‘Well, I keep returning in my mind to the glass onion…’
Despite the fact that I’ve never really enjoyed whodunits (Poirot and Sherlock Holmes do nothing for me), I really loved Knives Out. It allowed a bunch of people trapped by the franchise system (Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Rian Johnson) to break free and produce something fresh. And boy did those guys have a blast doing that. But what becomes of this newfound freedom when Knives Out itself becomes a franchise?
Benoit Blanc (Craig) is back. And he is as sartorially elegant as ever. This time, Blanc heads off to the island of billionaire and tech bro Miles Bron (Ed Norton) to participate in an elaborate murder mystery. A whole new cast of characters accompanies Blanc including corrupt politician Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn), fading model Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson), influencer and gamer Duke Cody (Dave Bautista), Cody’s fame-hungry arm candy Whiskey (Madelyn Cline) and Bron’s former business partner with an axe to grind Andi (Janelle Monáe). Some cast.
Glass Onion is not a subtle film. Norton’s Miles Bron has the actual Mona Lisa in his house for chrissakes. Bron is apparently not a cypher for Elon Musk but there are clear similarities in as much as both are unbearable and both have an inflated sense of importance and intelligence that doesn’t match up with their actual persona. This could apply to many tech bros, of course, and the discourse around this issue is deeply tedious. I apologise for adding to it here. This is not a criticism, however. Nobody is coming to this movie for subtlety. The reason everyone loved Knives Out is that director Rian Johnson threw absolutely everything at the screen and what was left made for an instant classic. Unfortunately, Glass Onion doesn’t surpass the source material, but it is still a whole load of fun. Mainly because Craig is once again having the absolute time of his life as our inquiring protagonist.
Elsewhere, while I sincerely hope Norton returns to more serious fare as he is one of my all-time favourite actors, he absolutely has the comic chops to make his turn here an utter delight. Of the rest, Hudson most impresses in a role that she was born to play and Monáe also does well utilising both nuance and complexity.
To summarise, if you loved Knives Out, there is certainly enough here to make the return to the world of Benoit Blanc a satisfying one. If you didn’t enjoy the first movie (what’s wrong with you?) maybe skip this one. A worthy sequel.