Netflix – Murder Mystery

by Hans A. Carpenter

hans@freeburgtribune.com

Release Date: June 14

Director: Kyle Newachek

Starring: Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, and Luke Evans

Mister Marquee Says: Clueless

Number: 2/5

     Nick (Adam Sandler) and his wife Audrey (Jennifer Aniston) go on a European vacation and are invited to board a yacht by an aristocratic playboy (Luke Evans) as a way of getting back at his billionaire uncle. When said billionaire is murdered on the yacht, the unwitting Americans become the prime suspects and have to unravel the mystery.

     When my significant other roped me into streaming Murder Mystery, I wondered what I had done to deserve being subjected to a prolonged exposure to Adam Sandler. This is the least awful Sandler movie to come out in quite some time. Sandler mercifully turns the schtick down this time, with less screaming, annoying voices and farts than one would typically expect. Is Murder Mystery good? No, it’s not. This is all the more apparent when Knives Out showed just how good a sharp, witty ensemble murder mystery could be.

     It’s mildly entertaining, but the mystery isn’t that interesting. The characters aren’t outlandish enough to be silly fun or subtle enough to be interesting, and the script is just dull. That being said, Murder Mystery is watchable. It’s not the highest praise for sure, but considering the caravan of hideous trash Sandler has driven for years, chalk this up as a win. There’s not much meat on the bone at all, but if you want something to pop on in the background while you’re hanging out in the living room, there are worse movies to choose, and most of them star Adam Sandler.