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Review of “Glass Onion”: “Knives Out” sequel is disappointing

Has Rian Johnson cracked the case once more?

The Toronto International Film Festival hosted the world debut of “Knives Out 2,” the follow-up to the year’s unexpected smash. The Netflix film, “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery,” reunites Daniel Craig’s Detective Benoit Blanc with a brand-new group of affluent eccentrics.

Murder. Mayhem. Mediocrity.

Is it amusing? Without a doubt, dear viewer. Johnson is a very talented writer and filmmaker who received an Oscar nomination for his work on the first movie. He is, after all, the same person who, much to the dismay of many “Star Wars” fans, got a lot of chuckles out of “The Last Jedi.”

Our hastily invented new suspects, on the other hand, are what makes you want to put a chalk outline around “Glass Onion.” Despite the fact that they are all excellent comedians and have excellent comedic timing, Johnson only briefly mentions one of their key biographical facts at the opening of the film.

Therefore, rather of creating enduring characters, the actors play up their own characteristics. Simply said, they lack flavour.

For instance, Kathryn Hahn plays Claire, the governor of Connecticut, trading Agatha All Along for Agatha Christie. You wouldn’t know she’s a powerful politician if you arrived at the movie 15 minutes late. The same is true of Lionel, the smart scientist played by Leslie Odom Jr. When he arrives in Greece, he blends in with the other guys lounging by the pool.

Throughout her career, Kate Hudson has honed the role of Birdy, a ditsy social media firebrand, and Dave Bautista plays Duke Cody, a noisy, armed right-wing internet personality with Whiskey as his bikini-clad girlfriend (Madelyn Cline). Meanwhile, Janelle Monáe is a reclusive outsider named Cassandra who everyone appears to despise and who has a shrouded history.

They are all invited to a private Greek island by their friend Miles Bron (Edward Norton), a millionaire inventor akin to Elon Musk who enjoys making a splash, for a murder mystery weekend in May 2020 during the pandemic (there are many pandemic gags here that won’t hit for a few years). He refers to his eccentric acquaintances as “The Disruptors.”

In all honesty, this movie could need a little more upheaval.

Blanc, who has never met any of these people before, is thankfully asked along for some flair.

Everyone basically yells a lot after they get to the beautiful isle where Bron has constructed a massive residence called the Glass Onion that is powered by a contentious and dangerous new energy source, and the movie drags on far too long for a light comedy. I missed Jamie Lee Curtis and the biting wit of the first movie. The revelation is not shocking enough.

The most of the jokes come from Craig, who is as amusing as ever in this role, and Detective Blanc is the most interesting character in the film. Like in the original, it’s a treat to hear him refer to seemingly unimportant sentences uttered an hour before that explained everything. If only we had listened more intently.

Kenneth Branagh continues to torture audiences with his awful Agatha Christie adaptations, but Johnson still does whodunits better. Nevertheless, “Glass Onion” comes out as lacking despite the chuckles and the larger budget—explosions, a foreign location, huge sets.

Identify it as “Plastic Shallot.”

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