In the West End of 1950s London, plans for a movie version of a smash-hit play come to an abrupt halt after a pivotal crew member is murdered.
I must admit that I dreaded writing about “See How They Run.” With every advertisement, I thought, “Oh, that’s the dumb new David O. Russell ensemble film.” While the film resembles “Amsterdam” with its theater nerd-based humor, it wasn’t as bad as Russell’s. Directed by Tom George and written by Mark Chappell, “See How They Run” is a love letter to Agatha Christie whodunnits with a Wes “Andersonian” aesthetic. While the screenplay is not as brilliant as the film wants it to be, it is undeniably entertaining throughout. Like Billy Wilder’s posthumous narration in “Sunset Boulevard,” Adrian Brody narrates “See How They Run” after his character is murdered.
Leo Kopernick (Adrian Brody) is a loudmouthed American director who pisses off every cast and crew member on his West End adaptation of Christie’s latest murder mystery. So when he turns up murdered, Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell) and Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan) have a long list of suspects to sift through. Rockwell and Ronan are the true standouts, with Ronan lowkey stealing all the laughs.
When one of the cast members inquires whether Kopernick’s tongue was removed, Stoppard declares, “we can’t divulge those details,” With perfect comedic timing, Stalker says, “It was disgusting!” Stoppard prefers to patronize the pubs over doing investigative work. Stalker, on the other hand, is in murder mystery heaven.
Since the lighthearted weight of the film gives plenty of moments for reflection, my biggest takeaway is this talented cast is so underused. Adrian Brody was on a rocket ship to stardom, but after his inappropriate behavior at the Oscars and an uncalled-for Jamaican character on SNL, he had to disappear for a bit. David Oyelowo has barely been onscreen besides a recent miniseries on BBC; where has he been? After Oyelowo played MLK in Ava Duvernay’s “Selma,” I am shocked he’s not a standard leading man in Hollywood. And finally, Sam Rockwell. Rockwell is hands-down of the funniest and most charismatic actors who has not been used to his full potential. Whenever he sinks into a role, you can see him lose himself. He always reminded me of Christopher Walker with his penchant for spontaneously dancing in a scene and how it always works. While most theater-centric stories and Agatha Christie mysteries aren’t my usual cup of tea, “See How They Run” was more fun than I expected.
Now available on Digital HD
