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Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Glass Onion

Rian Johnson is back, and his new film is near genius.

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For a relatively short time, Rian Johnson was one of Hollywood's most controversial figures. Thanks to Star Wars: The Last Jedi, his work, and his methods, became among the most controversial in recent memory, but much of that seemed to fall by the wayside as soon as he ditched "a galaxy far, far away" and showcased his talent in a completely, completely different way.

That different way became Knives Out, and at once Johnson seemed to lift the classic "whodunnit" genre out of its slumber. The film was a roaring success, establishing Daniel Craig's character Benoit Blanc as a modern Hercule Poirot. Netflix jumped on board immediately, buying the rights for a gigantic million. We've seen that story before, so the question is whether lightning can strike twice for Johnson, who is now ready with the sequel, Glass Onion.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
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And the short answer is just; yes. Yes, lightning can strike twice, and the hard summary here is that Glass Onion is a memorable, festive, entertaining and deeply self-aware game of whodunnit of the best kind. Not only that, it's one of the best films of the year.

The tone is the same, and even though the opulent billionaire mansion with its sharp references to eccentric money men like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos is in stark contrast to the enigmatic house from the first film, the same themes, the same tones are being struck. Mystery, lively comedy and people at their most bizarre and idiosyncratic - and in the midst of it all we find Craig in almost his best role.

Dave Bautista, who played opposite Craig in both Spectre and now, has said that it was like meeting two different people, and that Craig had so much more fun playing Benoit Blanc here than he did filming Spectre. You can tell, because Craig is having fun with the character. He has fun with the thick Southern accent, with the role of observing detective, as the ordinary person looking in on this strange jet-set life, and he acts as the anchor throughout. He is, in other words, razor sharp.

He's joined by a cast that's lavish to say the least, including Ed Norton, Bautista, Kate Hudson, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr, Janelle Monáe and Jessica Henwick, all of whom show their best side. Kate Hudson and Dave Bautista in particular get plenty of speaking time, showing off their characters' eccentricities in full bloom, and while it's comically over-the-top to the point where the illusion almost breaks, it's funny, and entertaining.

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Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

It would almost be a shame to spoil the action, but let's just say that an eclectic group of people have in common that they are all financed by the billionaire Myles Bron, and he invites them out to his spectacular and luxurious holiday island, where they will live in his mansion named "Glass Onion" after the Beatles song, where they must solve the mystery of his murder. Blanc has also mysteriously received an invitation, although Bron claims not to have sent it. Boom, then the wild treasure hunt begins, and one twist replaces the other, and many do not actually notice the slightly inflated playing time of just over two hours.

It's a spectacular film in every way, and so the only real point of criticism is perhaps... well, just that. The movie is busy, really busy. It is busy being <em>stylish<em> with being overproduced to the point where some individual sequences are almost contrived, too contrived. But all in all, this is a worthy Knives Out film that is so entertaining that you almost hope they reveal plans to make three more soon. More Benoit Blanc for the people.

09 Gamereactor UK
9 / 10
overall score
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