Glass Onion review

     GLASS ONION is something that I've definitely missed the mark on reviewing as everyone who was a fan of KNIVES OUT probably watched the movie already and everyone who hasn't seen either should probably watch Knives Out first. However, if you are insane and still want to hear me rhapsodize on a fun mystery movie then, by all means, stay and enjoy the resulting article. It's a good movie and I kind of regret that its franchise was purchased by Netflix but it's not something that I worry about the future of if Glass Onion is any quality indication. It's every bit as good as Knives Out, even if it's good in different ways.

    The premise is yet another Agatha Christie-esque tale of a genius detective invited to a rich man's estate. Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) is heading to the private island of blatant Elon Musk parody Miles Bron (Edward Norton). There, Miles has assembled a collection of his closest friends and supporters who are all under his thumb in one way or another. These include Men's Rights Activist Duke Cody (Dave Batista), Democratic Governor Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn), scientist Lionel Toussaint (Leslie Odom Jr), and Instragram influencer Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson). They're also joined by Cassandra Brand (Janelle Monae) who is someone all of the guests think has reason to kill Miles.

    The plot is the usual Agatha Christie nonsense that we all know and love. There's the subtle social commentary and class warfare going on with the guests being all oblivious to how much they're dismissive of anyone outside of their social circle. Fans from both sides of the aisle can see exaggerated caricatures of both the Far Right as well as limousine liberals. As before, there's people who are ostensibly sympathetic to the disenfranchised who will immediately throw them under the bus if it means benefiting themselves. One of the rules of Christie-style mysteries is that everyone must have a motive to kill the victim and you're usually willing to believe they will commit murder. Which means the victim is often awful and suspects are terrible people themselves.

    The parody of Elon Musk is particularly heavy handed with much of the movie existing to debunk the idea that he's some sort of visionary genius that will lead us through the Dark Ages to miracles of technology. Instead, Miles Bron is nothing more than a psychopathic man child who is utterly incapable of understanding how the science behind his ideas isn't there. He is a fantastic salesman, though, and that convinces people to go along with his obviously ill-conceived ideas. That and he's rich. You could argue the movie is also making a commentary about other kinds of privilege in the movie too but it doesn't need to do so directly.

    The movie takes place during the 2020 pandemic and we get some small nods toward the fact the rich chose not to isolate themselves in the slightest while the majority of us were suffering cabin fever and addicted to things like Among Us. It adds another sense of subtext to the film that doesn't really need to get too deep into lecturing the audience that there were rules for the public that just didn't apply to other people. In this case, Miles Bron has his own island resort that he can ride out the pandemic from without anyone or anything affecting him.

    If I had one small complaint about the movie, it's that Janelle Monáe has some big shoes to fill as as Benoit Blanc's new companion. Ana De Aramis did a fantastic job as Marta and I kind of wish she'd shown up as his regular sleuthing partner this time around. Janelle does a decent enough job but there's not as much for her to work on as with poor Marta trying to make sure she wasn't blamed for Harlan Thromby's murder. 

    Rian Johnson was a poor fit for Star Wars because a lot of us geeks just want to see our heroes have the happy endings they deserve. However, he's a fantastic director when it comes to doing mysteries and light comedies. The stakes are serious in Glass Onion, just like Knives Out, but it's one of the most hysterical films I've ever enjoyed without going into full-on comedy. Really, Knives Out and Glass Onion are the sequels to Clue that I never got in my childhood. I don't much care what they do with a certain painting but that and a few minor other quibbles are the only things I have to bring up. It is a very fun, entertaining movie.

9/10