Ronit J

Wake Up Dead Man (2022) Synopsis:

He works in mysterious ways.

When young priest Jud Duplenticy is sent to assist charismatic firebrand Monsignor Jefferson Wicks, it’s clear that all is not well in the pews. After a sudden and seemingly impossible murder rocks the town, the lack of an obvious suspect prompts local police chief Geraldine Scott to join forces with renowned detective Benoit Blanc to unravel a mystery that defies all logic.

Wake Up Dead Man (2022) Review:

I really loved the first Knives Out movie. It had its issues, but the quirky treatment and interesting characters made it quite an entertaining watch. The same is true for Glass Onion. While I’ll admit to finding both murder mysteries a tad ridiculous, I liked the way everything tied together, with us getting glimpses into all our characters’ pasts. When I saw the trailer for Wake Up Dead Man, however, I was skeptical.

I’m not a fan of religious content, except when it’s critical. There are many exceptions to this, of course, with Tarkovsky being at the pinnacle. However, I find stories surrounding religious people a little hard to enjoy. With this instalment being largely centred around a parish, I wasn’t sure I would enjoy this as much as the previous Knives Out entries.

And, I was right.

An Oddly Paced Murder Mystery With Strange Narrative Choices

Except for a glimpse of Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) in the opening shots of the film, we don’t see our main detective until some 40 minutes into the runtime. Up until that point, we’re just hearing a voice over letter that’s being written by Father Jud (Josh O’Connor). 40 minutes of just context building, where we’re told everything we need to know about the main cast of characters/suspects. Not only did I find this entire segment dull and boring, I found it completely ruined the mystery element of the story.

For starters, the story unfolded in such a tedious manner that I had a hard time focusing. Besides, I found certain parts of this segment oddly sequenced. We’re ‘told’ everything, but it happens a little too rushed. As a result, I have a whole bunch of characters that I know only cursorily, and care about not at all. The set up was boring, and the murder with its resulting investigation didn’t pique my interest like I had expected.

Usually, murder mystery whodunnits start with interesting conflicts, which exacerbate with the murder. Connecting the dots makes for an engaging narrative. But, in laying bare most of the context, I could guess the killer right in the beginning. Not only that, Wicks (Josh Brolin) was so unlikeable that I couldn’t care less if he died. Building off that, I found almost all the characters a little too dull and uninteresting. So much so that I just couldn’t take this film seriously enough.

And this one is subjective, but I didn’t like the dark aesthetic that accompanied the parish setting. It felt pretty shallow, boring, and generic. Very unlike the vibrant settings and aesthetics of the previous entries.

Critiquing the Church, Whilst Upholding Christian Values

Just because I didn’t like a film doesn’t mean I can’t see the good in it. And honestly, there was a lot to appreciate with Wake Up Dead Man.

Imagine a film that features a protagonist who is on a journey to becoming a priest, one who wholeheartedly embraces the teachings of Christ and walks that path to make the world a better place. Now imagine that same film featuring a character called ‘the harlot whore’ who desecrates the church, only for us to find out—SPOILERS—that she too might have been misunderstood, with the church’s former priest being a manipulative man.

While Prentice’s true intentions might never be clear, it’s evident that Grace (Annie Hamilton) wasn’t really the evil woman everyone makes her out to be. After all, if someone strays from the righteous path, it’s important to identify why it happened. Where Prentice & Wicks fail to lead their ‘flock’, Jud struggles to uphold Christian values, even if it means surrendering himself to a lifetime of prison.

Wake U Dead Man does quite a fine job of treading that fine line between critiquing organised religion and respecting healthy religious values. At first, I thought it’s my bias against all things religious that made me not enjoy the film. It’s only after much reflection that I realise that the problems with this film aren’t thematic. The problem is that the film has very evident flaws with its making. I won’t deny that my biases did diminish my watching experience. But, there’s also no denying that the narrative is clunky and that the characters are pretty uninteresting.

Wake Up Dead Man (2022) Ending Explained (SPOILERS) | Who Killed Monsignor Jefferson Wicks?

Martha as a child witnessed Prentice swallow Eve’s Apple. It is a very diamond that is worth a fortune, and he dies, literally taking all his fortune to his grave. His daughter, Grace, the Harlot Whore, trashed the church hoping to find the gem. Young Martha even goads her, resulting in her attacking the child.

In the present, after being challenged by Father Jud, Martha finally confesses her knowledge to Monsignor Wicks. Greed overcomes Wicks, and he orders a forklift to open Prentice’s tomb. When Martha learns of his plans to retrieve the diamond, she plots his murder, involving Dr Nat in her plan. Martha drugs Wicks, and Nat—using his position as doctor—has the excuse to examine him. Nat stabs him when no one is looking. Later, Martha persuades Samson to take Wicks’ position in the coffin (she demanded alone time with Wicks at the funeral).

Nat helps Samson come out of the tomb after detonating charges, but seeing the diamond, Nat kills Samson. He later tries to poison Martha, but she switches their cups, leading to his death. Just as she’s confessing, Benoit reveals he noticed symptoms of Pentobarbital on her, meaning she too is about to pass. Before she does, she drops the diamond, which Benoit leaves for Jud to take care of. Jud performs an absolution for Martha so she can die in peace.

A year later, the church reopens with the name Our Lady of Perpetual Grace. Cy threatens to sue Jud and the church if they don’t hand over the diamond, but they—including Benoit—claim ignorance. As a new service is about to begin, the camera zooms into a newly installed cross with Christ’s statue, at the centre of which hides the diamond.

Is Wake Up Dead Man (2022) worth watching?

In my opinion, no. This was by far the worst Knives Out film. None of the characters interested me, and the plot just felt pretty ridiculous, completely brought down by the narrative clunkiness and weird pacing.

However, I’ve seen some folks liking this one, so maybe it is my biases that led to my non-enjoyment of the film. So, maybe read a few more reviews and decide for yourself.

In Conclusion:

Wake Up Dead Man (2022) by Rian Johnson is a film that I found to be dull and uninteresting. While there is an interesting mystery in there, the characters & narrative just didn’t work for me.

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