‘Knives in the Back: The Mystery of the Glass Onion’, bold, precise and hilarious sequel, consecrates Rian Johnson

Shamelessly influencing the impunity of the powerful and managing to transcend with its depiction of the collective experience resulting from the pandemic”Knives in the Back: The Mystery of the Glass Onion” raises its creator, Rian Johnson, consecrating him as one of the best directors and screenwriters of our time. More comical, extreme, critical of the absurdity of the society we live in, incisive, unedited and unique; This sequel, which hits theaters on November 23, for one week only, and on Netflix on December 23, is not only a worthy successor to the original, but will appeal more to a large part of its audience.

Set when in Spain we had not yet started getting out of prison, ‘Puñales por el espalda 2’ takes us to an excessive villa in Greece at the hands of a repertoire of suspects at the height of the first installment’s stellar cast. Edward Norton, Kate Hudson, Dave Bautista, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Jessica Henwick and Madelyn Cline accompany Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc, a detective who once again acts as a counterpoint to an abused female protagonist from the environment of he. With a subtle feminist tone and a veiled critique of the economic elite; the meeting of the “disruptors”, the inner circle of Miles, a tech billionaire played by Norton, goes wrong with a murder that triggers the cascade of secrets, lies and motivations that serve as the breeding ground for those twists and turns that the plot hides..

Former founding partner of Alpha, now wholly owned by Miles, Andi Brand (Monáe); current Connecticut governor Claire Debella (Hahn); Alpha scientist Lionel Toussaint (Odom Jr.); stylist and former model Birdie Jay (Hudson) and her dedicated assistant Peg (Henwick); and influencer Duke Cody (Bautista) and his fiancée Whiskey (Cline), emerge from their isolation to travel to Miles’ private island for the weekend, a slice of paradise that is at the same time a gallery of this millionaire’s eccentricities . Precisely through the staging, a markedly vindictive setting, this social critique takes advantage of numerous scenic elements that contribute to the parody, sharpening it even more.. Just as in “Puñales por el espalda” we found a constant homage to the mystery, here reflection is what shines “in the background” in a place as measured as the script of this sequel.

No doubt the screenplay is the best in this movie, jokes that could very well translate into a second Oscar nomination for best original screenplay, a category that would give space to “Puñales por el espalda” in the 2020 edition of said awards. Johnson absolutely dominates the genre, becoming its maximum exponent through an exceptional yellow. Privileging entertainment, this director manages to draw an exhilarating roller coaster spreading the clues of the case and ridicules certain contemporary figures whose essence is distilled to the millimetre. The offended white man depicted in Duke is as great an exponent of this “trend” as Birdie is of the famous who can’t stop joking in “a world so smart you can’t say anything”.

All of the characters are measured to become a faithful and ridiculous reflection of the craziest kids of our time.. But not only that, Johnson also continues his crusade against social ills through the combination of profiles. A good example is the reflection that arises from the union of Birdie and Whiskey, two women who talk about the refusal of old age. and the expiration date associated with women in general and industry professionals in particular. Another would be the balance of power formed by Miles and Andi, or the corruption of opposing profiles between scientific and political; the sky’s the limit for a Johnson who makes the most of his chips, propping up everyone’s motives as he retracts said complaint.

Like this the range of condemnation of certain detestable dynamics is much wider than what we saw in ‘Puñales 1’, a film limited to classism and the refusal of immigration with which it shares a certain essential element: in both films its protagonists bring out the worst in themselves in that struggle to maintain a status they do not want to give up. Beyond this we are talking about two very different films. Craig describes them as entirely independent propositions, leaving out that his bloodhound is the common thread, and Johnson explains it by making sure his goal is to follow in the footsteps of the mysterious lady. Just as Agatha Christie flirted with all genres to complement each of her intrigues, the aforementioned filmmaker leaps into embracing a commitment to a certain variety, marking his own personality for the development of this promising saga.

As for the performances, since ‘The Mystery of the Glass Onion’ has passed through the Toronto and London festivals, Janelle Monáe garnered the most compliments given the difficulty of her role and how it maintains an essential ambiguity throughout the film; but a certain co-star would far surpass her know-how. Kate Hudson is absolutely sublime. His Birdie is unique and magnetic in the ridiculousness required by the satirical acidity that the script contains, in fact, it builds and develops so well, that when the film’s focus shifts slightly to approach a resolution at the same time as it moves away from the individual humour; Hudson continues to laugh to himself. It’s great and ironic that this character, drawn around the famous without any sensibilities, is the one best drawn in terms of tone. Each of the film’s suspects is masterfully described, but Birdie grows in unexpected ways at Hudson’s hands. Together with her, her cameos also deserve a special mention, brief appearances scattered throughout the film with gusto and grace.

Within the technical section We have to comment on Johnson’s handling regarding the composition. As in the case of the first episode, ‘The Mystery of the Glass Onion’ boasts perfectly designed shots in terms of interpretive weight and depth. This is already a sign of identity for this filmmaker who always tries to ensure that in his image there are different elements that give weight and lines of vision.. Thus, the suspects are tasked with contributing to the mystery with their expressions, while each moment is filled not only with information but with poise as well. The director himself explained it in his day in a video for Vanity Fair in which he analyzes a sequence ensuring that in his shots he always tries to “there are several layers of characters to look at”. The script is 10 but Johnson is also a gift as a director which is why his proposals work wonders.

nothing to hide

Rian Johnson’s approach with “The Mystery of the Glass Onion” invites you to think that everything was planned all along. ‘Knives in the back’ would have been an unexpected and fortuitous success as long as the development of the film did not seem to be conditioned by any pretensions, right? Now that first installment, compared to its sequel, seems to seek premeditated containment. The classic setting, the homage to the genre, the veiled criticism, the stellar cast and the way to play with all these elements, ended up conquering a large audience. In that proposal there were already indications, of course, of a particular nature, an original vision that wishes to grow beyond the basic guidelines of the whodunnit. Even so, this was only guessed at the bottom of a more modest mystery.

On the contrary ‘Puñales 2’, the mask is completely removed, bringing said essence to an unmasked point. The characters are much more parodic and the dialogues sharper.. Benoit embraces the particularities of him a little more and the plot is anchored in even more topical and “controversial” dilemmas. All more and with less concealment, as if once the bell rang, even Johnson could ask his audience for more. A more open mind about the core of their intrigues and a more intense gaze that does not miss the details. It makes up for it, of course, because few current filmmakers write like Johnson and because everything he gets is based on his ultimate goal: to entertain. His is great entertainment, the pinnacle of cinema.

Note: 9

The best: The script, from start to finish. Sparkling.

Worse: That not setting limits to its acidity can pay the price. Ask an open mind, what it deserves.