Suspense In And Then There Were None And Knives Out

Suspense is the key element to a good mystery. But how is it presented? What is the best way to put the audience on the edge of their seat? These questions are frequently answered but never are the same. In Agatha Christie’s novel, And Then There Were None ten people are invited to an isolated island by someone by the name U. N. Owen. Once there strangely one by one begins to die in the order of a nursery rhyme framed across the entire house. As the count in deaths grows those left begin to become fearful and suspicious of each other. In Rian Johnson’s Knives Out after the celebration of Harlen Thrombey’s 85th birthday his caretaker Marta accidentally gives Harlen an overdose of morphine. Unable to find naloxone, the medicine that would save

In the novel And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie and Rian Johnson's Knives Out develops suspense through similar red herrings and different detectives.

Both And Then There Were None and Knives Out have multiple red herrings that lead the viewer/reader to believe something other than the truth. In Christie’s novel And Then There Were None a red herring is presented to the reader when Lombard asks who Claythorne believes the murderer is and says, “Two of the deaths have been poison. That rather points to a doctor. And then you can’t get over the fact that we are absolutely certain Mrs. Rogers had was the sleeping draught that he gave her” (170). Concretely, the phrase “two deaths have been poison” suggests that Dr. Armstrong is the killer because not doctors usually know a lot about medicine and are able to get ahold of it. Plus, the phrase “Mrs. Rogers had was the sleeping draught that he gave

The house in Knives Out is very mysterious and dark giving an ominous vibe while in And Then There Were None the house is modern and light. In Knives Out the mansion is dark and spine-chilling because of all the hiding places and creepy antiques covering the layout. As the housekeeper walks through the old mansion there are pictures and statues of heads, animals and people that crowd the house making it darker than outside. With every step up the dark stairs is a loud creaking noise giving the house age the further up the steps the housekeeper goes. (Johnson) The mansion gives the audience an unsettling vibe as they get a little tour of the inside. The more the audience gets a look at the house the more anxious they become. The setting sets the general mood of the story throughout the movie having the biggest in Knives Out. But, in And Then There Were None this changes. Instead of dark and creepy vibes the house is bright and modern, giving the reader a feeling of peace and safety. “The house was there facing south—low and square and modern looking with round windows letting in all the light. An exciting house—a house that lives up to expectation” (29). The phrase “a house that lives up to expectation” gives the impression that the house is safe. Additionally, the description of the house being “modern looking with round windows letting in all the light'' makes