, which leads them to be hateful, racist and untruthful people. Their treatment of Marta as the outsider to their wealthy white family shows how historically families like them have treated immigrants, POC, and others who've come to what they view as their home. The film is a metaphor on how the racist rich white folk which dominate American society have become more obsessed with this game of success and wealth, over being kind to each other, other people, or their family - and how POC who come into that system don't thrive by playing by their same rules of the game, but by making their own way, being kind to each other, and occasionally (in the case of Martha) that can lead them to true, deserved, sucess.
The Thrombeys feel so real to me because they act exactly how a dysfunctional family acts: lying about small details, dog piling on one person and calling them a sinner or a black sheep when they themselves have done worse, blaming kids for bad behavior instead of the parents that raised them, etc. They are flawed in all those little, tiny ways.
Great analysis! I clicked on this because Knive’s Out is one of my favorite movies… on some days it maybe is my top favorite movie. I love it for all the reasons you state and more, but mainly for your observation that it is extremely complex, well crafted, and yet so straightforward and simple. It is the screenplay I wish I had the skill to write that was turned into a well crafted movie that executes on all fronts: acting, directing, editing, cinematography, set dressing, costumes, music… I cannot think of one aspect of the film that doesn’t contribute. One point you make that I have a (minor) disagreement with is that the scene with Linda mourning her father and being comforted by Walt serves no purpose other than character development. Even this scene is doing double duty in my opinion. She says “I was just thinking about Dad's games. This all feels like one, it feels like something he'd write, not do.” Which IS what is going on! Linda senses that something is off and she is correct! And she correctly senses that Harlan wrote it, which he did! Hugh *tried* to write the narrative, but Harlan did a rewrite. He was the better story teller and Marta was following his draft. And this is true until a point where Marta takes over the narrative, proving that she was better at it that even Harlan, just like she was the only one that could beet him at Go.
My favorite detail was when Harlan said "You can't tell the difference between a stage prop and a real knife." At 35:29 (in the movie) and then when Ransom attacked Marta with a FAKE knife. Just brilliant!
For me, 19:26 is a very special moment in this video essay. The music you chose and the response Blanc gives sent shivers down my spine. Your concluding section is also truly astounding, you really inspired me with your review, discussion and breakdown of Knives Out. Please keep going in creating these essays! I really look forward to seeing more from you 😊
I feel like one of the key scenes that most people don’t talk about is the joint scene, Meg and Fran would have been the only two people she would have supported because those are the only two that were ever truly kind to her. Meg may receive money for her education but she’s never actually had control over it, her mother has always siphoned it. Fran is the housekeeper, she’s pretty much in the same boat as Marta. Meg is treading waters between being a Thronby and being in Marta’s boat, without the pressure of the family I see her shifting again. However though with Meg I see it purely being her education she supported.
I don’t think I can explain how beautiful this video and movie are. The way you broke it down was a angle I have never looked at this masterpiece before. I was near tears this whole time. Brilliant video and breakdown. Thank you.
i watched this movie with my conservative parents. it was heartwrenching, knowing the language of film, knowing that marta was trustworthy and kind and that she would ultimately not play the role that was expected of her. the whole way through, they were suspicious of her, thought she was the girl richard was having an affair with, thought she was lying about her 'regurgative' reaction to lying, thought that she had somehow planned to inherit the wealth. given everything the movie tried to tell them, they were on the thrombey's side. how hellish.
the movie really makes me understand the Thrombies, as I see them in people i know, they're people who could do so much good, but are held back by a flaw or flaws that are really just trauma and pain from their past, made physical.
Out of everyone in the family, Linda is the only one I'd willingly be locked in a room with and trust. Despite her outburst in the will scene, she is easily the most likable.
I also love Brothers Bloom, that movie is one of my favorite movies that not a lot of people have seen but everyone likes once they get to experience it. Its a good memory which is everything i ever look for after any movie i watch. Great video about my fav movie of the 2019
I love that movie so much. It’s so beautiful. Though I’m still back and forth. Really brothers? Or was Steven a projection Bloom invented to get through all the lying and trauma that he eventually had to let go of to gain his life? I want Steven to be real, but there is a fantasy feel to the whole thing that makes me second guess
I would love a breakdown of the details rian Johnson included in the last jedi (perhaps not everyone’s favorite, but MY favorite for giving a story built on the characters he was given, not by how some wanted to see them but as real people in the situation they were left in). Loved this discussion of Knives Out!!
