Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Review

If you were a fan of the original Knives Out film – you know, the surprise smash-hit whodunit from Rian Johnson that dominated at the box office, scored several Oscar nominations, and gave the world a new appreciation for Daniel Craig’s comedic timing – you’ve likely been waiting with bated breath for its sequel, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.* And if you haven’t seen Knives Out, well, you definitely need to watch it ASAP, as it’s just a whole lot of fun and it’s available on Netflix – which, coincidentally, is where Glass Onion is set to begin airing on December 23, following this brief stint in movie theatres.

*Netflix made the shrewd move of securing Johnson’s next two Knives Out mysteries in a talent deal following the success of the first film, meaning that we’ve still got at least one more original mystery to be solved by the great Southern detective. And, as films need a minimal theatrical release to be eligible for the Academy Awards, this limited release not only allows fans the chance to catch the film a month early, it also allows the film to qualify for nominations – of which I suspect there will be several.

Fans of the original film will be thrilled to hear that its sequel – which sees Craig’s master detective Benoit Blanc invited to a murder mystery weekend on an isolated island in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, only to discover that the weekend’s host isn’t sure just how Blanc managed to score the coveted invite since he didn’t provide it. Much like with the first film, there’s a host of colorful characters surrounding Blanc, each with a motive for murder, and once the victim is revealed, the story manages to meander just enough to leave multiple avenues open as to who the killer was. As someone who is notoriously good at figuring these type of stories out, I’m happy to admit that I wasn’t able to piece everything together until Blanc revealed the truth to the assembled parties near the close of the film (although I managed to get some of the details ahead of time). So, as a murder mystery, Glass Onion certainly succeeds as a triumph.

But the rest of the film – and there’s a lot of story that doesn’t directly relate to the murder at its center – also works spectacularly well. Craig is, once again, clearly having the time of his life as Blanc. The accent is as thick as ever, but this time around he’s allowed to lean a bit more into his comedy chops. Instead of rolling into the scene and interviewing suspects, he’s embedded among them, interacting with them in their daily life (or, as much as a daily life one can have when trapped on a sprawling island estate with your supposed best friends for a fun and care-free weekend while the rest of the world is trapped in their homes during a pandemic, yes there are a lot of genuinely funny pandemic jokes, too). It’s a different look for the detective – and we also get a bit of a look at how Blanc lives when he’s not out solving murders (there are a lot of great cameos in the film, but none better than the ones we get during our look into Blanc’s home life, including his pandemic friend group, which includes two recently departed giants of the entertainment world in their final onscreen appearances).

Surrounding Blanc this time around are a host of spoiled, pretty awful, rich folks. The center of this circle of friends is Edward Norton’s Myles Bron, a tech billionaire who is as vapid as you would expect. The weekend is at his behest, drawing his friends to his island for their annual retreat. Kathryn Hahn is Claire, the Governor of Connecticut who is in the midst of a Senate run and desperate to keep her liberal base happy. Leslie Odom, Jr. is Lionel, a scientist who works in Myles’ tech company, tasked with making sure Myles’ more obscure thoughts can become reality. Dave Bautista gets to prove his comedy bona fides as Duke, a YouTube men’s rights influencer who has a younger, perky girlfriend in Whiskey (Madelyn Cline), who might not be as flighty as she seems. Rounding out the crew are Kate Hudson as Birdie, as former supermodel, and Janelle Monáe, as Andi, Myles’ former business partner who has been cut out of the company, but who chose to come to the weekend for an unknown reason. Out of this stunning cast – there isn’t a weak link in the group – Hudson and Monáe turn out to be the film’s MVPs. Hudson has never been as funny – it’s amazing what happens when a strong comedic actor is allowed to really let loose – and Monáe has the ability to handle both the comedy and the deep dramatic elements necessary to ground the film. We need to believe that Andi is hurt – that Myles screwed her over – and Monáe makes it easy to understand just what this betrayal cost her.

Writing a review for a film like this one is tricky. I want to spend some time praising the plot, but to do so would mean starting to unravel the mystery, and that’s just not right. So, let me just say that I found myself laughing, gasping, groaning, and wholly enraptured throughout the entire film. If you’re planning on waiting until this is out on Netflix for a nice holiday movie watch with the family, you won’t be disappointed. The script is smart, scathing in its humor at times (the pillorying of various characters and their self-absorbed ways is brilliantly handled), and we get a full understanding of our characters – not an easy thing to do while also threading a murder mystery through the arcs. I, for one, can’t wait to watch it a second time to catch each of the key moments I missed the first time around. I suspect, much like Knives Out, this film will hold up admirably for multiple viewings even after you know who did it.

So, if you’re looking for a wonderfully fun and twisty film this holiday season (or, if you’re willing and able to brave an in-person screening this week), Glass Onion is going to be well-worth your time. I cannot wait to see what mystery Benoit Blanc is asked to solve in his next outing.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is out for a truncated theatrical release in the US. It will begin streaming on Netflix on December 23.