Rian Johnson hasn't lost his touch with the Benoit Blanc mysteries, in fact, cinematically, Wake Up Dead Man is probably the best of them. Visually, it just has a great sense of light and shadow, creating a faux-Gothic world in rural New England where the locked-room murder of a controversial priest has mystified the police. On a thematic level, it's feels mature than the other Knives Out films, with pregnant dissections of faith and (here) Catholic tenets that inform the story, but also move the action in novel ways. And it's more subtle than past "eat the rich" narratives, taking aim at dangerous cults of personality with the same stinging sense of humor, as the dead priest's flock fanatically anoint him and grant him immunity no matter what he does or says - which might remind us of certain public figures. The year is 2025, and a lot of name directors have given their takes on the Moment, but usually by slapping you in the face with them. Johnson keeps it thrumming in the background, but doesn't let it derail the mystery. In fact, he goes to an aspirational place, rather than an accusing one.