Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)

Starring: Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, and Ethan Hawke with cameos from Hugh Grant, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Serena Williams, Natasha Lyonne, Angela Lansbury, Yo-Yo Ma, Stephen Sondheim, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Grade: A-

I quite like the name of this friend group being “The Disruptors”. I’m actually surprised this isn’t a go-to Instagram caption for people. It seems like a no-brainer, right?

Summary

It’s May 13, 2020. We’re in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. A mysterious package from billionaire philanthropist Miles Bron (Norton) is delivered to the homes of Claire Debella (Hahn), Lionel Toussaint (Odom Jr.), Birdie Jay (Hudson), Duke Cody (Bautista), and Cassandra “Andi” Brand (Monáe).

Claire Debella is the current governor of Connecticut and is running for Senate. Her campaign is backed by Miles, who’s riches stem from being the founder of tech giant Alpha. The massive company also contains numerous others under it. As Claire begins her sit-down CNN interview from home, Claire’s husband sees that the package delivered to her is from Miles. Next, we see scientist Lionel Toussaint arguing with his co-workers over a video call. He works for Miles and defends him to them, talking about how Miles teeters the line of genius and insanity. When one of his crazy ideas works, it almost always becomes a massive success. Even so, his co-workers argue they can’t go through with putting a “volatile substance on a manned flight”. As Lionel seems to be trying to figure out a way to make it happen anyway, we see the same package that was delivered to Claire, also being delivered to him. Elsewhere, former model and current fashion designer Birdie Jay gets the package in the middle of her house party. After her assistant Peg (Henwick) reminds her that she’s not getting her phone back anytime soon because she tends to get a little politically incorrect when it comes to social media, she brings the package over to Birdie. Birdie and Peg get on a three-way call with Claire and her husband, and Lionel, as they all try to figure out how to open this mysterious box.

Meanwhile, we see Duke Cody, a video game streamer and men’s rights activist/influencer make a video promoting a pro-men stance. After his girlfriend Whiskey (Madelyn Cline) makes an appearance on his video as a dig to feminists, the recording is interrupted by Duke’s mother (Jackie Hoffman). Following an argument, she lets him know about the package from Miles. Duke joins the phone call with the others, and they all try to figure out the series of puzzles to open this box. Eventually, they figure it out, and the box opens to reveal an invitation to his dearest friends for a weekend on his private island. Along with a nice vacation, they will also play a fun little murder mystery game that will be very lifelike, and it will be about Miles’s own “murder” they have to solve. Right after, we see the quiet and reserved Andi Brand get the box but instead of solving the puzzles to open it, she smashes everything with a hammer to get to the invitation.

Playing the game Among Us with his friends Kareem Abdul-Jabarr, Natasha Lyonne, Angela Lansbury, and Stephen Sondheim over video chat (and not really understanding the rules), we see “the world’s greatest detective” Benoit Blanc (Craig). As he plays and chats with his friends, he realizes how bored out of his mind he is. He’s losing it without a case to work on and has barely been out of the bathtub according to his partner Phillip (Grant). After explaining how badly he wants another case to be challenged again, he hears Phillip from the other room tell him about a package that has just shown up.

Well, talk about timing!

Off the coast of Greece on a dock, Benoit Blanc meets the friend group known as “The Disruptors” (everyone from the opening), along with outliers like Duke’s girlfriend Whiskey and Birdie Jay’s assistant Peg. They are all confused with Blanc’s presence since he’s never met Miles Bron, but they all assume it’s because of the murder mystery game he has planned for the night. Just then, Miles’s assistant (Hawke) shows up to debrief them before they get on the yacht to Miles’s island. As he shoots a substance down each of their throats so they can remove their masks and be free from COVID, Claire tells Blanc about how this friend group does a weekend reunion every year. Birdie Jay mentions how they’ve been doing it for eight years and this is the first time Miles has invited someone new. They all start getting onto the yacht and as they do, we see that Andi is the last to show up to the surprise of everyone. While on the yacht, Blanc questions Andi’s arrival further to Lionel who tells him how Andi and Miles started Alpha ten years ago together but with one legal move, he cut her out of the company completely and left her without a dime. This furthers the question as to why she came.

