Crossword Mysteries: Abracadaver

A magician steps on stage, the room waits for the big reveal — and the trick ends with the performer dead instead of applause. Crossword Mysteries: Abracadaver (2020) is the cozy whodunit to watch online on iFILM.

Tess Harper edits the crossword section at a newspaper, but her real gift is reading people and clues the way she reads a grid — everything eventually intersects. The killing at the Magic Manor pulls her back together with Detective Logan O'Connor, and the spark between them is still very much there. Lacey Chabert and Brennan Elliott play the pair with an ease that carries the film even when the mystery idles. Eighty-four minutes, one clean case, no padding.

This is the third entry in Hallmark's Crossword Mysteries line, directed by Jonathan Wright, with a cameo from Will Shortz, the legendary New York Times puzzle editor. It's gentle, bloodless comfort viewing — the kind of detective movie you put on with a cup of tea. Stream Crossword Mysteries: Abracadaver (2020) online on iFILM.