Yeah, they did point out in the film that the hydrogen would leak out of ordinary domestic pipes (‘because it’s so small’ or some such) and lead to explosions. My impression was that Klear was an exotic new metal-organic framework or metal hydride that would store lots of hydrogen at ambient temperature and pressure, so that high-pressure tanks or cryogenic storage wouldn’t be needed.
I am happy to be added to the dislike group. Overblown and unforgivably boring. Didn’t work for me as a mystery, a heist, an homage or a parody. If you are going to have a bunch of characters on as island and then have a murder, at least have interesting players.
The ending went on so long I wanted to add my TV to all the smashing.
For those that didn’t like the movie, did you like the twist when Benoit solves the fake mystery before it starts? That got a huge laugh in our cave; we have to pause the movie so as not to miss the dialog.
Yes. “Snoop!” says the detective to his client. Come on, that’s not a murder mystery, it’s a spoof.
The solving of the fake mystery was somewhat amusing to me, but also came across to me as trying too hard to be clever.
And sometimes it really is lupus.
There’s definitely one Agatha Christie where someone is discovered standing over the body of someone they’re known to hate, with the murder weapon in their hand and it turns out after a labyrinthine quest for clues and explanations that…they did it, they killed him, right there and then in exactly the way it appeared, if we’d let the dumb hick cop arrest them at the beginning we’d have saved ourselves valuable tea and crumpets time.
Christie had of course earned the right to play around, and at a certain point pretty much had to for the sake of her own sanity.
If we’re thinking of the same Christie novel, the idea was that, no, she didn’t kill him in exactly the way it appeared; the gun in her hand wouldn’t match the bullet in the body, because it didn’t in fact fire it, because the whole point was to make it look like someone was making it look like she was guilty.
I wouldn’t say I HATED it, such a strong reaction? I was disappointed in it.
I really enjoyed the original Knives Out, and most all of the characters (LeKeith Stanfield, why was he there? Fantastic actor, they really didn’t know what to do with him in this.)
This one? Hmm, the original Benoit Blanc was always large and in charge, and 5 steps ahead of everyone. In this, he always seemed kinda lost. And at the end he’s basically, “Uh, I dunno, can’t help you there.” Really?
And the climax of “I’m gonna smash all of your crystal sculptures!” Really? Why not just pull out an uzi and mow everyone down, that would have made just as much sense. And the big explosion was straight out of every James Bond knock-off ever made. Frankly, the evil billionaire and remote island lair was too. And on and on and on.
As for “upending tropes”, that didn’t really find purchase with me either.
We are, and you’re right. (Full confession, I’m thinking of the dramatisation for TV, but the point you raise was faithfully carried over).
As I watched, I assumed this was a standard puzzle-box mystery. I was watching for clues, forming theories, etc. So it was a bit of a letdown when it became apparent that the writers didn’t see it that way.
But rather than get upset about the fact that the writers didn’t make the exact show I expected, I chose to appreciate it for what it is. A silly dramedy-suspense show with elements of mystery. Seen in that light, I found it great fun.
For the folks complaining about hydrogen crystals… did you also complain in Pulp Fiction that there’s no way gangsters would be fighting over a briefcase that emitted gold light? It’s just a McGuffin, a plot-generating object. It’s not supposed to do anything except create reasons for others to do interesting things.
Yep - you’re correct. I’m not sure why I said “episodes”. I tried watching it twice and didn’t get past the first 20 minutes.
Nope - just misspoke.
I remarked to my family that I was really impressed with Bautista’s performance. I’d really only seen him in Marvel or action roles previously, and had (wrongly) assumed that he was in that “mostly there for his appearance as a tough guy” category. I was wrong, and he appears to really be a good actor.
As for the rest of the issues with the movie, I had many of the same concerns voiced here. It’s not a “fair” mystery, for the most part. After thinking about it some, and watching a few folks on YT talk about different aspects of the film, I decided I DID like it, but needed to approach it as not a “mystery” movie, in the sense of a traditional Great Detective, drawing room-type movie. I liked the characters, it had a bunch of fun stuff, it just wasn’t the grand mystery I was expecting going in, and that colored my response, I think.
I’ll just mention that this other thread about the movie is older but still very much active, at 406 posts by now.
No, because that was an entirely predictable moment. It happens every time a hyper-observant detective on a TV show or movie is put in a fake murder mystery situation.