Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)- BFI London Film Festival 2022

Review

139min

Genre:       Comedy, Crime, Mystery

Director:     Rian Johnson

Cast:         Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe…and more

Writers:     Rian Johnson

-Synopsis-

A mysterious invitation brings renowned detective ‘Benoit Blanc’ and a rag-tag group of “disruptors” to a luxurious coastal getaway and the Greek private island home of a tech billionaire, where a seemingly friendly weekend murder-mystery gathering of disparate characters with co-dependent ties to their host soon turns into a murder scene when one of them turns up dead and everyone is a suspect, with the southern sleuth soon jumping on the case in this whodunnit follow-up from the writer/director of ‘Knives Out’.

After taking major inspiration from his literary heroine and successfully re-inventing himself as the 21^st century cinematic answer to Agatha Christie, Rian Johnson digs into Netflix’s pockets and returns with his Poirotesque creation. Sending him on a new far-flung sleuthing mission in lavish and irreverent style, assembling a fresh eclectic all-star cast around him for an Instagram generation murder-mystery with plenty of chuckles and twists—and a socially-conscious but riotous multi-pronged attack on the powerful and unaccountable in today’s rather ridiculous society.

Daniel Craig returns as celebrated southern sleuth ‘Blanc’, made idle by the pandemic but pulled back into the thick of it by an unexpected invitation to a whodunnit weekend at the lavish and gawdy Greek island compound of eccentric faux-hippie tech billionaire ‘Miles Bron’ (Edward Norton). Along with the overambitious mogul’s other guests and friends/dependants; including oblivious and inappropriate flamboyant fashionista ‘Birdie Jay’ (Kate Hudson), beefy brash streamer and “men’s rights advocate” ‘Duke’ (Dave Bautista), and compromised congresswoman ‘Claire Debella’ (Kathryn Hahn)—plus Bron’s mysterious and resentful tech ex-partner ‘Andi Brand’ (Janelle Monáe), who unexpectedly turns up to stir the pot.

Backed by Netflix with a meaty budget and determined to provide an escapist tonic to the madness of the world around us, Johnson takes the mystery foundations of Agatha Christie and others and builds atop it a cathedral of spectacle and humour stuffed with eclectic characters, pop culture references, social commentary, absurdist behaviour, and of course some intrigue. Setting it all on a lavish private island modern art monstrosity of an estate, largely filmed off the picturesque coast of southern Greece and brightly shot by cinematographer and regular Rian Johnson collaborator Steve Yedlin (Looper, Knives Out).

There’s no denying that ‘Glass Onion’ is a riotous and twisty modern mystery of its time and for its time, with all the pop-culture references and celebrity name-dropping to match, yet Johnson can’t help but reflect the craziness of our time and make a far more socially conscious film than its predecessor. Not only is it set during the pandemic and one of the first major films to comedically use COVID as a part of the narrative, but it also has plenty to say about our ludicrous culture in the west. Taking satirical aim at everything from influencers and fashionistas to politicians and populists, streamers and YouTubers to irresponsible futurists and business moguls, while indirectly singling out certain familiar headline-grabbing tech billionaires for special treatment.

Rian Johnson also centres the story around a group of eccentric and successful so-called “disruptors” who gather on the island, but in fact are just self-serving opportunists suckling on the tit of an unaccountable tycoon, which is the writer/director’s commentary on the capitalist symbiosis between politics, the media and big business, and what it will really take to truly change the game. And while ‘Knives Out’ was about breaking systems of power and privilege, ‘Glass Onion’ is about dousing everything with gasoline and throwing a match on it, no matter the consequences, taking advantage of the frustration and rage the audience will likely bring with them to the film.

The social commentary here is fairly superficial though which is ironic for a film whose title and narrative are about false layers, and Johnson often reaches for low-hanging fruit, saying what he wants with a sense of humour but also a sense of righteous indignation on behalf of the audience, walking the fine line between crowd-pleasing and pandering to the crowd, but just about staying the right side of it.

Much like the Agatha Christie stories which so inspired it, the ‘Knives Out’ series ethos seems to be a revolving door ensemble cast of interesting characters who all get their time to shine in the sun of intrigue, but anchored by a returning sleuth who weaves them all together, and ‘Glass Onion’ is ultimately the ‘Benoit Blanc’ show with Daniel Craig adding so much character with so many flourishes, while leading the audience through a twisting plot . . . and hilariously chewing up the scenery in style. He’s meanwhile well supported by a diverse group of suspects/co-stars, with Edward Norton on form as the obnoxious overambitious catalyst of the piece and Janelle Monáe making her mark on double-duty as its moral heart, while the likes of Kate Hudson and Dave Bautista get to let loose and hilariously steal many a scene as the more flashy but flawed party guests.

Even though this is a big twisting modern whodunnit with plenty of creative elements thrown in the mix, there’s less genuine intrigue than in its predecessor or indeed in the kind of literature which inspired it, with the mystery element more readily taking a back seat to big character comedy and sassy social commentary, and with a scattershot narrative taking place largely in flashback and with quite a bit of plot-explaining monologuing. By the end it hardly seems to matter who committed the murder, why, and how—with the focus shifting to what everyone decides to do about it.

But ‘Glass Onion’ is also an exceedingly stylish, well-choreographed and majorly enjoyable ride of a movie. A fun and funny character piece featuring a cast furnished with spritely Rian Johnson dialogue packed with clever quips and comical but cutting observational humour, making for a crowd-pleaser designed for audiences ready to vent their frustrations about the world and looking for a cathartic conclusion—and most importantly just under two-and-a-half hours of slick and gratifying entertainment.

The Bottom Line…

‘Glass Onion’ signals a successful new instalment for Rian Johnson’s burgeoning 21^st century whodunnit series, a riotous and inventive murder-mystery character comedy which overwhelms any narrative shortcomings with style, larger-than-life personalities, and the dialogue to match. All carried comfortably on the shoulders of a sleuthing creation and the suave star bringing him to life, who promise to charmingly solve cases and delight audiences for years to come.

‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’ is out on limited release in UK and US cinemas on the 23rd of November, as is available on Netflix from the 23rd of December.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

Knives Out (2019)

When the wealthy author patriarch of a combative and dysfunctional American family unexpectedly dies at one of their gatherings, a police detective and a celebrated private investigator are sent to investigate, but soon find more than they bargained for . . . and more than meets the eye—in an all-star 21st century take on the whodunnit murder-mystery from the writer/director of ‘Looper’ and ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’.

Directed by Rian Johnson and starring Daniel Craig, Chris Evans and Ana de Armas among others.

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