GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY (2022)

GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY (2022)

Tagline: Maybe they figured any tagline would just give too many clues, so they don’t have one.

(Mystery, Drama, and Of Course Murder) [PG-13]

In this one, a group of friends is invited to a yearly event with their billionaire friend Miles Bron. This time it’s at a private island in a massive mansion called “The Glass Onion”. Miles plans a murder mystery weekend, but things descend into fear, jealousy, blackmail, and deceit when a real murder occurs.

One thing I loved about this one is the cast and if you have seen enough of Edward Norton who plays Miles, you know he can kill it as either a good guy or a bad guy. His duplicitous nature always keeps you guessing and I loved that. The other things I really liked involved the setting. Having this movie take place on a small private island is already giving it a built-in sense of claustrophobic tension. The setting is pretty over the top regarding the mansion, but it still all works for the plot brilliantly. 

I don’t know that anyone really had to get out of their box acting for this movie except maybe Daniel Craig who once again takes on his KNIVES OUT role as the southern sleuth Benoit Blanc. I am a huge fan of Jessica Henwick (LOVE AND MONSTERS) who plays Peg. Peg’s role is massively reduced in comparison to the rest of the cast, but they gave her a reason to be there which at least tells me that when Rian Johnson wrote this, he wanted to cover all the bases for everything while also throwing in some miss direction. I never try to figure out the killer in a mystery movie, just because that ruins it for me, but if there are any complaints, it might be that the killer becomes obvious right as the 3rd act begins. That is far better than the killer being revealed in the first act however like what happened in KNIVES OUT. 

The soundtrack is not too memorable and the score is fitting but not mind-blowing. I do think one thing that might have helped this out was having a tropical storm during the final act, but given some of the scenes they wanted to get in here, it wouldn’t have worked. Regarding the rest of the cast, Leslie Odom Jr. does an outstanding job as Lionel Toussaint. Odom Jr. is no stranger to mystery movies though; he was also in MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS. Kathryn Hahn (ANCHORMAN: THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY) plays Claire Debella in this and kills it. I think she is hit-and-miss, this one was a hit for her. Madelyn Cline (STRANGER THINGS) is decent as Whiskey. Kate Hudson (BRIDE WARS) is pretty cringy as Birdie Jay. I am sure that is what the director wanted though. Janelle Monáe (HIDDEN FIGURES) is outstanding as Andi Brand. She also has a pretty serious accent in this one, which seems to be something director Rian Johnson looks for. Dave Bautista (GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY) plays Duke Cody. I did not like his character in this, but normally when he shows up in a movie I get pretty pumped because he’s usually a huge plus. 

How this movie sets itself apart from the first movie is that we just have a better cast overall and we get to see the mystery play out. The way this is told is brilliant and superbly crafted making it one of the best and most fun mystery movies in the past decade, if not the best. That’s right. I said it. I haven’t read a single review on this one so I have no idea what others are saying, but I was blown away. I can’t wait for the 3rd installment in this intriguing and wonderful series. 

Overall I have to give this one a 6 out of 7. There is a subtle but forced bit of background in here that really annoyed me, but clearly, it wasn’t enough to kill my final analysis. 

GRAPHICS ARE THE PROPERTY OF LIONSGATE AND ARE USED FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY. 

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