Daniel Craig returns for another bizarre mystery
Directed by: Rian Johnson
Written by: Rian Johnson
Starring: Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monae
Rated PG-13 for strong language, some violence, sexual material, and drug content
Release Date: December 23, 2022 (Netflix)
Runtime: 2:20
This review may contain spoilers
Returning to the modern “Whodunnit”
On a private island, away from prying eyes, there will be a murder… mystery party. What started as a private group will turn complicated when the world’s greatest detective (that’s not Batman) shows up uninvited. Is he there to stop a real murder? Or has the 2020 pandemic made him desperate enough to crash a simple, fake mystery party?
It all starts with an invitation…
Daniel Craig (James Bond franchise) returns as world-famous Detective Benoit Blanc, who is losing his mind to boredom from the COVID-19 quarantine. A mystery puzzle box arrives at Blanc’s home with an invitation to a murder mystery party held by billionaire Miles Bron (Edward Norton, Fight Club) on his private island. Blanc accepts the invitation and joins other guests to Bron’s “Glass Onion” mansion.
But Bron never invited Blanc to his party. While Bron welcomes him regardless, Blanc believes his being there is a warning of someone wanting Bron dead. Who could it be: the head scientist of Bron’s tech company Alpha (Leslie Odom Jr., Hamilton), the governor whose campaign Bron funded (Kathryn Hahn, Amazon Prime’s Transparent), the controversial fashion designer and former glam model (Kate Hudson, Almost Famous), the “men’s rights” streaming and Twitch star (Dave Bautista, Guardians of the Galaxy series), or the Alpha co-founder who Bron removed from the company (Janelle Monáe, Hidden Figures)?
Or is there a deeper mystery to Glass Onion? Just like Knives Out, the answer is way more complicated than you’d think…
“Whodunnit”
Just to clarify, “whodunnits” are mysteries with a central detective character solving the crime, usually murder. The mystery will have multiple suspects with motives and red herrings to keep the audience wondering who’d done it, or “whodunnit.”
Also, it can be spelled “whodunnit” or “whodunit.” It’s confusing and keeps messing with my freaking Spellcheck.
I grew up on Agatha Christie books (you know, those things with bunches of words and no pictures) and those were the first “whodunnits” I came across. But probably the best example of “whodunnits” is the game Clue; it’s literally playing out a “whodunnit” murder.
Ironically, Blanc hates the game.
I love a good “whodunnit,” and these films are great additions to the genre. Both Blanc films not only have head-scratching mysteries, but their approach to solving the crime is different. I mean, the first movie flat-out exposes what really happened to Thrombey in the first 20 minutes. That never happens except maybe on Columbo, which was the whole point of the show.
Originality
While Kenneth Branagh is busy reviving Hercule Poirot stories, Johnson has created a whole new character with original mysteries. Nothing against Branagh and his films, but his remakes are stories that have been told dozens of times. So many times I think most viewers already know the outcome. Just saying.
What’s great with both Benoit Blanc films is that they’re all original. Writer/Director Rian Johnson created these stories with only influences from Agatha Christie and numerous other “whodunnit” mysteries. In this age of cinema, it’s becoming rare to see original characters and stories that weren’t book or TV adaptations, remakes, remakes of remakes, American remakes, or prequels.
Standalone sequel
Although this is a sequel to Knives Out, this film has almost nothing to do with the first movie other than having Blanc return. There’s nothing about Marta Cabrera or the Thrombey family. Blanc doesn’t even reminisce on it, but he is reminded of earlier difficult cases he has solved.
This is usually the case with Hercule Poirot stories. Poirot often goes from case to case with few connections between them. Blanc may be the next generation Poirot. Both are world-renown private detectives that handle crazy cases that seemed impossible to solve. And both have very particular names and very particular accents. Yeah, Blanc is basically Poirot with a Southern drawl.
From Bond to Blanc
Daniel Craig is a great actor and was a terrific James Bond. He’s a hard act to follow. And you rarely see Bond actors find another big franchise to attach themselves to. Benoit Blanc may be the start of a new ongoing franchise for Craig.
If you haven’t seen Knives Out yet, Blanc is the world’s greatest detective with a Southern charm almost as distinguished as his accent. He’s also known as “the Last of the Gentleman Sleuths.”
Blanc during lockdown
Glass Onion takes place over the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. It shows Blanc struggling with being cooped up in his home with no case to solve. With no mystery, he felt himself going crazy, even trying to understand the game Among Us while sitting in his bathtub for days.
It’s funny to start seeing films and shows addressing COVID and the pandemic. For nearly three years (Jesus, it’s been that long), movies never mention COVID or mask-wearing, like it never happened. I feel this is the first movie showing people wearing masks and bitching about being quarantined.
Superstar Cast
Also, just like Knives Out, it has an impressive cast of big-name stars – Dave Bautista (who also starred with Craig in Spectre), Kate Hudson, Janelle Monae, and Edward Norton just a few to name.
And their characters are unique, sometimes wildly unique. Bautista’s Duke Cody character is a popular Twitch streamer who uses his platform to spread his “men’s rights” activism. Hudson is Birdie Jay, an idiot fashion designer who confuses “sweatshop” as a place that makes sweatpants. She also can’t be trusted with Twitter because she tends to innocently say racist things online. Now, why does that sound familiar?
Janelle Monáe’s Andi Brand is the one that stands out the most. From the moment she shows up at the party, tensions nearly skyrocketed among the usual guests. Brand’s presence brings a lot of unexplained suspicions, and Blanc learns the story from each guest. But Brand’s mysterious manner may be more than what everyone thinks…
Norton’s Miles Bron is an eccentric genius whose taste in the rich life may overlook his foolishness. For example, the man has a glass dock for his private island that slowly emerges from the sea’s tide. It’s a cool presentation, but you may have heard me – it’s a glass dock that doesn’t float. It’s grounded and is only usable during low tide.
Let that “sink” in…
Benoit Blanc will return
Johnson has already announced a third movie in the works, which will most likely be under Netflix again since they still have rights for one more film. Both Craig and Johnson have agreed to keep on making these Benoit Blanc “Whodunnit” films as long as both are attached.
In conclusion…
Glass Onion is as good as Knives Out, both in film and mystery. Glass Onion holds its own slew of well-known actors playing original characters and presenting a mind-puzzling mystery that becomes more and more complicated as Blanc investigates further. Johnson keeps the audience guessing as Blanc’s case becomes more complicated. It’s one of those things too, where you must hold your tongue because of spoilers. In fact, half the story is contained in spoilers that turn the proposed mystery into a whole new story.
Glass Onion: A ‘Knives Out’ Mystery is streaming on Netflix.