The group arrives to Miles Bron’s island, and they exchange pleasantries. Miles is shocked that Andi showed up too, but he greets her with open arms. As you can imagine, she doesn’t respond too kindly to his gesture. Before they get to the murder mystery planned, Miles takes them on the tour of the Glass Onion, the name given to a separate structure on his property on the island. It’s also the name of the old bar they used to frequent when they were younger. As they all start the short tour, Andi hangs back and acknowledges how weird all of this is to Blanc, and they have a small conversation after introducing themselves to each other. After rejoining everyone, Miles talks about the Glass Onion for a bit and has them all go to their rooms to chill out and get settled. Following Miles trying to talk to Andi and her not being in the mood, he pulls Blanc aside and talks with him privately inside the Glass Onion. Blanc obliges and notes how excited he is for the game, but Miles is confused. Apparently, he never invited Blanc, despite him receiving the box. A confused Blanc wonders if it’s possible to reset the box, so Miles comes to the conclusion that one of his friends reset it and sent it to Blanc as a prank on Miles. Now, he’s much more accepting of the idea and wants Blanc to stay because it legitimatizes his murder mystery game since everyone knows about Blanc being this world-famous detective. Even though Blanc is taking the fake invitation much more seriously because he doesn’t think it was by accident, an excited Bron makes Blanc an official guest and even challenges him to try and solve the puzzle.

The group all hangs by the pool and Blanc starts observing his guests. This is where we notice that Duke is never without his pistol on his hip (even in the pool), and Claire and Lionel talk privately to each other in the corner of the pool. Peg tells Birdie she has to do something unknown urgently, while Whiskey flirts with Miles. As Birdie talks about the good old days when she was famous, she notices Andi sitting next to her. The last time they saw each other was the “trial” a few months ago. Finally, they all end up in the same room together where Blanc finds a fax machine. Apparently, Bron is all about analog and doesn’t even own a phone.

Interesting…

Anyway, Blanc questions how they know each other, so Bron describes the backstories to each of his friends. We learn that along with being a “fashion icon”, Birdie was also the youngest ever editor of She She Magazine until an incident with a Beyonce Halloween costume (where it’s implied, she did blackface) ruined her momentum. She recovered after coming out with a line of designer sweatpants once the pandemic hit. Miles hypes up the success of each person to Blanc and talks about how they all strive for greatness, relaying that into what him and Andi did with Alpha. Miles is a man that is willing to go to the next level to get what he wants, no matter the cost. They were all willing to cross that line, and that’s how their bonds were solidified. Just then, Andi reveals the truth to everyone in the room, telling Blanc how Miles bankrolled Claire’s campaign, Lionel works for him, he was the investor for Birdie’s sweatpants that saved her career, and he worked with YouTube to promote Duke’s stream after he got banned from Twitch for selling boner pills to teenagers. Everyone was willing to stab a friend in the back to save their careers and that’s why they backed Miles. He saved them. After she leaves (with Miles not being bothered in the slightest), Claire tries to catch up with her. She sees her from a distance and notes to Lionel that something is up with Andi. Immediately following this, Peg meets with Miles and begs him not to force Birdie to go through with the statement he prepared for her about Bangladesh because it would not only ruin Birdie but Peg too because working for Birdie is her entire résumé. Miles refuses and leaves, saying it’s Birdie’s only way out.

Listening in behind a statue is Benoit Blanc. Duke runs over to the outside of Miles’s bedroom and sees Whiskey cheating on him with Miles.

Hiding behind Duke is Benoit Blanc.