I will forever be mad that he didn't hlget to do the last movie because you can bet that it would have brought back a lot of little details to a fitting end.
One question I do have about Knives Out is how is Meg a bad person? If anything, she's very much unlike the rest of the family, and supports Marta privately when she doesn't have to directly confront the whole family. Sure, she doesn't vouch for her whenever the family has turned against her, but she didn't bash her either. In fact, Meg was basically fine with the fortune going to her as long as if it's what Harlan wanted. But because Marta is so afraid of her family and what they could do, she's forced to trick Marta into trying to give back the fortune, and even apologizes to Marta when she arrives back at the house. I don't think Meg was pretending, it's just that she won't go against her family directly.
Meg is neither good nor bad, she is a person dominated by her family. Pretty much every bad thing she does to Martha is a result of her not willing to confront the peer pressure and stand up to the family, which is quite common for people raised in such large, imposing families.
This is one of the best video essays I have ever watched. Thank you for putting this out into the world and explaining this wonderful movie so poignantly and explaining something a lot of people would've naturally missed with how this movie was presented.
I've seen some comments on how Martha was seemingly let go even if she still did cause Harlan's suicide, just because she's a good person and didn't actually overdose Harlan. Aside from my speculations that Harlan did know he wasn't overdosed (cause he's smart, knew what morphine would feel like once it hits, practically on his death bed, loves mystery stories and now can be part of one just before his passing) and willingly offed himself, t was Ransom that set it up in the first place and most of the liability fell on him rather than Martha
The thing is Ransom admitted to the crime. He put all the blame on himself by being unable to keep his mouth shut. Martha by design was the perfect scapegoat. Martha didn't cause his death, she gave him the right medicine and had no actual blame because she never did anything to hurt Harlan, he killed himself. It may have been he wanted to go out in that fashion, or that he was just trying to protect Martha the only way he could in his panic of believing he was about to die and she would be blamed even if it was an accident and have her life ruined.
I sat through 23 mins of that 24 min video, and you had my complete and total focus throughout it's entirety. I already loved this movie but you explained more and better reasons to love it further. The music, the dialogue, even the way you edited together the scenes of the movie, it all backed your explanation beautifully. Well done my good sir, you just got a sub :)
I've listened to this at work like a million times. I just love this video. Along with the music that plays in the background. Wish I knew what it was.
Having watched Glass Onion I felt like something was missing that was present in Knives Out. It's the characterization of the Thrombes and how the good nature of Marta are what really makes this movie stand out, however the carefullness whith which those aspects are handled is missing in Glass Onion. We barely see the humanity in the disruptor gang like we could see in the Thrombes, to the point that the archetypes are all we're left with.
i think with glass onion, because the characters come from new money, theyre even more out of touch than the thrombies. The thrombies also had harlan to influence them, albeit only slightly, whereas in glass onion it follows the self-centerd exaggerated "main character energy" of all of these millionares, because its the version of them they put out to the public, and the version of themselves they want the others to believe is true. i still wouldve liked to see more sides to them though, but it makes sense that theyre more like caricatures in glass onion, because its the commentary on those kinda people? idk
This movie is so rewatchable in a way that usually doesn't apply to mysteries, I think in part because the plot is simple but the movie is so rich with details and strong characters. I feel like there's been a few years now of movies and shows that rely heavily on shock value plot twists regardless of if they make sense, and a general fixation on viewers not being able to predict the story/the idea that anything being spoiled could ruin the whole thing, while not remedying that with stories that are compelling even if you know the outcome. Knives Out (and Glass Onion) literally throw obvious clues at the audience and trust us to either miss it, misunderstand it, or 100% get what they're doing and still have a good time. I saw the inheritance going to Marta from a mile away because it's a trope and was clearly going there, but you end up hating the family so much and rooting for her enough that the pay off is so good whether or not you expect it (and most people probably did). I've worked in vet med and handled medications before and when she looked for naloxone, I knew she either had to be lying about it or someone had set her up to fail, because a good nurse would never be handling morphine without having that handy - and eventually I didn't believe that she had ditched it on purpose. The end wasn't ruined for me by being able to pick up on the story, and when I watched it a second time with a friend she immediately guessed that someone swapped the labels. We both loved the movie anyway. Sacrificing the shock twists that ruin a story to know for simple twists but a stronger story and characters is just better writing IMO, and I hope we get more media that gets back to that.
