How to Write a PERFECT Anti-Mystery - Glass Onion | Video Essay

A Glass Onion Video Essay breaking down how Netflix's Glass Onion and its predecessor Knives Out manage to be two of the best mystery movies without actually being mysteries at all. So strap in as we explore how Rian Johnson and his favorite Detective Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) approach each case, and how Glass Onion is the perfect follow up to Knives Out, but not for the reasons you think...

Also, I think Rian Johnson has a problem with Elon Musk. What's that about?

Written & Edited -------------- Dylan Gregory @TheWritersBlockOfficial
Music by ------------------------- Karl Casey @WhiteBatAudio
(And Also Johann Sebastian Bach, Arranged by me.)

I'm Dylan, and THIS is the Writer's Block.

[TheWritersBlockOfficial]

Did you prefer Knives out or Glass Onion???

[maxfieldjoyner]

I love that we see the whole "there's no complex mystery here, the guy you think is the red herring did actually do it" from the very beginning. Everyone except Helen solves the complex puzzle to get the invite, she just smashes it open. It only takes Benoit so long because, in his own words, "I'm bad at stupid things."

[jcolinmizia]

The contrast of Knives Out and Glass Onion is spectacular. One of them is closer to a classic murder mystery, with a well-planned murder and a killer who uses his wits to try to frame someone else for their crime. While the other is expecting such an “evil genius” plot, but actually ends up being a boring, heat of the moment killing, with obvious motives.

[Enter]

The thing I love is that Johnson has stated that he is all in on making more Benoir Blanc mystery movies for as long as the actor is willing to portray him, the actor is, as of right now, all in doing that too. I am so excited to watch this film franchise continue I just know I’m watching classics be made in front of my eyes

[rachelbockrath]

Spoiler Warning!

My favorite exchange is at the end where we get:
"It's so STUPID!"
"It's so stupid, it's genius"
"NO, it's just stupid."

[matti.]

What I like about Benoit Blant is that initially he seems like a subversion of the typical genius detective by being kind of a bumbling buffoon who's constantly outsmarted by an equally bumbling villain. But that ends up being subverted too as we learn Blanc knew about Martha from the start and didn't say anything because he was trying to find the REAL killer.

Glass Onion does this too, all the bumbling and awkward things Blanc does in the first half are revealed to be intentional in the second half, just to keep everyone distracted he and Helen investigate.

[hammerbeam]

The story structure of Glass Onion is my favorite part because you keep waiting for the story to start. They keep setting up characters and motivations but no inciting incident that propels them forward. The second half of the film reveals actually the story has already happened and started way before the actual beginning of the film. It’s brilliant because it really makes you reconsider the whole film.

[chiara.pugs]

Love this video, but the only thing I would disagree with is that Miles is a stand-in for Musk. Rian Johnson has said in interviews that he's a mix of many uber-rich intellectuals, and I think that's well reflected in the movie. Miles has the dressing style of Steve Jobs in that one flashback with Andi denying the Klear proposal, he has an up-and-comer story that is much unlike the silver spoon that Musk was born with, etc. etc. I think we are giving the big Elon too much credit in thinking this story is about him. It's more about the overall idea that we as a society hold: that wealth must equate to intelligence. Otherwise, we will have no guarantee that the people running some of the biggest and most powerful corporations aren't idiots, and that's troubling.

[duelbraids]

5:00 Is a really good example of the Thrombey family's implicit racial bias, but it goes a little deeper / funnier. Ransom, the actual killer, doesn't even list a Spanish speaking country. He lists Brazil, whose official language is Portuguese.

[drcblade]

I like how we're all expecting Miles Bron to bite it at some point and the mystery portion to start -- but then it turns out the murder already happened and Bron's not the victim, he's the _culprit._

[meganegan]

I think there's also a case to be made that Miles Bron would have the narrative alibi of being the Head of the House. In most mysteries, the most powerful person, the one who gathers everyone together in the grand estate, is the *victim*, not the culprit. It plays on an audience's knowledge of the genre and uses it against you.

[danisar]

i think one of the things that makes me laugh the most is when some people say it was obvious that Miles was the killer and the movie tried to make it seem like complicated murder. THATS WHY ITS CALLED A GLASS ONION!

[thepsplayer]

Spoiler Alert for Glass Onion: When me and my brother were watching Glass Onion, he saw Miles giving Duke his glass and thought Miles might be the killer, but then it is brilliantly established that Miles kept tge glass on the table and Duke took it by mistake which difuses our suspicion, but then we are told that Miles DID give Duke the glass. We were like "Man!". Truly a moment to inbrethiate.

[payasita]

i’ve seen a lot of people say that the first half of the film really bored them but by the second half they were invested. I watched both the original knives out and glass onion back to back and i was so hyped from the first one i was immediately was invested in glass onion 😭

[palmtreeproductions]

I haven't watched Knives Out and I have to say that Glass Onion was just pure fun. It's one of the few movies where I could go to any timestamp randomly and not be bored.

[anaalicia]

I love these two movies. There are several Agatha Christie murder mystery’s where the initial (too) obvious suspect, in a clever twist is guilty after all! Death on the Nile is a good example, she was very capable of that too!

[frdeady]

i think its worth mentioning not just the inspiration of agatha christie but also columbo in these movies. the whole turn a mystery into a thriller by revealing the killer and keeping them close to the detective was columbo central concept. and blancs cigar smoking, bumbling idiot act is directly inspired by columbo. it's cool that rian johnson seems to be a massive fan of murder mystery and makes these films not just an innovative modern update of the murder mystery genre, but also a love letter to it.

[Gfreak]

Missed the perfect opportunity to say the first film turned from a whodunnit, into a hughdunnit

[mafiacat]

Honestly I loved glass onion, both for its themes, but also because...it actually is the red herring.
Like, that caught me so off guard it genuinely made me laugh.
I just loved how I both spent the first half of the movie looking for the wrong murderer (who will eventually kill miles), but then got absolutely suckered into writing off miles just as much as the cast, but for a completely different reason.
I still think I prefer knives out, but glass onion was a delight and I cannot wait for the next one.
Also these movies all get so much better on a rewatch.

[dcbandit]

I love both Knives Out and Glass Onion for different but related reasons. I love KO for it's subversion of the genre, and GO for it's setup of something complex, only to pull the rug right from under you, not to mention the comedy of both that works so well! Some of my favorite movies in a while.

Would have loved to watch Glass Onion in the theater, but it only released for streaming. I was lucky enough to watch it on a decently sized tv, instead of my phone as usual.