5. “Knives Out” (2019) Johnson assembles a superlative cast for his Agatha Christie-esque whodunnit, with Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Chris Evans, Toni Collette and Don Johnson playing the family of a wealthy mystery novelist, played by Christopher Plummer, whose sudden, suspicious death attracts the attention of Daniel Craig’s super sleuth. They’ve all got motives, but “Knives Out” is more interested in the victim’s hired help, played by Ana de Armas, who has one hell of a secret. Johnson’s whirligig direction and gleaming ensemble keep “Knives Out” engaging and kooky, but the filmmaker’s efforts to give this airplane-novel narrative deeper meaning feel perfunctory. Worse, the mystery runs out of steam quickly and, despite some valiant efforts, never quite picks up again. “Knives Out” is never dull, but it doesn’t have much of a point.