Adding on to your thoughts at 5:00, it really speaks volumes that for all of the selfishness of the family unit as a whole Linda and Walt both cared for and respected their dad wholeheartedly and loved him very much, but they're also a pretty great example of how money can bring out the absolute worst in people
A beautiful, heart wrenching analysis of my favorite movie that put into words so many things I have felt so viciously over the years. Bravo, you've done it proud!
After watching this video, I thought about when Harlan said Ransom was the only one to beat him at that board game. Maybe that’s foreshadowing that Ransom is the one who cares the most about winning and, like you said, not losing.
I wonder what would have happened if Linda had listened to her instincts in that scene with Walt that was telling her that something was off about the way her dad died. That scene did humanize her and setup the letter reveal later, but also showed she knew Harlan enough that this whole thing was too much like one of her father’s stories to be entirely the truth. It would have been cool to see more of her if she got involved
It’s so amazing that you made a video over 20 minutes talking about the intricate details of the story that add to its conclusion and message, and the comments section is still full of people pointing out even more details. I truly, truly, truly believe that this is one of the best movies of all time.
Thank you. Thank you so much for making this. As a new teenager I was transplanted into a Thrombey-esque family after being by a Marta-esque mother. It was hard and I still have a hard time with win/lose games and people because of it. This film was the last I saw in theatres before Covid lockdown. Like, the day the WHO declared it a pandemic. So it holds lots of special places in my heart- but this video essay really put words to the feelings I had of seeing myself in it. That explanation of the zero-sum game and tying it to the film was just *chefs kiss*. Oh yeah! And the character analysis of each of them? Gorgeous. Loved it. Again, thank you for making and sharing this!
This movie is a friggin master class. The kind of movie that makes you love movies. The kind of movie that gets better the more you pick it apart. Great video!
Great movie and great video. There's a lot that can be said, and that a lot of people might have said already, so I'll keep it simple I love that you put in Blanc's line "the dumbest car chase of all time" lol
Wow. Knives out is my favorite movie because of many of the details that you brought up in this video but you brought much more detail the character of Marta than I had noticed before. Thank you for showing me another side of my favorite movie I hadn’t noticed before and further enriching the experience. I’ll definitely recommend this video to people if they are wondering why knives out is my favorite or why it is better than the sequel.
@@officialmonarchmusic It will play in a few select theaters, first... But Netflix funded the movie. They paid a boatload of money for multiple Knives Out sequels when they saw what a big hit the first one was.
Hearing all this said about the Thrombey's - how deeply insecure they are, how they are bad people despite their humanity, how they have the capacity and means to be good and choose not to be - feels a lot like how I see certain politicians. It's easy to look at, say, one of the senators of my state, recognize he's a piece of shit who only cares about maintaining his power, and call him a monster. However, there are brief, rarely seen moments where you get a reminder that he IS a human being with people and things he actually cares about. It makes him seem that much worse as a result, because someone with his money, resources, and time clearly has the capacity for good. He knows what to do to appeal to his base, though, and he does it because that's what keeps him in his position. People like that sure can be entertaining, though.
I've been waiting for in-depth analysis of this film - most of what I've found have been spoiler free reviews, which certainly have a place, but this movie deserves more discussion than a quick blurb and rating. You make really great points, particularly seeing the blood on Marta's shoe and saying nothing.
I could dissect this movie forever, it's such a rewarding watch. Not just in those numbers little details, but in how good Marta is. So good that we even see Harlan sign off on his own death before causing her pain--because he knows and values that goodness so much that she's worth the sacrifice. It's beautiful on many levels.
