‘See How They Run’ Review: Saoirse Ronan shines in comedic whodunnit
It’s official: murder mystery stories are cool again. Quite when they went out of fashion, we’re not too sure, but with the release of Rian Johnson’s Knives Out in 2017, interest in such stories spiked. Riddled with mystery and fast-paced quips, such modern takes on the age-old genre believe that it is their obligation to spin the murder mystery concept on its head, adding twist upon turn upon twirl in some sort of meta-re-analysis.
Such is certainly the case for Tom George’s latest movie, See How They Run. This shiny mystery flick is fueled by the off-beat comedy of his previous directorial success, This Country, spawning the contemporary British icons of Charlie and Daisy May Cooper. Whilst the latter could not join the impressive ensemble cast of See How They Run, Charlie makes the exclusive cut but undoubtedly misses the razor-sharp scriptwriting of the show which made his name.
Set in the West End of 1950s London, George’s film, created from the script by Mark Chappell, tells the story of a movie version of a smash-hit play that is brought to an abrupt close after a key member of the crew is murdered. Comedic co-workers Constable Stalker (Saoirse Ronan) and Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell) enter the scene and proceed to pick apart each key witness one by one until their investigation meets a surprising end.
The play itself is Agatha Christie’s iconic tale, The Mousetrap. Still, unlike the work of the influential crime novelist, Chappell’s script lacks mystery and carefully cranked tension, feeling more like a throwaway TV whodunnit rather than a spectacular feature film. However, See How They Run isn’t aiming for the same sensational drama as Johnson’s aforementioned Knives Out, using comedy to tell an altogether lighter tale. The problem is, the film isn’t funny enough to be an effective comedy, nor mysterious enough to be particularly gripping.
The result is an almost painfully serviceable drama that fails to live up to the potential of its impressive ensemble cast that sees the likes of Ronan and Rockwell go up against Harris Dickinson, Adrien Brody, David Oyelowo, Ruth Wilson, Tim Key and Reece Shearsmith. With such a bevvy of dramatic potential, this ensemble manages to elevate the material, squeezing the best drama and comedy out of a script that barely contains any drive at all.
Ronan comes off the sharpest of the eclectic bunch, with her exercise in comedy acting providing a refreshing addition to her impressive filmography and yet another string to her multi-talented bow.
Though well compiled, George’s feature film debut simply feels a little half-baked, striving for the visual snappiness of Knives Out and a dash of the meta-comedy that made Deadpool famous but with little conviction. Even as it pokes fun at its own murder-mystery context, screenwriter Mark Chappell can’t seem to muster the creative energy, falling back on convention to complete his tale that exits with a mere whimper.
Disappointing rather than totally incompetent, the real crime of See How They Run is its lack of firepower, providing a script that fails to truly invigorate its impressive cast, leaving a bland taste that prompts the thought, ‘is that it?’.
