Rian Johnson’s star-studded Knives Out is an Agatha Christie-esque whodunnit complete with a colorful cast of characters, a maybe-murder most foul, and an undercooked mystery that astute audience members will certainly figure out well before the intended reveal. As a fun, star-powered slice of old school murder mystery, Knives Out is a welcome bite of throwback entertainment, a high profile anti-blockbuster of sorts: free of CGI, action set pieces, and superheroics of any sort. In that capacity, the good-old-fashion Hollywood whodunnit is a welcome bit of counter-programming to the overly dramatic winter-season awards fare or the sensory-overwhelming, block-busting eye candy that dominates the box office, it’s just a shame that the whole enterprise feels so surface-level and ultimately easy to solve.

Ana de Armas plays Marta Cabrera, empathetic nurse and caretaker to the 85-year old publishing giant Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer). On the eve of Thombey’s birthday, the patriarch is struck down under cover of night. His throat slashed seemingly by his own hand, the incident cannot be officially ruled a suicide until gentleman private eye Benoit Blanc (played by a very game Daniel Craig, who dons an accent positively dripping with molasses) rules out foul play. As can so often be expected with these things, the suspect circumstances tell a story that is more than meets the eye and we’re launched into an investigation to reveal the truth lurking in the shadows. With a dream sheet of a cast that includes Toni Collette, Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, Katherine Langford, Michael Shannon, Chris Evans, and Lakeith Stanfield, Knives Out enjoys making suspects of the various players involved, taking time to direct a revolving door of blame at each and every individual, planting evidence that sways where the finger ought ultimately be pointed, with each performer presenting a different brand of over-cooked kook.

The Thrombey clan is a collection of entitlement made manifest; coiffed in couture, their ragtag nature shines through nonetheless, a clowning troop of overindulged adults and feckless offspring. There’s the weak-spirited prodigal son Walt (Shannon), happy to linger in the shadows and wait for scraps; the professed self-starter Linda (Curtis), trapped in a bad relationship and with very questionable parenting skills; the fruo-fruo naturopath Joni (Collette), slobbering for her next handout; and black sheep Ransom (Evans), a calculated playboy that reminds the patriarch Harlan of his younger self.

Each has sufficient reason to want their pops popped and the screenplay from Johnson follows the whodunnit formula to a t, digging into the various motives, last minute confrontations, and secret affairs lingering behind the veneer of grieving survivors and their overly tidy alibis. There’s all the pettiness and in-fighting one might expect from a wealthy American family, all certain that they deserve the most stake in the inheritance, and this is where Johnson’s film has the most fun: winding them up and watching them pop off at one another.

Collette, per usual, is a joy to watch but not even she can top Daniel Craig’s turn as Benoit Blanc, the 007 actor capturing a select blend of mouthy scenery-chewing and misty-eye world weariness. He’s a fantastic character, this gentleman detective, and I could easily see Johnson and Craig striking out once more to give Blanc another shot at solving some great American mystery or other. The problem for the movie lies in the fact that the mystery he’s cooked up is slightly unbaked, not nearly as clever or cryptic as Johnson assumes it to be. By the point where everything is being revealed to the audience, I personally felt ten steps ahead, having pieced everything together quite some time earlier, which can be satisfying in and of itself but did leave me wanting a bit more from the script.

Fortunately, the somewhat lacking mysterious elements of this mystery don’t handicap Knives Out from being a fun romp at the theater. Thanks to the killer ensemble, Johnson still deals up a kind of alternative event escapism, one that deals in star-power and smarm that is so often missing from the cineplexes. Likewise, there’s no denying just how much fun everyone involved seems to be having. Following on the heels of the divisive Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Johnson has tucked back into the sweet spot of modern noir where he made a name for himself. Movies like Brick and The Brothers Bloom ingratiated audiences to Johnson’s auteur style, converting old-timey Hollywood sensibilities to modern tastes and with Knives Out, he’s made his most audience-friendly version of that film yet.

CONCLUSION: Those wanting a taste of throwback whodunnit murder mystery will find much to enjoy within Rian Johnson’s star-studded ‘Knives Out’, just know that you very well might figure it all out before the detectives do.