What a brilliant piece you've made here today. You've easily earned a sub, and I hope more people find your channel. Also, the Owl House (with as few spoilers as possible) has a villain, the main villain, and the way I think about him and what we've learned about his backstory the same way you described Fran and Marta. Through dramatic juxtapositions between similar characters and different actions, and through moments of temptation, we reveal character in a way that would have majorly suffered without it. Without Fran, someone outside the household being tempted to play the Thromby's game, Marta's hesitation and ultimate decision wouldn't have been as impactful, as Fran succumbed to the Thromby's game, so to could Marta have succumbed. Same with this main villain and the character who makes a very different choice in their backstory. Go do yourselves a favor and watch the show, and once you're caught up through at least season 3 episode 1, I would love to know your thoughts about this main villain and this other character (you'll know him when you see him and hear about him)
i remember watching this on a flight home one evening, seeing the cast lineup intrigued me. i personally thought it was a fun mystery movie but this video helped me to see it in another light much better than i originally perceived it.
On the not mentioning of the blood drop, it's worth remembering that Blanc isn't interested in that moment of who, if anyone committed a murder. He's interested in who/why he was paid to find the murderer.
this movie is incredible and I'm always so sad that my emetophobia keeps me from watching it ever again lmao. this was a great and insightful video essay that scratched my itch to watch the movie again.
@@test-kf2zv it does work to establish precedent that she will never lie or will never be able to convince someone else of a lie in a way that stuttering, crying or tapping her feet would be able to. It’s probably the only bodily function that can’t reasonably be explained for misfiring, especially when everyone around you knows it’s your “I’m lying!” alarm
I agree with the reply above mine about it being better as an indicator for Marta being utterly terrible at lying because her body has a physical response to her trying to deceive people, because sure benoit can cold read her if her tell was looking away or nervous trembling in her voice, but the audience isn't Benoit Blanc. And it also establishes that if she did it, she would have to confess. If she denied it, it's a lie, and if it's a lie she will projectile vomit. The movie needs to show Marta is too good to lie, and Rian figured the best way is to make her physically allergic to deceit
As a mexican, I like to think that this movie is about an elitist group of individuals who own this "house" that they reap the benefits of but certainly do not keep, trying to appear as great people even though their ideals are rotten by this point. Harlan says that he would like for everything to be different, and when someone who _is_ different has a chance to keep the "house", _then_ they start acting like they always owned the place, even though it was bought not long ago, that they always dusted the shelves even if they have never, ever inhaled a spec of dust and that they care for the good of their family, even though all they do is fight and scream and tell each other how oversealous and useless they are at the same time. But I've never heard someone from the States mention this, not even after that attempt of a coup d'état a year ago. I wonder why is that...
I watched Glass Onion recently, and it's interesting to see how it used some similar themes, but in different ways. Spoilers: While in Knives Out the theme was choosing kindness over personal gain, Glass Onion chose to focus on choosing justice over loyalty. Miles was relatively nice to his friends. He was manipulative, but to them he probably seemed pretty nice. Again, the main character wasn't really involved with the key group until after the murder, and, instead of being a rich jerk, she was working a lower-paying job as a school teacher. The theme of choosing not to play the game was also there too. Since her goal was to investigate the death of her sister, not any sort of intellectual fun, the best way to open the puzzle box was with the hammer. And when she had to, she played the game almost perfectly. It ended up being a pretty simple investigation when you really look at it. The hard part was everyone covering for Miles. It really feels like a good sequel.
One detail I really loved was how when we first meet the characters, before they're interviewed, Linda tells Marta she wanted her at the funeral but was outvoted. She specifically says this before we get any character insight so it sounds plausible. You have no reason to doubt that she cares. Then partway throught the movie, Walt says the exact same thing to Marta, and for me it was like instant clarity. These people suck. They don't care about Marta, and they definitely don't consider her apart of the family. Even the phrasing "I was outvoted" is genius because of the way it throws everyone else under the bus to look like a good person.
