Disclaimer: I’m a blind film critic. If you build it, he will come.

In Rian Johnson’s third outing in what is called the Knives Out series (for no other reason than it being the title of the first Benoit Blanc outing), we are asked to have a little faith. or, perhaps it is better to have a lack thereof. Johnson’s Wake Up Dead Man may center in a church, but this is no Murder In the Cathedral. If you dress it up with simplicity, it could be seen as a modern day version of that, but woven in Johnson’s narrative are characters who have faith, need faith, question faith, or outright rebuke it. And one of them has to die.

Don’t worry, no spoilers here, as the entire point of a whodunit is The who, and to a lesser extent the what, when, why, and how. what’s interesting about Wake Up Dead Man is that Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc isn’t the main character, Josh O’Connor’s Father Judd is. We spend quite a bit of time with him, introducing us not just to his story, but the players in this game. It all starts with a punch and from that, Judd is sent to a new parish run by the Monsignor (Josh Brolin), a very eccentric man who seems to toy with Judd like a cat would their prey. The difference is, as explained through Jud’s backstory, he isn’t quite the typical subjugate for the Monsignor, and is aware that he’s screwing with him. A battle over something? But what? Control? Also floating around the rectory are a very committed nun (Glenn Close) and a recovering alcoholic handyman, Sam (Thomas Haden Church).

Eventually, we meet the relevant townies. There’s the lawyer (Kerry Washington), who inherited her practice from her father, and has been looking after a young man, Cy (Daryl McCormack) who seemingly is alone in the world. There’s a local doctor (Jeremy Renner), which is always good to have around when you need someone to confirm something is dead, and a conspiracy theory driven nut job (Andrew Scott). Lastly, there’s a young lady (Cailee Spaney) who is suffering from an ailment she believes faith will deliver her from, and keeps donating all she has to the church for her salvation.

Once we get to know everyone I listed at least a little, the murder occurs, which triggers a detective (Mila Kunis), who is smart enough to call for help in the form of Benoit Blanc. I didn’t check the exact time Blanc joins, but it felt about an hour into the two-and-a-half hour production. That’s why O’Connor is the lead, because through him, the plot is possible.

Benoit starts by going through the motions, as he would usually do, though not before he delivers an opening monologue on his feelings around religion. He is not just atheist, but identifies proudly as a heretic, pointing out the hypocrisies that Judd holds so dear. Still, while Judd is a man of faith, and Blanc is not, they can and will work together to figure out who did the deed, even if Judd hasn’t been cleared of wrongdoing. Just because he’s the lead doesn’t mean he’s off your bingo card, a fact that Detective Mila Kunis reminds us more than once.

I played the guessing game early on, and I ended up half right. So as a murder mystery, there was some surprise there for me, but also a bit of seeing that coming. It is more than a murder mystery, as Johnson has so many versions of faith to explore. O’Connor’s Judd is rooted in the need for absolution, for something he did before wearing the collar. He needs to believe salvation is possible, and we can be forgiven for our sins. Meanwhile, Brolin is playing a bit of a heavy handed lunatic, who is half snake oil, and half God complex. He has some direct comparisons to Jesus, that he has no problem connecting to him as a regular man. Then we have Close, who at her age, feels like the kind of deeply devoted nun we see a lot of in film, though Close oversells it like a lady who still wants that Oscar. Glenn Close stole the movie for me, as she has so much range, and her reactions to various things can be anything from hilarious, to heartbreaking, and even a bit scary. Close was the perfect choice.

But everyone else? They are fine. They have their one or two moments, and play their parts well. Kunis could have been anyone,as Johnson does next to nothing with her role, keeping her this neutral detective. Does she have faith? Maybe. but in what? It isn’t a bad performance, but she could have been gender/race/age swapped on a dime and he script wouldn’t have changed. It is hardd to define a role that could have been just as easily played by Morgan Freeman, John Cena, Tig Notaro, or Jennifer Lopez.

Some think this is the best Blanc mystery, but I’m not there. I appreciate a lot of it, in terms of Johnson’s maneuvering into more of a horror leaning entry, much like Kenneth Branagh did with A Haunting In Venice. There are a few truly violent and gory bits, a couple little jump scares, and people treading around dark corners and into dark basements. it has a very different vibe than the other two films.

The audio description, I didn’t catch, because Netflix kept trying to get me to watch something other than the credits. My guess, is that this was written and narrated by Liz Gutman. It sounds like her, and I’d be surprised if she didn’t write her own script. The descriptions are fantastic, especially in the more ghastly moments. there’s a scene with a bathtub that is particularly gooey. But, it is also a murder mystery, and the clues along the way need to be suggested in a manner that doesn’t over stress the importance, and lets the viewer find the ending, while also then being able to recall how we got here. The AD track does a nice job there too. Little things, like the mention of a specific magazine, which is later seen by Judd are nice payoffs.

I wish Netflix wasn’t abandoning their campaign for this film, because in a field where no obvious front runner exists in Supporting Actress, this might have been the film to do it for Glenn Close. it isn’t her best work ever, but it is a standout, and very memorable for 2025. This was a film I was supposed to screen from Netflix, but never got the screener, which is odd since I got an advance on everything else they are running for our consideration.

While Wake Up Dead man may start with a murder in the cathedral, Johnson’s exploration of what it means to have faith in many forms, is the heart of this, while Glenn Close’s superb supporting turn should be earning her another Oscar nomination.

Fresh: Final Grade: 7.6/10