When Vivien Leigh was chosen to portray Scarlett O'Hara in "Gone with the Wind," some of the book's fans protested about a Brit playing a Southern lady. The casting was forgiven when she proved up to the task.

Not so forgiving were blacks and Asians when whites were cast as minorities. Al Jolson in blackface in the first talkie. Marlon Brando as Japanese in "Teahouse of the August Moon." Laurence Olivier as a Moor in "Othello."

Now we come to Daniel Craig, trying to be a Southerner in "Knives Out." It doesn't work. His New Orleans (?) accent is merely annoying. If there were a Southern Anti-Bias League, they would protest.

Oh, the film. Once you get past the absurdity of the premise, it works well enough to rate it a 6.