Although Netflix’s upcoming murder mystery movie The Thursday Murder Club has more than a pᴀssing similarity to the Knives Out franchise, the Richard Osman adaptation also has something the earlier franchise doesn’t boast. Director Rian Johnson’s Knives Out movies are critically acclaimed for a reason. The starry whodunnits managed to recapture the mood of author Agatha Christie’s funniest murder mysteries, with Daniel Craig’s hammy Benoit Blanc proving just as memorably quirky as Poirot or Miss Marple.
Even some of the best Agatha Christie adaptations can’t rival the Knives Out movies when it comes to pure whodunnit fun, so it would be tough for any murder mystery franchise to match their appeal. However, Netflix’s starry adaptation of author Richard Osman’s hit novel series The Thursday Murder Club intends to do just that. The Christie homage The Thursday Murder Club follows a group of elderly retirement home residents who try to solve cold cases for fun and inevitably run into trouble when one of their mysteries starts to warm up.
The Thursday Murder Club Is More Poignant Than The Knives Out Movies
Rian Johnson’s Murder Mysteries Are Famously Playful
The Thursday Murder Club unexpectedly finds themselves at the center of an active murder investigation as the novel’s action ramps up. Before long, they need to use their years of expertise to crack the case. On the surface, The Thursday Murder Club sounds a lot like the Knives Out movies. With Helen Mirren, Pierce Brosnan, Ben Kingsley, David Tennant, and Celia Imrie headlining the cast, director Christopher Columbus’s adaptation is clearly just as heavy on star power as Johnson’s franchise.
Compared to Knives Out and its sequel, Glᴀss Onion, The Thursday Murder Club is a lot less goofy and satirical and more sincere and moving.
However, The Thursday Murder Club has a secret weapon that the Knives Out movies lack. Although the book is a cozy mystery, both the aging of the main characters and, crucially, the solution to the mystery itself are surprisingly sad and dramatic. Compared to Knives Out and its sequel, Glᴀss Onion, The Thursday Murder Club is a lot less goofy and satirical and more sincere and moving. Where Glᴀss Onion’s ending is a riotous, explosive affair, The Thursday Murder Club’s poignant conclusion is more likely to elicit tears than laughs.
The Thursday Murder Club’s Knives Out Differences Are Key To Its Success
Netflix’s Starry Upcoming Murder Mystery Movie Must Stand Out
It is a good thing that The Thursday Murder Club diverges from the Knives Out franchise formula so clearly, since the two series are destined to be pitted against each other. The Knives Out movies are already a huge hit murder mystery franchise with starry casts and a quirky sense of humor, and Netflix’s upcoming Osman adaptation also fits this specific description. As such, it is a relief that The Thursday Murder Club will feel very different in terms of tone thanks to its sadder storyline.
The Thursday Murder Club’s plot owes as much to Agatha Christie’s later Poirot stories as it does to the playful goofiness of the lighter Miss Marple mysteries, which is a welcome change of pace. Although The Simpsons already spoofed The Thursday Murder Club well before the movie’s release, the novel’s story is far from entirely light-hearted and silly. The plot incorporates themes of ageism, living with dementia, the ethics of medical ᴀssistance in dying, and other complex, heavy topics.
The Thursday Murder Club’s Poignant Tone Mirrors Its Agatha Christie Influence
Christie’s Murder Mysteries Were More Moving Than Readers Remember
Osman’s book feels a lot like one of Poirot’s later adventures, which have an elegiac feel to them as Christie prepares to permanently retire the famous detective with his last case. In contrast, the Knives Out franchise often feels like a live-action cartoon and this is clearly an intentional stylistic choice. With 2005’s underrated Brick, Johnson proved he could make a compelling, ᴅᴇᴀᴅly serious detective story without losing his quirky sensibilities and wit. As such, viewers know the Knives Out movies are meant to be over-the-top and comedic by design.
The Thursday Murder Club’s poignant undertones will make it stand out among recent murder mystery movies, particularly now that Kenneth Branagh’s Poirot trilogy has reached its end. Although the ending of A Haunting In Venice did see Branagh incorporate some of the sadness from Christie’s later stories, the first two movies in the series were more bombastic. Unlike Branagh’s Poirot movies, The Thursday Murder Club will be outright comedic and, if it is anything like the source novel, will rely on character comedy to drive many pivotal scenes.
The Thursday Murder Club shouldn’t have trouble emerging from the shadow of the Knives Out franchise.
However, The Thursday Murder Club can differentiate itself from Netflix’s other star-studded murder mystery comedy series with its sadder story elements. It is these touching moments that made Osman’s novels a global success despite their distinctly British cultural references, and it is the same humanity that allowed Christie’s work to endure for decades after Poirot’s final case. As such, The Thursday Murder Club shouldn’t have trouble emerging from the shadow of the Knives Out franchise.