That night, they all gather before dinner, and Miles gives them all their favorite cocktails. We also see more of the extravagance of Miles’s home and his purchases. One of the major ones being that he is renting out the actual Mona Lisa from France. Because of the pandemic, the Louvre was closed, and France needed the money, so he managed to get it on loan. It turns out that the transport and security was most of the cost. This is where he shows them that a single flame from a lighter will ignite a security measure that protects the painting in an instant. Even so, he installed an override button just so he could be closer to the painting and appreciate it. He reminds them that when they were at the Glass Onion bar years ago, he said he wanted to “be responsible for something that gets mentioned in the same breath as the Mona Lisa – forever”. This is all related to a plan. In one week, he plans on meeting with several world leaders and members of the press that he invited from all over to come to this island to present to them “Klear”, a hydrogen-based alternative fuel with zero carbon emissions and derived from abundant seawater. It can power the world, and he wants to release it this year. Claire is worried because she knows about it and so does Lionel, who is mad enough to speak up. He reminds Miles he needs at least two years to test it to see if it’s safe and viable. However, everyone is shocked to learn from Miles that his entire property is powered by Klear, with him smiling ear to ear.

At dinner, Miles tells them the rules of the murder mystery plot. He says that if anyone can name the killer, tell him how they achieved the murder, and the motive, they’re the winner. Before the “murder” of Miles even happens and seconds after he’s done talking, Blanc solves the entire thing and wins the game to a shocked and angry Miles who paid heavily for this elaborate game to be set up.

The two talk privately in the Glass Onion again, and Blanc admits he ruined his game on purpose because he thinks one of the people Miles has invited has a real reason to kill him and may go through with it now that they’re on a remote island and he’s put the idea in their heads. Blanc points out Miles has threatened to destroy Lionel’s reputation if he doesn’t power a manned rocket with Klear, he threatened to back Claire’s opponent in the upcoming election if she doesn’t approve his power plant, there’s Birdie’s whole thing with Bangladesh and how her sweatpants are made in a sweatshop and Miles is making Birdie take the fall to cover his own ass as an investor, and Duke knows about Miles and Whiskey. As Miles starts to realize this may be a real issue, Blanc turns to see the famous napkin that Miles drew on to sketch the original idea of Alpha to show Andi back at the old Glass Onion bar. Something tells us this may be a part of Andi’s reason to kill Miles as well.

Regardless, a murder will be committed on this island soon after, and Blanc will be right at the center of it all to uncover the mystery of the Glass Onion.

My Thoughts:

Well, you guys can finally stop giving Rian Johnson shit for Star Wars: The Last Jedi now.

With Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, the incredible talents Johnson possesses when he has control as writer and director are on full display. We’ve seen it with Brick, and Knives Out reminded us about it, but Glass Onion solidifies his spot in Hollywood. It’s easily better than the first film too. Knives Out was very creative, very well-acted for the most part, and was a solid mystery movie, but I did feel like there was a series of missteps with it. Ironically enough, one of my major gripes with the movie was Daniel Craig’s portrayal of Benoit Blanc. Here, he gets a second chance and knocks it out of the park. In the first film, his accent was incredibly distracting because of how over the top it was, but in Glass Onion, he tones it down, and it sounds much more normal and relaxed. This helped immensely and brought out more of the charm and personality of Blanc. We see more of his sly side with this intricate and well-thought-out ruse he has to put together to infiltrate this island and uncover this mystery. Once we learn more about the actual plan in the second act flashback sequence, he becomes more and more of the hero we can get behind.

Currently, he’s on the path of becoming one of cinema’s greatest detectives, as long as Rian Johnson continues with this pace. We’ve heard the term “world’s greatest detective” used to describe many fictional characters over the years but when you see Blanc in his element and how natural solving puzzles and crimes are to him, you can see why the character has become world famous from the time in-between movies. He comes off as a genius when he’s locked in, and it’s incredible to watch his mind put pieces together or even when he has a moment of clarity. Honestly, this is my reaction to a lot of cinematic detectives, but you can go ahead and add Benoit Blanc to this list as well. He is different though, and I enjoyed unpeeling the layers of Blanc more than the superficial rich people we meet in this movie. He’s not a fighter. I imagine he could, but he makes it known that this isn’t what he’s here to do. As a private investigator, he still has to adhere to the police and the court systems. His jurisdiction can only go so far, a factor that plays into the story heavily. Sometimes, he can only do so much, even though he sees the evil in front of him. This allows for the woman he’s paired with (Marta Cabrera in Knives Out and Helen in Glass Onion) in both films to get their moment, so Blanc doesn’t overshadow their comeuppance.

