Movies: Knives Out Books: The Hero by Lee Child Music: Thanks for the Dance by Leonard Cohen F&B: Chinese wine, Long Dai Macau Daily Times | Edition 3427 | 29 Nov 2019 The shadow of The Wall ‘The Wall, released 40 years ago, is considered by many to be one of the best albums in rock history. But it marked the last time the core members of Pink Floyd would record an album together X2 PÁTIO DA ILUSÃO illusion DRIVE IN Jake Coyle, AP Film Writer N NIVES UT A I ‘K O ,’ PHOTO AP WHODUNIT FOR THE TRUMP ERA ian Johnson’s “Knives Out” nothing better. And “Knives Out,” unravels not just a good ol- while it takes a little while to find Rd-fashioned murder mystery but its stride, sticks the landing, right the very fabric of the whodunit, up to its doozy of a last shot. The pulling at loose threads until it whodunit turns out not only to has intricately, devilishly woven still have a few moves left but to together something new and ex- be downright acrobatic. ceedingly delightful. The film begins like many befo- For all the detective tales that re it: with a dead body that needs dot television screens, the Aga- accounting for. Harlan Thrombey tha Christie-styled whodunit has (Christopher Plummer), a bes- gone curiously absent from mo- tselling mystery writer, is fou- vie theaters. The nostalgia-dri- nd with his throat cut in a small ven “Murder on Orient Express” upstairs room in his sprawling From left: Daniel Craig Chris Evans, Noah Segan and Lakeith Stanfield in a scene from “Knives Out” (2017), popular as it was, didn’t Victorian mansion. Production do much to dispel the idea that designer David Crank deserves and is married to Joni (Toni Colle- its central detective. Johnson is around him (the mystery writer’s med by self-satisfaction. the genre has essentially moved much credit for the film’s fabu- tte); and his grandson Ransom too restless for such an approach. house is decorated throughout with But “Knives Out,” in the end, into retirement, content to sit out lously ornate and much-paneled (Chris Evans), the arrogant black He favors flashbacks, by the boat murder weapons, including a thro- believes earnestly in the who- its days in a warm puffy armchair, setting — a Clue board come to sheep of the family. load, to go along with elaborate ne of knives), Craig still manages dunit, it just wants to turn it in- occasionally dusting itself off for life and a home that could rival the There are others, too, most notably plot mechanics of reversals and to chew plenty of scenery with his side out. To say more about that a remake. modernist abode of “Parasite” for Harlan’s trusted caregiver Marta perspective switcheroos. That heavily accented Southern-style would spoil the fun. But keep But Johnson has since his 2005 movie house of the year. (Ana de Armas). The Thrombeys gives “Knives Out” a somewhat Poirot. One calls him “Foghorn an eye here, and elsewhere, on neo-noir debut “Brick” shown Thrombey is extremely weal- casually refer to her as “the help” clunky and imperfectly paced first Leghorn,” another “CSI: KFC.” de Armas. The “Blade Runner a rare cunning for enlivening thy with an expansive family of and, in a running gag, are all over act, something Johnson makes up He’s accompanied by another 2049” actress (soon to be seen in old genres with densely plotted spoon-fed, entitled eccentrics that the map when it comes to her na- for with the payoff of his finale. detective (an underused Lakeith the next James Bond film, also deconstruction. He makes very would likely mix well with the tive South American country. A But for a movie with so many fine Stanfield) but he quickly makes with Craig) isn’t the biggest star clever movies (“Looper,” “Star dynasty of HBO’s “Succession.” deeper political dimension slowly actors having so much fun, we get Marta his sidekick; she has a useful in a film awash with A-listers. Wars: The Last Jedi”) that some- And as much intrigue as there is takes shape as the family’s cava- surprisingly little of the Throm- aversion to lies, throwing up every But with neither cloak nor dag- times, like in the madcap caper about Harlan’s death, for his chil- lier indifference to Marta plays beys as a whole. time she tells one. ger, she seizes “Knives Out.” It’s “The Brothers Bloom,” verge on dren there’s even more about his a role in the movie’s unspooling Instead, our detective calls almost There isn’t much that isn’t hers. showy overelaboration, of being inheritance. There’s his relator mysteries. Juggling themes of immediately. Enter Benoit Blanc knowing in Johnson’s dialogue. too much. daughter