‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Thriller’ Assessment: As Sharp because the First One

It’s within the nature of cinema that when a massively fashionable and beloved film is grand sufficient, the sequel to it nearly has to attempt to prime it in a go-big-or-go-home approach. For a very long time, every new James Bond journey was extra lavishly scaled, baroque, and stunt-tastic than the final. “The Godfather Half II” was darker and longer than “The Godfather,” “The Empire Strikes Again” enlarged the awesomeness of “Star Wars,” and “Terminator 2: Judgement Day” made the primary “Terminator” appear like a minimalist trinket.

So how does that apply to “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery”? Three years in the past, Rian Johnson’s “Knives Out” was a seamlessly debonair retro whodunit, set within the mansion of a murdered thriller novelist, that not solely evoked the edge-of-your-brain storytelling panache of Agatha Christie however expanded the Christie style into one thing delectable in its meta cleverness. At a time when comic-book movies, motion movies, and different types of kinetic fantasy seemed to be within the ultimate levels of killing off every little thing else, “Knives Out” was a cathartic reminder {that a} film mode we affiliate with classic Hollywood — dialogue of ethereal density and wit, characters who pop with all-too-human flaws and foibles, a plot that zigs and zags till you’ll observe it anyplace — might nonetheless make a righteous stand on the megaplex. Holding all of it collectively was Daniel Craig as Benoit Blanc, the movie’s Southern-gentleman re-imagining of a Hercule Poirot/Sherlock Holmes sleuth, whose wryly misleading genius made him, for a few of us, extra tremendous than any superhero.

Since “Knives Out” was a chunk of pop perfection, what can Johnson do for an encore? “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Thriller” is a thriller daring sufficient to have a Beatles music in its title, even when the title doesn’t refer on to the Beatles (although the music is featured over the closing credit). It describes, somewhat, the spectacular onion-shaped glass chamber that sits on prime of a mansion, located on an island off the coast of Greece, that belongs to Miles Bron, a scandalously bold, well-known, and fatuous tech billionaire, performed with an entertaining jaunty smugness by Ed Norton (suppose Elon Musk and…effectively, that’s about it), who has gathered 5 of his previous pals for a three-day getaway. The insanely deluxe severity of the mansion setting, away from the prying eyes of civilization, ups the ante on the old school home of the primary movie. As soon as the film will get rolling, a lot of it takes place in a front room jammed with small glass sculptures, postmodern designer furnishings, and garishly clashing works of overpriced artwork. (It’s just like the world’s most pretentious man-cave.)    

Within the opening sequence, every character is summoned by having the identical hard-wood field delivered to their dwelling, one which incorporates a sequence of puzzles they’re meant to unravel, every puzzle unlocking the following. That’s a metaphor for the way the film works. Much more than the primary “Knives Out,” “Glass Onion” is a thriller wrapped in a deception tucked inside a riddle. It’s, after all, a homicide thriller with a number of suspects (the phrase “glass onion” additionally describes the thriller whose layers we’re going to be peeling), however it’s additionally one which comes with byways and flashbacks and bells and whistles, to not point out two whodunit homicides for the worth of 1.

The movie is about shortly after the pandemic began, so the invitees are all grateful to be there. (They’re administered a throat spray by Miles’ assistant, performed by Ethan Hawke, who for some motive is rarely seen once more.) Every has attained a noteworthy place on the earth by changing into some form of “disruptor.” They usually owe their success to Miles, who has bankrolled all of them. However that provides every one a motivation for homicide.

Claire Debella (Kathryn Hahn), the governor of Connecticut, is a former soccer mother who’s taking over the political machine. Duke Cody (Dave Bautista) is a gun-nut yahoo and influencer who turned the primary individual to win 1,000,000 followers on Twitch (a fictional social-media website). Birdie Jay (Kate Hudson) is a former supermodel who has parlayed her scandalous celeb — she was lately semi-canceled resulting from a Beyoncé Halloween costume — into overseeing a sweatpants empire. Lionel Toussaint (Leslie Odom Jr.) is a scientist who works for Miles. And Andi Model (Janelle Monáe) is Miles’ former enterprise companion, who misplaced every little thing throughout a hostile cut up with him however has been invited to the island to make amends, and has agreed to come back as a result of…effectively, why she would accomplish that after she acquired screwed over so badly is the movie’s first thriller.

The second is what Benoit Blanc is doing there. He claims to have obtained one of many puzzle-box invites, however Miles says he by no means despatched it. But he doesn’t thoughts that Blanc is there. Miles, you see, has organized a murder-mystery recreation for the weekend, through which he’s going to be “killed,” and having the world’s biggest detective on website will solely make it extra enjoyable. Early on, Miles takes Blanc as much as the glass onion, and because the two sq. off, Blanc appears a bit tentative and out of kinds. Is he in over his head? Hardly.

A part of what made “Knives Out” nice is that, for all of the doubling-back ingenuity of its thriller plot, there was a teasing humanity to it. We noticed the conflict and chunk of ego in every character. In “Glass Onion,” Johnson ups the ante on that as effectively. Drawing on the glitzy vibe of 1973’s “The Final of Sheila,” the writer-director provides us a set of characters who’re strolling showboats of acrid ambition. They met Miles years in the past, when he was a long-haired no one at a New York bar referred to as the Glass Onion. However that was then. He’s now a neo-hippie megalomaniac who guzzles Kombucha, owns the guitar on which Paul McCartney wrote “Blackbird,” assigns every visitor a room based mostly on their chakra, and talks about “previous, current, and future” in the identical I-own-it-all breath. As everybody gathers in that gallery hangout area, he reveals his most treasured artwork object. Let’s simply say that it’s…a well-known portray. One which sits behind glass protectors that snap shut if anybody even breathes too arduous.

In an outrageous scene, Blanc solves the sport Miles is making an attempt to play earlier than it even takes place. That’s simply the movie’s thought of an appetizer. “Glass Out” expands into one thing much more extravagant than the primary “Knives Out,” which is what you need, even when at moments it might probably really feel like a bit of greater than you need. It will be against the law to disclose an excessive amount of, however Andi, brazenly suspicious in her distinctive blonde bob, is essentially the most fascinating character, and Janelle Monáe invests her with a moody indignation that singes like a hidden candle. A flashback reveals why she’s actually there, and who her secret companion is.

Is “Glass Onion” a greater film than “Knives Out” was? Not essentially. But it surely’s an even bigger, showier, much more elaborate shell-game thriller. Craig has found out the way to let his wry efficiency sneak up on you another time, and the suspects hover in a tasty zone between poisonous and sympathetic. But for a film this chockfull of surprises, there’s one thing about seeing the killer revealed that feels, maybe, rather less gratifying than earlier than. “Glass Onion” is the primary of two “Knives Out” sequels. It completely delivers, however subsequent time the knives ought to lower deeper.