It’s cool because though it may be a Blanc mystery, we don’t want it to be all about him because then you teeter into Sherlock Holmes territory. Now, would I still be okay with this if they did go the Holmes route? Yes, but this is mostly because I’ve been programmed that way after seeing years and years of these types of mystery films and shows. This is what sets this franchise apart from its competition. Johnson still focuses on the story and the ensemble when he could easily make this about our cool protagonist. However, this entire thing is happening because of them, so the focus should stay on them. We got here because of what these characters have gotten themselves into. Blanc was just pulled into it. Granted, he was looking for a case to be involved in, but he wasn’t the focal point. He was just there to push the characters in the right direction.

Even so, as I got deeper into the film, I finally saw the franchise potential of Benoit Blanc. I didn’t see it in Knives Out, but I saw it in Glass Onion.

Benoit Blanc is genuinely a good guy and has a lot of amusing moments as well, showcasing more and more to his personality with each scene. His enthusiasm is what grabs us right away. His eyes light up at the sight of actual crime because he has a chance to test his skills and be a part of something. You can just see it in his face when Helen brings a case to him, and he immediately comes up with this elaborate plan that sets up the rest of the film and changes how you see the opening. Usually, this genius of a plan would be unrealistic for most characters, or it would be hard for us to believe in because of its details. I’ve seen it happen many times before. However, based off how we already know Blanc and have previous knowledge of how his mind works (and how they remind us in the bathtub scene), it makes sense as to why when he’s given such a wild case, he thinks of such a complex scheme on the spot as to how they can pull it off. It’s invigorating and his energy regarding problem-solving and looking at crime is infectious. A sign of someone with real intelligence is someone who likes being challenged, and Benoit Blanc loves being challenged. Games like Among Us or Clue bore him. In fact, he’s bad at them because of their simplicity, lack of layers, and lack of genuine mystery. They’re too pedestrian and childish for his liking. He can’t sink his teeth into it because he knows they aren’t real. He likes the danger of real-life crimes and puzzles. I know his “bad at mystery games” is a trait that’s passed off as a joke, but it gives a lot of insight to a character whose intellect regarding his profession is on such a different playing field. The fact that he isn’t interested in something that (in a way) celebrates his skill set is really interesting. It also shows the separation between someone like him and someone like Miles Bron.

We see it once Blanc passes off Miles’s mystery box package as a silly “children’s puzzle” when not only did Miles pay good money to develop this detailed box, but we see how long it took for everyone else to figure it out. Miles’s face when he says this is priceless. As we uncover more and more about Miles, Blanc comes to the conclusion that Miles is actually an idiot who got lucky.

Twitter alone would love this movie because of its attack on the wealthy.

Most of Miles Bron’s intellect stems from his pretentiousness and believing in his own bullshit on a whole other level. He’s not the genius he nor the media portrays him to be. It’s funny to see when Blanc comes to the realization that he gave Miles too much credit from the beginning. He realizes this whole thing is just like the Glass Onion, something that looks layered from the outside but in reality, the center is in plain sight. The Glass Onion is a metaphor for Miles too. He seems like someone who has a lot to his personality but in reality, he’s a total bullshitter. Blanc overthought it and when he finds out, he’s mad at himself. It’s a very funny reveal. To Miles Bron’s credit though, it took a lot to get him where he is, despite his fake intelligence. He’s willing to go as far as possible to get to the top, something that smarter people aren’t able to do because they’re good at their core. This is what separates the good from the bad and the wealthy from the middle class. This may not always be true in real life but for the case of this movie, these characters, and the idea they’re trying to get across screen here, it is. This is what makes “The Disruptors” bad people.

