[NoHo Arts District, CA] – In this month’s movie and TV reviews blog, Knox Goes Away!
Exhibit D (so many exhibits): Many of you might head to the theaters to see Michael Keaton return as Beetlejuice in Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice. However, if you’ve got time (and Max), it would be worth checking out Knox Goes Away, which he directs and stars as a hitman who is ready to retire (aren’t they all). He’s got good reason, since he discovers early on that he has a rapidly degenerative cognitive disease and he only has a number of weeks to get his affairs in order. This involves helping estranged son James Marsden, who has killed his daughter’s presumed rapist and turns to the only hit man he knows for help. Al Pacino and Lara Flynn-Boyle appear in support, but this is Keaton’s show. His Knox is an understated, compelling performance; as the tension builds, and Knox tries to maintain his lucidity while crafting his “getaway,” Keaton does wonders projecting Knox’s humanity throughout his deteriorating state. It’s one of the year’s better performances, and one well worth seeing.