'Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery' Review: Rian Johnson brings the house down in a spell-binding sequel
In 2019, Rian Johnson stunned the world with one of the best crime thriller movies of all time. A captivating whodunnit, 'Knives Out', turned out to be a great surprise for everyone and kept everyone at the edge of their seats. So, it doesn't come as a shock that a sequel was already in the works when the first one came out and Johnson was ready to turn it into a franchise that treats viewers to mind-blowing murder mysteries. Three years later, Johnson is now ready to enthrall everyone with the highly anticipated sequel and a new, thrilling story. Titled 'Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery', the movie takes detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) to an island in Greece where a man named Myles Bronn (Edward Norton) is hosting a big murder mystery party for his friends. However, things turn upside down when a real murder occurs and Blanc now has a real mystery to solve.
The best part of the first movie was how effortlessly Johnson kept everyone hooked on the screen by giving new twists and turns to the classic whodunnit story and that made things harder for Johnson. Making a sequel is never easy because a lot of times you don't get it right and a lot of people don't even look forward to it. But 'Glass Onion' is a perfect example of how sequels should be done and why every sequel should not be seen as something that will destroy everything.
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'Glass Onion' is gripping, smart, funny, and stylish, and it's a type of movie that you would want to see with an entire bunch of your loved ones. Is it better than the first one? Well, that depends on everyone's personal preference. However, we can say that the second movie is just as extraordinary as the first one. This review will not be revealing any information that makes the viewing experience better for everyone and even Rian Johnson said that people should express their feelings in their reviews, but not spoil anything. So, that's what we are going to do here. As mentioned above, a real murder takes place on a luxury Greek island where tech-billionaire Myles Bronn lives. Who are the suspects? An extraordinary cast of colourful yet complex characters, including Claire (Kathryn Hahn), Lionel (Leslie Odom Jr), Duke (Dave Bautista), Birdie (Kate Hudson), and Andi (Janelle Monae). Unfortunately, that's the only part of the story that we can tell, because if we mention anything else, it will ruin the viewing experience. However, what we can say is that the mystery and puzzle in 'Glass Onion' is so wickedly cool that even when things get complex, you are not bothered by it and these complexities make everything even better.
Johnson has done an incredible job in creating a story that is a much more refined version of the first 'Knives Out' movie and the genre of whodunnit. Daniel Craig gives another extraordinary performance and explores more with the character. Luckily, Craig gets more time to show what new things he has brought to this character, who is charming, intelligent and is a big fan of colourful metaphors. This is undoubtedly one of Craig's best performances and he knocks it out of the park with Blanc once again. On the other hand, Janelle Monae as Andi is a standout. She is cold and bitter throughout the movie and you'll get to know why in one of the most riveting fashions. Her expressions and dialogue delivery are on point and she stands tall in a cast which includes so many wonderful actors.
Kate Hudson's portrayal of ever-so-enthusiastic musician and fashionista Birdie is bloody brilliant. The moment Hudson arrives on the screen, she owns it with her epic dialogue delivery and impeccable acting. It's so good to see her in a role which shows her acting prowess and makes her go outside of her comfort zone.
Even though the movie is two-and-a-half hours long, it never feels that it's been dragged. The pacing is good and we get to explore the complicated relationships between the characters. The cinematography is brilliant and much different than the first one as Johnson and cinematographer Steve Yedlin took full advantage of the gorgeous-looking Greek island. 'Glass Onion' feels like a movie that was developed after getting assured that everything was in the right place and there was no room for error.
Overall, 'Glass Onion' is another knockout from Johnson and a worthy sequel to the 2019 original movie. The script is clever, the characters are more relatable, and features a puzzle that's still very interesting. It's phenomenal, captivating, and absolutely thrilling.