Wake Up Dead Man: Humdinger of a murder mystery

DANIEL Craig and writer-director Rian Johnson return with another impeccably observed murder mystery.

2019’s Knives Out introduced the world to Craig’s impeccably dressed and Southern-drawled private detective and scored a big hit in the process, while the 2022 follow-up Glass Onion built on that success.

The good news for fans is that Johnson intends to keep this series going for as long as he can.

Once again a starry ensemble cast is along for the ride, all keen to sink their teeth into playing some shifty characters with plenty to hide.

This third film somehow manages to craft an even more engrossing mystery and carries it off with a creative swagger and sense of good humour.

Father Jud (Josh O’Connor) is a troubled young priest and former boxer who found God after accidentally killing a man in a fight. He finds himself assigned to a rural parish in upstate New York.

He arrives at Our Lady of Perpetual Fortitude; a church led by Monsignor Wicks (Josh Brolin).

Wicks is charismatic but a firebrand, with some highly traditionalist views on how the Catholic Church should see the world.

These views clash with Jud’s more gracious, forgiving philosophy and it becomes clear that the two men will not get on.

The church’s rapidly shrinking flock (played by an ensemble including Glenn Close, Jeremy Renner, Andrew Scott, Kerry Washington and Thomas Haden Church) are in awe of Wick’s fire and brimstone approach and join his attempts to ostracise Jud.

However on Good Friday, while the two priests are performing Mass, Wicks is suddenly falls down dead, stabbed in the back with a dagger.

The crime appears to be impossible, since Wicks was standing in a closet near the altar, with neither Jud nor the parishioners anywhere near him.

The local police are baffled and call in Benoit Blanc (Craig) to solve the mystery.

Though the churchgoers suspect Jud, Blanc is assured of his innocence and deputises the young priest to help him crack the case.

The murder mystery detective story has persistently compelled us ever since Edgar Allen Poe invented the concept in 1841.

It does however take something special to make a specific story stand out in such a crowded genre and that is what Johnson has done with this series of films.

With Wake Up Dead Man, Johnson has crafted another enthralling, richly layered and wryly amusing mystery about a dead body, a group of complex, shady characters serving as suspects, and the sartorial, cartoonish-accented detective who must sift through conspiracies, red herrings and misdirection to get to the truth.

As well as revisiting themes revolving around communal/familial hypocrisy and moral/institutional corruption, this third film also touches on the dangers of cults of personality and whether faith can be a force of good or evil in the world.

Is it better to wield for the good of others or for your own selfish, arrogant ends?

With this third film we have another veteran ensemble giving arch and droll performances, particularly Scott as a failed author and Close as a staunchly devout battle-axe. Renner also has fun playing the world’s least trustworthy doctor. However it is O’Connor and Craig who steal this particular show.

Though it takes nearly 40 minutes for Blanc to officially appear, it is the buddy detective dynamic that emerges between the sleuth and the priest that is the film’s strongest suit.

It showcases the chemistry between the two actors, as well as the good-natured undertones of Johnson’s script.

Wake Up Dead Man is a humdinger of a murder mystery that is as thought-provoking as it is gripping.

RATING: ****

Matthew McCaul