Written and Directed by Rian Johnson | 144 min | ▲▲▲▲1/2 | On Netflix
An earlier capsule version of this review appeared during the coverage of the Toronto International Film Festival 2025.
When I first saw Wake Up Dead Man at TIFF what struck me about the third mystery featuring Benoit Blanc (a brilliant, magnetic, and immaculately dressed Daniel Craig) was its cunning undercurrent of criticism of organized religion while allowing for an acknowledgement of the importance of personal belief and communities of faith. All this provides a foundation to a wildly entertaining Agatha Christie-esque tale, another example of Johnson’s incredible gift as a writer and filmmaker.
I still stand by that impression, but the second time around, what strikes me about the film is how it also serves as a portrait of American politics — a chasm between values, the internet stoking further division, with cults of personality and unregulated capitalism serving to poison people’s lives. There’s a lot going on here, and it’s an extraordinary pleasure to sit through.
Wake Up Dead Man is quite a departure from the last Blanc mystery, the big and brassy Glass Onion, with its shots at billionaire and right wing influencers, certainly it’s not as cozy as the original Knives Out, with its look at monied American families and the mistreatment of new immigrants. None of this is didactic — Johnson’s pictures serve as delightful escapes, but their stealth power is how they weave in progressive and feminist ideas.
This new one dips into the gothic tone of Edgar Allen Poe, but never sacrificing the thing that makes these films so addictive: vivid characters, humour, and wildly convoluted capers.
Johnson is confident enough to sideline his ostensible lead for the first act. Josh O’Connor is a priest, Father Jud Duplenticy, assigned to a new parish by a bishop (hey, Jeffrey Wright) in upstate New York after slugging an asshole of the cloth. He’s mentored an older, more combative Monsignor Jefferson Wicks (Josh Brolin), who he swiftly grows to distrust. The congregation is an intense bunch living lives of sacrifice and heartbreak — including characters played by Glenn Close, Andrew Scott, Kerry Washington, Mila Kunis, Cailee Spaeny, Daryl McCormack, Thomas Haden Church, and Jeremy Renner.
Of course, Blanc eventually does show up to investigate a classic tiny room murder case, and that’s when the film really catches fire. Many of the characters have the motivation to murder the victim, naturally, even our young priest, who O’Connor plays with a startling sincerity. He’s the heart of the picture.
Wake Up Dead Man comes solidly down on the idea that following a self-proclaimed leader who does nothing but serve his own ego is a very bad idea, and even a flawed individual who is transparent about his mistakes can be someone worth listening to. It’s a riot.
