Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery Review-The Movie We’ve All Been Waiting For

One of the most anticipated titles of 2022 has officially been released on Netflix and everyone seems to have dived right into it, which means, it’s time for us to review the movie, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Rian Johnson has already impressed us with the first Knives Out movie which was released in 2019, which presented itself as one of the most interesting murder mysteries of that year and was well-received by fans and critics. Rian Johnson and Netflix announced a second movie soon after, and fans couldn’t wait to learn more about it.

Earlier this year, we spoke about Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and what one can possibly expect from it. However, now that we’ve actually seen the movie, it’s safe to say that this experience was more than what we expected it to be and in the best way possible. Glass Onion was released in select theatres about a month ago, however, it has officially been released worldwide on the 23rd of December, so while some of you might have already recovered from the movie, we are guessing the majority haven’t. Here are our thoughts and favorite moments about Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. 

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery – The Gift That Kept on Giving 

When we say there wasn’t a single dull moment in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, we truly mean it. From the start where all the friends, and also some of the most entertaining characters receive a mysterious box from their friend to them getting to the Island, and then followed by all the craziness that ensues, not a single dull moment. The director, Rian Johnson made sure that the audience was engaged for the entirety of the movie, even if that meant having to pull off an extraordinary plot. We’re going to talk about some of our favorite bits that made Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery an absolute success in our eyes, and we why believe that this movie was a gift that kept on giving, making it the perfect release just before Christmas! 

First and foremost, the characters of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. When we first talked about the movie, we had mentioned an ensemble cast, and while the actors and actresses did a very good job with their stellar and versatile performances, a lot of the credit needs to go to Rian Johnson and his creation of these characters. Detective Benoit Blanc played by Daniel Craig was the only character who reprised his role from the previous movie. Glass Onion also confirmed that his character is gay, which confirmed a lot of suspicions! Blanc’s role is pivotal in terms of understanding the events that unfold and the climax, of course. This time around, his character has shown to be struggling because of Covid-19, and how he comes out of that mundane loop of lockdown, without losing an ounce of his charm and wit, is truly something to look out for in this movie. 

Moving on to one of the most anticipated characters, aka Miles Bron, who is played by the legendary Edward Norton. With the trailer and first look of Glass Onion, we knew that everything that was about to unfold was because of Miles since he sent the invitation to his friends, the disruptors. Miles turned out to be one of the most complex and twisted characters of Glass Onion, who had the world, and his friends, on his feet. This man truly had everything he ever wanted, and his creation of a literal glass onion, along with having the Mona Lisa on loan, was truly something. Think about the richest person you know and multiply that by a billion times, that’s Miles Bron. This kind of money rarely ever comes from honest work, and that’s something we learn from Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Miles was overconfident, rich, and frankly? Not a good friend at all. 

Speaking of Miles’ friends, let’s move on to Birdie, Claire, Duke, and Lionel who were played by Kate Hudson, Kathryn Hahn, Dave Bautista, and Leslie Odom Jr respectively. Each of these characters was unique and chaotic in their own way and introduced a new angle in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. Of course, Lionel was established as extremely smart from the very beginning when they were solving the puzzles. Birdie was the chaotic one who clearly didn’t do a good job of being politically correct. Kathryn seemed like the more logical and calculative friend of the group, and we can blame Hahn’s brilliant acting for that. As for Duke, who was loud and brash, carried a gun, and live-streamed about some very questionable topics, seemed like he needed a friend like Miles. All of them needed a friend like Miles, but that doesn’t mean that Miles was a good friend. He was simply rich and had his friends on a golden-collar leash. One of the best parts of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery was when the friends finally decided to stand up against him, and that’s all it took for his world to literally crash around him. 

While Birdie, Claire, Lionel, and Duke all played an important role, one of the most crucial roles was played by the very beautiful and talented Janelle Monáe. Without giving too many spoilers, let’s just say that having Janelle on the cast meant having double the fun, take what you will from that. Also, while we’re talking about all the characters, let’s not forget Whiskey and Peg, who might not have been in the spotlight for too long, but provided us with a whole lot of entertainment and some hints along the way. 

2019 Knives Out versus Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

This question is going to be one of the most frequently asked questions everywhere: which movie was better?

Let’s just start by saying, that both these movies were very different from each other. In terms of the characters, the mystery, the setting, and almost everything, for that matter. However, because this will be the most trending question, let’s look at a few facts. Glass Onion was definitely more chaotic and packed in terms of everything that was happening with the murder on a private Island. As for the 2019 Knives Out, it was a more seamlessly played-out murder mystery.

Both of the movies had a similar premise in terms of being a murder mystery, however, Glass Onion was a little more complex and had something bigger than just a murder looming around it the whole time. For us, the 2019 Knives Out was a little more straightforward, despite the audiences being derailed from the real killer several times, but that’s how brilliantly Rian Johnson’s brain works.

Each movie had something unique about it, and Detective Benoit Blanc stood out in each of these movies, however, we did like him better in Glass Onion as we learned a lot more about his personal life and struggles paired with his wit and near-perfect detective skills, so that’s one point to Glass Onion. As for the cast, both movies had an ensemble cast and some of the biggest names in Hollywood, albeit, the cast in Glass Onion seemed more diverse in terms of selection, which made sense because this wasn’t a family murder mystery like the 2019 Knives Out.

At this point, it’s like asking us to pick between Chris Evans or Edward Norton, and while people might disagree, we do believe Ransom Drysdale was a better character than Miles Bron. As for the murder mystery itself, two very different stories, two very different outcomes, and for us, Glass Onion was just a touch more exciting. So, if we had to pick a favorite, it would be Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery. However, this only means that Knives Out 3 will be even better, and we have spoken about the third installment here, so you can dive right in!

A special mention also goes out to the production team and creative team of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery who have given their all in crafting all the little details of Miles’ private Island and the mysterious box that was sent to all his friends. There was a whole lot of glass in this movie, along with the prestigious glass onion which was symbolic of all the different layers of the mystery as well as the toxic friendship that the characters shared. Rian Johnson and his team really did up the ante with Glass Onion and we can’t wait to see what he does with Knives Out 3! 

Conclusion

We’re hoping that by the end of this article you have either started watching Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, or added it to your watchlist on Netflix, or at least begun recommending it to your friends and family. We do not doubt that this movie will be streamed several times over the holiday season because who wouldn’t want a getaway to Greece right about now? Make sure you watch Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery which is now exclusively streaming on Netflix!