Knit to This
The Benoit Blanc Trilogy
As a kid, I devoured Agatha Christie—novels, plays, movies, didn’t matter the medium.
When I got a little bit older, The Westing Game was my all-time favorite book. If I read it once, I probably read it 100 times, even after I knew who-dun-it. Turtle Wexler was the hero I needed and Sunset Towers was where I wanted to live, even though there was a very real danger of winding up murdered.
The Westing Game holds up, by the way, even when you read it some 40+ years later. The quirky-but-honest world Ellen Raskin created remains vivid, despite it also being firmly rooted in the mid-1970s.
The same can’t really be said for Christie, mostly because it wasn’t her writing itself that was the main draw. Instead, it’s the Christie style of mystery—large cast, clockwork pacing, genius detective—that keeps her work in the cultural conversation and, occasionally, a remake on the big screen. For decades, it didn’t seem like anyone would fill this particular story-telling void.
Enter Rian Johnson and Knives Out.
Johnson tapped into the ineffable Christie ethos, sprinkled in quite a bit of Raskin’s cleverness, added his own smart flair, and gave us Benoit Blanc, a Hercule Poirot for the modern age. Daniel Craig—yes, the James Bond one—has infused Blanc with a languid energy that belies how quickly his brain is moving.
All three films—Knives Out, Glass Onion, and the recent Wake Up, Dead Man—have a different flavor, despite having the same main character. Glass Onion‘s tech bro vibe may not scratch your itch the way Wake Up, Dead Man‘s gothic-adjacent one will. Each is its own mood.
But in all three, you’ll see a cast having the best time doing what they love, guided by a well-written script and expert art direction. These worlds feel real, even when the action finds the top, goes over it, then finds a whole new top to go over.
Pick your simplest project, though. Some of the clues are better seen than heard.
Oh—and if you’re already a fan, you’ll be tickled by Forks Out: A Sesame Street Mystery. You know you’ve made it when you have your own Muppet.
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Well, Knives Out is certainly good, but why “dis” Christie? Her writing stands up (as does Allingham’s) and her characters are as vivid as ever, on screen and in the books. You are certainly correct to suggest a simple pattern for Knives Out watching! But it is “safe”…little if any gore and no agonizing suspense, though plenty of action. And Daniel Craig makes a good sleuth. Great watching
I agree with Jane; why dis Christie’s style? But this serves as a reminder to me that a close-by LYS hosts a monthly book club meeting and the current book is Agatha Christie’s ‘A Caribbean Mystery’. Sign me up!
The new Knives Out mystery is done well, but for me there was not a good explanation as to how Benoit Blanc’s character was on the scene so quickly. I do agree that Daniel Craig does a superb job!
Read all the Christie books by the time I was 14. Some, unknowingly, twice, if they were published under two different titles. Twice the fun when I look back on it. Put your dukes up if you dis Agatha. She was, indeed, Fun. Loved the first Knives Out, was confused by the second Onion one, and haven’t seen the current one yet, but the previews look hilarious. Who knew Daniel Craig had more in common with Leslie Nielsen than we would have thought.
I’ve seen the first Knives Out film multiple times, and all I care about is knitting the cable knit sweater that Chris Evans’ character Ransom Drysdale wears in a good chuk of the film. He also wears a bluish grey stockinette one, and a maroon stockinette one, and I want to knit ALL the sweaters!
I loved this trilogy! I highly recommend all three. The good thing is, you can watch them out of order and still not be confused. Great recommendation!
Loved all30f these e=series. Also recently watched Polar Park upon your suggestion. We are fans of foreign films and have for years watched Megahertz for lots of great foreign series. We particularly love Murder in….it is a prodigious series of mysteries that each week take place in a different French Village, most often with different detectives each week. The characters and the scenery are wonderful, want to do a tour of all the villages looking for French yarn to knit with.
Knives Out was really fun and I’ll watch anything with Daniel Craig in it although I haven’t seen the other two in this series.
The sweater worn by Chris Evans does have a pattern named for it on Ravelry; https://www.ravelry.com/projects/crayolacrayonnn/the-handsome-chris-pullover
As an aside, but in keeping with Knit to This, I highly recommend Code of Silence on Brit Box. Great acting and riveting.
And the pattern is free! Here’s that link:
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/the-handsome-chris-pullover
I never wanted to do cabling before, but after watching Loreli Beltman’s recent class on MDK, and seeing this sweater, now I do! Do you think I can start with this? hahaha I might have the yarn for him and my hubby is XL. It might take ALL my knitting time (and patience) for the rest of this decade.
With a stellar lead in like Forks Out, I’m definitely going to have to check out the entire trilogy. And maybe bake a blueberry pie as well…
Thank you, Adrienne 🙂 Serendipitous timing – we just happened upon The Glass Onion last night – I had no idea there was another Benoit Blanc exploit! Will definitely be checking it out. Thanks!
Love the Knives Out series – definitely worth a watch for mystery fans. But I must give a shout out to Agatha Christie, whose novels do stand the test of time, IMHO. I’ve read them all, most of which I inherited from my mom. And, as a high school teacher, I’ve taught Christie’s works many times. I think you’d be surprised to hear that kids really enjoyed them, and class discussions were lively and informed. And, I’m really looking forward to Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials starring Helena Bonham Carter. Check it out later this week!
I enjoyed all three movies. Rushing over to see Forks Out now!
Gave up on watching “Onion” but will try this third one.
Definitely want to second the the vote for Margery Allingham’s works, different style than Christie, great descriptions of place, interpersonal relations. Unfortunately, much of her work is out of print and hard to find in libraries, but they are also worthy of multiple reads. And her nonfiction account of her village’s experiences during World War II, “The Oaken Heart,” is an eye-opener. Astonishing to read what the British were going through as that war developed–at one point they are trying to figure out how to prepare for gas attacks in their homes, will stuffing straw around windows work?
Always love how MDK broadens my cultural outlook–am now looking up the Muppet take on “Knives!”
Me, too, regarding Glass Onion. Though Craig is always enjoyable. And speaking of an ex-007, Pierce Brosnan is one of my favorite silver screen dudes, and I especially loved him in Matador.
I never wanted to do cabling before, but after watching Loreli Beltman’s recent class on MDK, and seeing this sweater, now I do! Do you think I can start with this? hahaha I might have the yarn for him and my hubby is XL. It might take ALL my knitting time (and patience) for the rest of this decade.
Oh yes, this series is just perfect. The Glass Onion was not my favourite, but this last opus was perfect. I definitely need to check this Muppet version.
In a similar vein, Netflix releases a new version of the Seven Dials Mystery this week (in my country at least): this is the first televised adaptation of Agatha Christie I ever saw when I was young, the BBC version from the 70s. Can’t wait to see what they’ve done with this fantastic story, and who is going to play Bundle, Jimmy Thesinger and the Superintendant Battle. I can’t knit when I watch these though. There is just too much to watch (costumes, sets, and always on the lookout for the period knits).
Just watched the third one, which was lots of fun, but not as good as the first two or many other mysteries (campy and serious ones). Josh O’Connor nailed the sensitive young priest with a pugilistic past and Glenn Close clearly had fun as a devoted and devout church secretary. The amazing cast didn’t have enough to do.
Thanks for the guidance. Grand scenery.
Thank you for the very amusing link to the Sesame Street Forks out video. I would never have seen it otherwise. Very cute!