Knox Goes Away (known in some markets as A Killer's Memory or Assassin's Plan) is a 2023 American crime thriller film directed by Michael Keaton and written by Gregory Poirier. It stars Keaton (who also co-produced) in the title role, with James Marsden, Suzy Nakamura, Joanna Kulig, Ray McKinnon, John Hoogenakker, Lela Loren, Marcia Gay Harden, and Al Pacino in supporting roles. It follows a contract killer with a rapidly evolving form of dementia, who vows to spend his final days attempting to redeem himself by saving the life of his estranged adult son. The film had its world premiere at the 48th Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2023, and was theatrically released in the United States on March 15, 2024, by Saban Films. It received mixed reviews from critics.

Plot

John Knox works a day-to-day job as a contract killer employed by Jericho, a crime boss. He is estranged from his wife and son and lives alone, only interacting with other members of his industry and Annie (Joanna Kulig), the Polish sex worker who comes to visit him once a week, who shares his love for books. Knox is diagnosed with a fast-moving form of dementia called Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease and quickly makes arrangements to cash out and retire from the business. Before that, he undertakes one last job with his partner, Thomas Muncie. During the job, after successfully killing his target but also unintentionally killing the woman who was with him in the shower, Knox accidentally kills Muncie in his dementia-fueled confusion. He quickly stages the scene and leaves. That night, he is unexpectedly visited by his estranged son, Miles, who tearfully admits to killing a man for raping his daughter, Knox's granddaughter. Knox instructs his son to remain quiet to the authorities as he later arrives at the crime scene and meticulously removes evidence that may incriminate Miles, while mysteriously storing them Away for later use. Meanwhile, dogged detective Emily Ikari is on both murder cases, determined to pinpoint the perpetrator. Knox later visits his friend Xavier Crane, a former thief. Together, they cook up a plan to set Knox's family up for life while leaving the business behind, all while Knox battles his fading mental state. Meanwhile, Detective Ikari links both crimes to a single perpetrator. She interrogates Knox to no effect. He plants the evidence he had previously stored Away around his son Miles' home, seemingly betraying him. Miles is arrested for the murder of his daughter's rapist, and is confronted by Knox in prison, where Knox accuses Miles of ratting him out in a tax evasion case several years prior. After getting lost in the woods after digging up his stash of diamonds at a cabin his family used to own, Knox is picked up by Crane and driven home. Upon reaching home, he is confronted by a group of burglars and Annie, who had become aware of Knox's dementia and the fact that he had been cashing out and ratted him out as a result. Killing them all, Knox confronts Annie at gunpoint and informs her that she would have gotten a share anyway. Despondent, Knox calls Xavier, who wishes him fortune before informing the police as part of their plan, whereupon he is arrested by Detective Ikari. The police later discover signs that the evidence found at Miles Knox's house may have been tampered with, and planted there by Knox, leading to the conclusion that Knox may have framed his own son for the murder. When asked by Ikari on a possible motive, Miles, recalling his father's accusation of him in prison, responds accordingly, shifting the blame fully over to Knox. He is then released. Several weeks later, Miles visits his father in prison. Knox, now having fully lost his mental faculties, does not recognize his own son and is later moved from prison to a medical facility, having only weeks left to live. Miles and his mother receive equal shares of Knox's fortune, ensuring the completion of his retirement plan. Annie, who is spared, is shown receiving Knox's library and opening the cover of A Tale of Two Cities. The film ends with a catatonic Knox staring out a window.

Cast

Production

In May 2022, it was announced that Michael Keaton was set to star in and direct Knox Goes Away. The film was produced by Brookstreet Pictures' Trevor Matthews and Nick Gordon, Sugar23's Michael Sugar and Ashley Zalta, along with Keaton. Principal photography wrapped in December 2022, after 25 days of shooting. Keaton shared his views on directing himself in the lead role: There are a lot of pluses to directing yourself. You have a head start and a big advantage in terms of time — there's less discussion because you don't have to have the discussion with yourself. There's a lot of wasted time on movie sets, and the energy just gets bogged down. You've got to keep the pace up so people don't get bored.

Release

Knox Goes Away premiered in the Special Presentations section of the 48th Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2023. International sales were handled by FilmNation Entertainment. In November 2023, Saban Films acquired U.S distribution rights to the film. The first trailer was released on February 14, 2024, and the film opened in theaters on March 15. It was then released on digital platforms on May 21, and on Blu-ray and DVD a week later, by Lionsgate Home Entertainment. It debuted on Max on July 26, 2024.

Reception

= Critical response

= On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 66% of 80 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.9/10. The website's consensus reads: "Michael Keaton directs Michael Keaton in Knox Goes Away, and gets a terrific performance out of himself — albeit one that's left stranded by an underwhelming screenplay." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 54 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews. Owen Gleiberman of Variety gave the film a very positive review, calling it "a silky and entrancing thriller." Gleiberman also wrote, "Keaton gives a beautifully psychological performance […]. The script, by Gregory Poirier, is tautly clever and original, and Keaton directs it with a cunning and skill that are quietly hypnotic." Jeannette Catsoulis of The New York Times remarked, "Knox Goes Away is, like its antihero, smart, unconventional and almost obsessively careful. Its unhurried pacing and mood of quiet deliberation won't be for everyone; but this low-key thriller resolves its shockingly high stakes with a twisty intelligence." Robert Abele of the Los Angeles Times stated, "Knox Goes Away should be noirishly enjoyable hokum. But instead, screenwriter Gregory Poirier's tribute to an earlier era's taciturn machismo is more muddled and ludicrous than fleet and clever." Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter commented, "The convoluted storyline is too clever by far, and might have proved entertaining if the film had been intended as an absurdist black comedy. Unfortunately, Keaton Goes in a more neo-noir direction." Esther Zuckerman of IndieWire gave the film a grade of "C-" and opined, "One just gets the sense that Knox Goes Away is unsure of what it's supposed to be. On one hand, it leans into the chillingly gruesome; on the other, it wants to laugh at the grimness of its own scenarios." Robert Daniels of RogerEbert.com gave it 1 out of 4 stars and wrote, "These glaring shortcomings and clumsy missteps would be fine if this film weren't so garish to look at. Flat photography and ungainly cuts undo the few moments where Keaton deploys himself to dispatch some goons."

= Accolades

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References

External links

Official website Knox Goes Away at IMDb