All of this is about money and how it consumes people. The side in which they land on and how it motivates people’s decisions is where one figures out if they’re a “disruptor” or not. Are you willing to go that extra mile to get to the top? Will you do whatever it takes to get rich? According to Miles, his whole friend group is. It adds to the mystery too because since we know these characters will do anything to succeed, they all have a reason to save or kill Miles. Hell, they didn’t even like Miles at first until he started doing things for them to help their careers. It’s always been about the money and success for them. Now, not all the characters are villains in the traditional sense, but they have bad traits that make them the “disruptors” they are and that’s what makes things interesting. For instance, we see the most regret in Claire and Lionel, but they didn’t stand up when they needed to. They chose Miles’s side when their back was against the wall because they knew the possible benefits. That’s why they’re grouped right next to more asshole characters like Duke and Birdie.

Playing a pretentious prick isn’t necessarily the toughest job in the world, but you couldn’t cast it better than Edward Norton. When he talks about how he assigned his friends to rooms based off the chakras he associates them with or how he insists this isn’t some rich asshole’s house while a robot takes their luggage away, Norton revels in the overbearing smarm we know he possesses. I love his inability to see it too. A great example was Blanc pointing out how Miles’s car is parked on the roof. Miles admits there’s no place to drive it on the island, but he can’t go anywhere without it. Blanc has a moment of hesitation after Miles says this that feels as if he’s giving the audience a chance to think, “What a douche”. It goes right over the head of Miles as he says it too. He sees it as a perfectly reasonable thing to do. It’s very funny. When you throw in small details like him creating words that aren’t real, it shows you how pretentious and uncreative he actually is. A lot of credit also goes to Kate Hudson and Dave Bautista. Both of them were very funny and were two of the most colorful personalities in a movie filled with them. When combined with the incredibly colorful scenery, vibrant cinematography, and consistent amusement and intrigue, you get a very entertaining final product. Bautista improves as an actor with each movie. It’s been noticeable. I found Duke Cody very interesting too. He has one of the most modern backstories I’ve seen in a mainstream film. Birdie’s obliviousness is a consistently good injection of humor whenever the movie needs it most as well.

Even Jessica Henwick was very lovable as Peg. She’s got a very likable demeanor and an indescribable honesty about her in the role.

I will say the celebrity cameos felt almost as forced as an Adam Sandler movie in the 2010s, but the Hugh Grant one was unexpected and funny. Also, props to Rian Johnson for the surprise characterization of Whiskey. We think she’s a one-dimensional character at first, but she hits us out of nowhere with some layers we don’t see coming.

Janelle Monáe was a standout too. Acting alongside heavyweights like Daniel Craig and Edward Norton is tough, but she brings this quiet ferocity to the role that makes her stand just as tall as them. She goes face to face with Norton (and everyone else in this cast) and is tough, likable, sympathetic, and strong all in one. Without giving away the biggest reveal of this story, I’ll just say that it was a multifaceted performance and one that centered the film very well. Despite her being the least known star out of the cast, I was attracted to her story more than anyone else’s. It’s a testament to the writing and her performance. This is big too because I’ll admit that I, like many, am usually focused on what the biggest known actors and actresses of the movie are doing. Once you watch Glass Onion, you’ll see why she’s been a rising star as of late and has been seen in so many recent major productions. Janelle Monáe is going to be a force to be reckoned with for years to come in the film industry.

It may not be the most unpredictable of mysteries and has some questionable beats here and there (for some reason, the ending wasn’t as satisfying as I thought it would’ve or should’ve been), but it’s thoroughly entertaining. We’re already engrossed into the story from the beginning because of how well developed the characters are and how entertaining each and every performance is from the main cast, but as more is revealed once we get deeper into the story, the film shifts into a different category. Once the flashback happens and we see how Blanc really got involved with these clowns, and we see the entire first act from a completely different perspective, we realize how we’re in for something special and there’s much more to the story than we originally thought. Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is funny, filled with attention-grabbing mystery and intrigue from the story and the characters, it’s got an A-list cast that comes to play, and it’s better than the first one.

Now that I’ve seen what Daniel Craig has done with Benoit Blanc and future sequels have already been announced with him at the center of it all, I have to say I’m all for it. I’m excited for what Rian Johnson has in store next.