Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery review: A layered-yet-predictable story that stands out due to its sharp execution

3/5

In a brand-new Rian Johnson mystery, Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) makes a comeback to reveal the truth. In this brand-new adventure, the intrepid detective is found at an opulent private mansion on a Greek island, but that is just the beginning of many mysteries. Blanc quickly meets a group of friends who are at their annual get-together because billionaire Miles Bron (Edward Norton) invited them. The guest list also includes influencer Duke Cody (Dave Bautista) and his sidekick girlfriend Whiskey (Madelyn Cline), the former business partner Miles Andi Brand and current governor of Connecticut Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn), forward-thinking scientist Lionel Toussaint (Leslie Odom Jr.), and fashion designer and former model Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson). Each individual has their own motives, secrets, and lies, much as in the best murder mysteries. Everyone is a suspect when a body is discovered.

In one of the scenes in the second half, Kate Hudson as Birdie Jay screams, "What is reality?" And I was wondering how this movie came to be, because it is exactly what the title implies: shattering like glass and layered like an onion. After seeing the team solve a patriarch's murder case in 2019 with Knives Out, Glass Onion isn't quite the murder mystery it aspires to be. The film begins with a group of odd people coming together on a private island in an onion-shaped mansion belonging to Miles Bron (Edward Norton). There begins a murder mystery party weekend, which his guests have to solve. However, things suddenly take a steep turn when an actual murder takes place.

With the constant dialogue based on the layers of an onion, Benoit Blanc takes charge and solves the not-so-tough mystery. But one thing is clear about the Knives Out franchise: it's never about whodunit, but always about how it was done and how it came about.

The moment everyone enters the island and takes a tour of Glass Onion, we know it's a maze or a booby trap, where anyone and everyone will be left with no answers or a lot of planned unraveling to take place. The movie will keep you interested because of how well everything is put together and how strange the cast is.

Rian Johnson's screenplay is set against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of the restrictions the world had at that time, an isolated island is used. When you have a writer who is also the director of the film, the script-to-screen translation is oozy and very much a cakewalk in terms of execution. That's what works well for Glass Onion.

Craig walks into the crime scene with a strong Southern accent and starts questioning the scene instead of the suspects. Giving everyone a back story, there is one character, Cassandra "Andi" Brand, played by Janelle Monáe, who brings in a lot of mysteries around her, just like her piercing eyes. With both of them coming and creating chaos, Glass Onion's predictable plot becomes quite entertaining, so to speak.

The film is up-to-date with internet lingo, and thus the dialogues are quite what you hear people around you talking about, with pop culture references every now and then.

The "disruptors," as the group calls themselves, stay true to their name. We all live in a professional world where, when you meet your closest friends, you remove the shield and become yourselves just like you were when you met them for the first time. Glass Onion largely speaks about that, wherein no matter how rich one can get, there will always be a simpleton approach you show when you are with your near and dear ones.

Talking about these friends, the one to watch out for among the talented lot is Kate Hudson, who seemed to have the most fun playing this not-so-smart but stylish character. The actor looked the part, slew it, and slew it well, going from knowing nothing about sweatshops to knowing everything!

This has to be followed by Edward Norton. The actor blends so well as Bron that you will hate him for being snobbish and laugh at him for being a fool during his interactions with Blanc. It's quite a range the actor has shown in the film, which felt like something he has portrayed onscreen for a very long time.

Monáe is a delight to watch in the role, which is both mysterious and savage. There are times when she shows two sides of herself, and she does both sides perfectly, leaving you wanting more.

Last but not least, Daniel Craig, as Benoit Blanc puts it, lets his sharp blue eyes do the talking. He continues making puzzles, leaving everyone confused and trying their hands at decoding them. It's a joy to see the actor in a cool blue suit after hanging up his James Bond suit. There's a slight shift in his approach from the 2019 film, making it more of a suave watch.

Rian Johnson did what he does best! Making the sets' atmosphere the main storyline and the actors in them playing along with it, with each character given equal weight, it's the hidden clues that elevate the play. Well, even a Mona Lisa painting has a role to play; what else can we ask for?

Because of the outrageous dialogue delivered by each character, the mystery-thriller can be classified as a comedy film. The mystery-thriller can be called an out-and-out comedy film because of an outlandish dialogues punched by each character. It's laughable to typecast how the self-proclaimed smartest man in the room is deep-necked into a lack of originality. The climax is a stress reliever, filled with clap-worthy sequences.

Along with that, Nathan Johnson's music also blends well, giving it an operatic as well as a pop touch. Giving each character a theme and ending the film with the Glass Onion song by the Beatles will keep your feet tapping throughout.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is filled with predictability, but Rian Johnson's execution with obnoxious characters coming together makes it worth the wait and an entertaining watch.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is not Knives Out and takes a completely different approach. The losing touch of Agatha Christie makes the Netflix film actually interesting, as it brings out the originality of modern times and how technology and the advancement of science always lead to the destruction of minds and the world. The layers have been peeled away and the glass has shattered, revealing all of the answers in about two hours.