There are few things I love more than stories that play on very-real characters, especially in their exaggerated forms.
It’s the same reason I loved to hate the characters in White Lotus. And, with a gaping hole in my content viewing pleasures, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, came at the perfect time.
Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc “The world’s best detective” returns initially in a shabby form. Lurking in a bathtub of despair, the detective longs for what many longed for during the pandemic: getting back to business.
Unlike most of the world, Detective Blanc’s wish arrives right on schedule, in the form of a tricked-out wooden box. A cast of other characters known as the “Disruptors” are the other recipients who must toy, collaborate and decode (at far greater lengths) to solve the first mystery—what’s in the box.
The second mystery is premised to be the faux murder of the host that sent the boxed invitations, billionaire Miles Bron (Edward Norton). But of course, a murder-mystery party hosted in a bubble (or onion) on a Greek Island filled with the worst of society, was never going to be that simple.
We have washed-up model-turned-questionable-business mogul Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson) who should never have been allowed a cell phone and her assistant Peg (Jessica Henwick) whose job is, in short, parenting Birdie. We meet Duke Cody (Dave Bautista) and his gun, who are almost both as frightening as his social media channels. Whiskey (Madelyn Cline) who at the very least acknowledges the groups’ decisions are problematic but still finds herself in the same coil as the others. Then there’s Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn) a fair-weather politician, Lionel Toussaint, played by Leslie Odom Jr, a morally entangled scientist who can’t seem to do what’s right, and Andi Brand played by Janelle Monáe, the dark horse character, and Miles’ former partner. And of course, Detective Blanc and his endless array of picturesque outfits, Southern charm and observations.
Without spoiling the plot and its many twists (there are a few ‘a-ha’ moments you’ll no doubt revel in unpacking), the mystery captivated me for reasons beyond the who-done-it script.
There’s something satisfying about a film where chaos sneaks in around obvious villains who know they are exactly that, despite the selfish, wealth-excused reasons they keep swept under their inner-circle rug. It’s satisfying because the sense of fairness in all of us can’t help but appreciate seeing the pretty walls around them shatter in the most comedic way.
The film also cleverly navigates the line between what we’re shown versus what actually happened. Director Rian Johnson does this perfectly through flashbacks and easter eggs that make us second-guess our own judgement.
And, beyond all this, it moves at a fast pace. We all love a healthy amount of suspense, but let’s be honest, some mysteries do lose us purely because they spend too long on unnecessary information or scenic shots. Glass Onion is clear in its messages, crafted in its depiction and perfect in its character choices.
It takes the society we all sneer at and lays it bare, vulnerable and in a perfect mess right in front of us. Everyone has motive, but will these triumph loyalty to the golden nipples of Miles Bron? I’ll leave you to find out.
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Feature Image: Netflix
