In ‘Lifestyles of the Rich and the Famous’, Good Charlotte propose that we steal from the rich. After watching, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, this seems like a good idea. This film encourages us to burn the rich… almost literally as well as figuratively.
Normally people will start a review by quoting something pretentious. Shakespeare and Dickens have been quoted too often to count. Yet, when talking about Glass Onion, you need to quote the antithesis of high culture – early 2000s pop punks songs. Although, it would have also been apt to misquote a famous literary figure (if you’ve seen the film, this makes sense). Like Knives Out, Glass Onion exposes the reality of the upper class by subverting the murder mystery plot line.
In Glass Onion, Rian Johnson takes a shot at those with self made money. His ensemble is made up of opportunists rather than nepotism babies. The action kicks off when Miles Bron (a finely veiled Elon Musk caricature played by Edward Norton) invites his old friends to his island for a murder mystery dinner party.
The island setting reminds me of another 2022 release, The Menu (a close second behind Everything Everywhere All at Once in my list of the best films I have ever seen in the cinema… thinking about it, I should probably review that film). Both films circle around a group of excessively rich idiots who are invited to an island by an eccentric and elusive figure. However, in this film, everyone are old friends and this adds a level of tension to the premise. Each attendee from supermodel Birdie (played by Kate Hudson in a performance that makes her shine in a way she never has before) to the local politician Claire (played by Kathryn Hahn, the ultimate villain in both Parks and Rec and WandaVision), knew each other at the beginnings of their careers when they attended the Glass Onion bar in New York. As each character has grown (in success or social media reach), they have more to lose and more reasons to hate Miles.
The murder mystery party collapses as Poirot’s 21st-Century successor with a dodgy southern American accent Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) turns up. Not only does he solve the fictional who-done-it, he also aims to solve a mystery so mysterious none of the attendees know about it.
To go into an once more detail would ruin the plot (and to be honest, I’m scared by brief description has already done so), so I will advice my readers (all two of you) to go into the film as blind and ignorant as the characters themselves. Let the film sweep you away to a foreign destination where nothing is as it seems. Like the fictional Blanc knows more than the characters, Johnson knows more than the audience. So, sit back and let his direction guide you on a twisted journey.
Just before I entered the cinema to watch this film, my friend told me this was meant to be the best film ever made. That’s quite a lot of information to digest about two seconds before watching a film you know hardly anything about. My expectations for this film went from low to high in those two seconds.
I tend to go into films knowing approximately nothing about them. For this film, all I knew was that it was a sci-fi film and that it was apparently the best film ever made. That is exactly the right amount of information to know going into this film! I reckon if you knew much more than this, the film would lose some of its affect. Ironically, to enjoy this film, it is best to know nothing nowhere in due course.
So if you haven’t watched this film, I would advise you to stop reading here so you can watch it. Watch it this exactly instant if you can. Literally, right now! I enjoyed this film so much that, immediately after leaving the cinema, I messaged just about everyone I knew to instruct them to watch it. And the day after, I spent all day at work animately waxing lyrics about its perfection. So, run (or parkour) your way to your local theatre and bask in the glory of Everything Everywhere All At Once.
‘I Was Just Looking For Someone Who Could See What I See, Feel What I Feel’ — Jobu Tupaki.
I think what surprised me the most about Everything Everywhere All At Once is that it is a film about appreciating others and allowing yourself to connect to them. At the beginning of the film, you would never guess that this film was going to be an emotional rollercoaster. The film starts by introducing the audience to the Wang family. This family are the epitome of the dysfunctional family – they couldn’t be less in sync if they tried. Evelyn is struggling to keep control of the family laundrette. Waymond is preparing for divorce. And Joy just wants her sexaulity to be recognised. The family is coming apart at the seems. In fact, they have completely unvarelled. They are three pieces of lose string.
The camera movement reflects this disconnection. When following Evelyn it matches her frantic pace. It relentlessly tilts and pans. The audience’s eyes are (just like Evelyn) unable to sit still. In contrast, the camera is much more static when Waymond and Joy are in the shot. The opening of the film is jarring to watch because the family are ajar.
The later sections of the film are jarring in another way. Once the characters enter the IRS building (to sort out the family’s finances), the plot never stops. It is a washing machine stuck on high spin speed. The viewer is introduced to Alpha Waymond (a superhero-esque version of Waymond from an alternative universe) who high kicks the plot into a face-paced action-adventure. Evelyn (and the audience) learn that she is the universe’s (or multiverse’s) only hope to prevent Jobu Tupaki from destroying it. Waymond requires Evelyn to versejump (tap into her alternative selves’ skills). To do this, you have to do something you rediculous. Something you would never normally do. This concept provides the film with the majority of its humour. It forces the characters to step out of their comfort zone and make the (I don’t think I’ll ever be in the cinema and hear as many audible groans as when two men insert phalic statues into thier annus).
This sounds conviluted, but somehow when watching the film everything makes as much sense as it needs to. It the audience is confused, it is on purpose. Everything from the everything-bagel, Raccacoonie, and the hot-dog finger universe somehow makes sense within the bazzarness of the film. This is the magic of Everything Everywhere All At Once. It might be a jigsaw puzzle with no guide picture, but you are somehow content with the knowledge that you are missing a piece.
At first, it seems like the biggest shock will be the revelation that Jobu Tupaki is none other than Evelyn and Waymond’s daughter Joy. Yet, just while you are adjusting to this unmasking (or un-hooding), you are propelled into even more uncharted teritority. This is the point where the film becomes insanely emotional.
You perhaps could have guessed that the film’s plot would, like all good theme park rides, include sharp turns and mindbending loops – after all, it is a sci-fi film that starts in a realistic setting. However, you just wouldn’t guess that these new dimensions and loops would be emotional. Yet, it is not just the plot that takes unexpected directions, it is also your emotions. Your emotions are thrust upon an unifamiliar path you watch this film. I’m not one to cry at films (the last film I cried at was Aladdin 2019 and gin very much influenced those tears), but even I found myself holding back the tears. I was about two seconds away from having an existential crisis, before luckily the film rose to new heights and elevated my mood.
The audience is told that the familiar version of Evelyn is the worst version of her. In this universe, she has essentially made all the wrong decisions. She could have been much more successful if she had zigged instead of zagged. Essentially, if she had not married Waymond, she could have been an action star with money, talent, and glory. This sounds incredibly depressing. And, at this point in the film, I started to become a nihilist. But, just when you are about to dig yourself a hole to lie down instead of fight, the film delivers a life affirming message through a simple plot twist.
By revealing that Jobu Tupaki is not trying to destroy the world, she is just trying to connect with her mother, the film suddenly becomes the feel-good movie of the decade. The film is about recognising and accepting your family for what it is. It forces you to remember that love your life and the people within it. For a black comedy, this message is anything but black. It is as bright as a sunny day. Like a summer’s morning, the film takes you out of your seasonal depression and elevates your mood. You leave the cinema with a new lease of life – I literally told everyone I know that I love them.
Everything Everywhere All at Once makes you feel every emotion everywhere all at once. I left the film feeling sad, happy, happy-sad, and sad-happy. My emotions (much like the plot of the film) defied linear logic but did not leave me feeling confused. I was emotional and content with this and my life.
Words and Dragons 