Linda (Jamie Lee Curtis) class privilege, immigration and (Daniel Craig), a flamboyant Lou- He delights in playing by the gen- “Knives Out,” a Lionsgate release, But in the whodunit, too much is and her cheating husband Richard ethnocentricity, “Knives Out” is a isiana investigator of such renown re’s rules and remaking them at is rated PG-13 by the Motion Pictu- usually a good thing. Give us all (Don Johnson), a vocal Trump su- whodunit for the Trump era. that he’s already been profiled once. There are winking referen- re Association of America for thema- the movie stars, plot twists and pporter; his son Walt (a sweater- Some mysteries first submerge in the New Yorker as “the last of ces here to “Hamilton” and “Baby tic content, some disturbing images murder weapons you can find. -wearing Michael Shannon) who themselves in set-up, the crime the gentleman sleuths.” Even with Driver,” and “Knives Out” more and strong language. Running time: When done well, there is almost runs his father’s publishing house in question and the entrance of such immaculate set dressing all than once risks being overwhel- 126 minutes. BOOK IT tTUNES AUTHOR LEE CHILD EXPLORES LEONARD COHEN’S POSTHUMOUS ORIGINS OF HERO CONCEPT ALBUM CENTERS ON POETRY he Hero, a non-fiction essay by Understated exceptions are the title track and a few Tauthor Lee Child, opens with lines here and there, but Cohen doesn’t really sing, AP PHOTO AP Child looking at language and how PHOTO AP not that his resonant voice needs a melody to con- words have different meanings over vey the experience, depth, humor, horror and beau- the space of time. Child also asks the ty of his lyrics. question of who was the first person Expanding on recordings made mostly at the same to initiate a particular word or phra- time as the sessions for “You Want It Darker,” se and have that definition mean the Adam Cohen and engineer/mixer Michael Chaves same for everyone. searched out some of the master’s previous collabo- As time passed, people began to tell rators and some new ones to complete the compo- each other stories. The stories proba- sitions. Among them are Sharon Robinson, Jennifer bly were basic at first and then over Warnes, the Shaar Hashomayim Synagogue Choir, time heroic traits were added to keep Beck, Daniel Lanois, Feist, Javier Mas, Zac Rae, the audience engaged with the tale. Patrick Leonard and Anjani Thomas. The works of Homer saw a hero as a “Happens to the Heart” opens the album with warrior who approached everything haunting guitar, laud and piano supporting Cohen’s with a sense of honor, kind of like listing of a life’s worth of experiences, the gentle the Klingons in “Star Trek.” Today, accompaniment from Andre de Ridder’s stargaze a hero can be described as a popular orchestra making the lines even more effective — athlete or someone who does the ri- Leonard Cohen, “Thanks for the Dance” (Columbia/ “I was always working steady/But I never called it ght thing under difficult circumstan- Legacy Recordings) art.” ces. How did that change occur? The title track could be a sequel to “Take This Child writes popular and intriguing eonard Cohen’s last album, released just weeks be- Waltz,” a 1980s song with lyrics Cohen adopted thrillers and his talent for compelling fore he passed in 2016, was “You Want It Darker,” from a poem by Federico García Lorca. Here the the- prose isn’t limited to fiction. He de- Lwhich had a sense of finality that made it a fine conclu- mes appear to be more personal, but just as inspired. livers an interesting premise and ba- sion to his brilliant musical career. Other highlights include the subtle flamenco airs of cks up his hypothesis with data and “Thanks for the Dance,” on the other hand, seems to “The Night of Santiago,” the dark-as-night and terri- personal insight. bring down the curtain on Cohen’s parallel universe, fying “Puppets” and closer “Listen to the Humming- What this book lacks in page count the poetry he started to publish long before he began bird,” a short but wise and emotional epilogue. more than compensates in a though- making records. “Thanks for the Dance” is like discovering a box of t-provoking discussion of the origins Illustrating the point, the new nine-track set is more like old letters — or in this case, poems — from a depar- of language, storytelling and what a Cohen spoken-word performance with very good and ted loved one. It’s an emotional experience that allows makes all of us human. empathetic musical backing, most of it composed by his Cohen’s great talents to be appreciated again.