Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Netflix | Release Date: November 23, 2022 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
81
METASCORE
Universal acclaim based on 62 Critic Reviews
Positive:
57
Mixed:
5
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Little White LiesDavid JenkinsDec 10, 2022
Glass Onion adopts the sturdy structural underpinnings of the Agatha Christie-like whodunit, and presents them with an ingenious mix of postmodern irony and bona fide awe. Read full review
100
Original-CinThom ErnstNov 22, 2022
Is Glass Onion fun? Yes, it is. It's a lot of fun. More fun and more comedic than its predecessor. The twists resonate stronger than the original and are not as easy to see coming. Plus, the reveals (of which there are a few) resonate with the satisfaction of a game well played. Read full review
100
The TelegraphRobbie CollinNov 21, 2022
Like its precursor, Glass Onion doubles as a dazzlingly engineered gizmo and a raucous cautionary satire, with implications that billow out into the world even as its mechanisms snap satisfyingly shut. Read full review
100
ConsequenceAmber DowlingSep 13, 2022
There is mystery after mystery, puzzle after puzzle, reveal after reveal. You won’t see every twist coming, but even when you are a step ahead of Blanc, the film’s full-speed-ahead approach is still so entertaining and fun that the two-hour-and-19-minute runtime rushes by. Read full review
100
ColliderRoss BonaimeSep 11, 2022
It’s so much fun to watch Johnson in this mode, especially with a cast this relentlessly fun and playful. With Glass Onion, Johnson proves himself to be a film disruptor of the highest order. Read full review
100
The PlaylistJason BaileySep 10, 2022
In “Glass Onion,” the filmmaker shows absolute mastery of his genre, and his craft. It’s pure, pop pleasure. Read full review
95
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzNov 22, 2022
Just when you think that you have figured out which rug will next be pulled out from under you, Johnson reveals that there are rugs woven inside rugs woven inside even tinier rugs – and that the floor beneath those many carpets isn’t actually a floor at all, but a ceiling. Read full review
91
The A.V. ClubTodd GilchristNov 21, 2022
Like its predecessor, it’s whip-smart, joyful, and more than a little bit mischievous, yet another manipulation/reinvention of the classic whodunit, made with a cast whose thrill to be working produces an experience that’s as exuberant for them as it is for viewers. In short, it’s nothing less than perfect crowd-pleasing counter-programming for folks craving something that isn’t either superhero or horror-related. Read full review
91
IndieWireKate ErblandSep 10, 2022
Rest assured: Johnson isn’t reinventing the mystery movie with “Glass Onion,” but he is having a hell of a time lightly deconstructing it and reorienting it to suit his whipsmart script and central super detective. Read full review
90
ABC NewsPeter TraversNov 23, 2022
Let’s give thanks for this wicked, whacked-out whodunit sequel. Daniel Craig is back as southern-fried detective Benoit Blanc and all is right with the world as a cast of merry pranksters (yay Janelle Monae) turns murder most foul into comic gold. Read full review
90
The New York TimesA.O. ScottNov 22, 2022
“Glass Onion” is completely silly, but it’s not only silly. Explicitly set during the worst months of the Covid pandemic — the spring of 2020 — “Glass Onion” leans into recent history without succumbing to gloom, bitterness or howling rage, which is no small accomplishment. One way to interpret the title is that a glass onion may be sharp, and may have a lot of layers, but it won’t make you cry. Read full review
90
UproxxMike RyanSep 14, 2022
Glass Onion is just a great time watching a movie. It’s a rare movie (especially at a film festival where I have places I have to be) in which I wished it were longer. I would have gladly spent more time with these characters, played by actors who are all obviously having a wonderful time. I already miss them. Make more movies like this. What fun. Read full review
90
IGNRafael MotamayorSep 12, 2022
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is a bigger, bolder, funnier, angrier sequel that improves on almost every aspect of its predecessor. Read full review
90
New York Magazine (Vulture)Alison WillmoreSep 11, 2022
Glass Onion is bigger and more precisely designed than Knives Out, but what makes it a more satisfying movie is that it sits with its characters more rather than immediately showing off their decay. Read full review
90
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeSep 11, 2022
This picture offers more action, more delicious comeuppances, more daring design and a few genuinely surprising cameos just for good measure. Yet it doesn’t suffer from the usual “give ’em the same thing, but more of it” bloat common in sequels to surprise hits. Its ensemble is more varied than Knives‘, and its critique of the clueless rich more relevant to our age. Read full review
90
SlashfilmChris EvangelistaSep 10, 2022
The joys of "Glass Onion" involve the plot twists and shocking-but-hilarious revelations Johnson keeps throwing at us at breakneck speed. Every scene is loaded with lightning-sharp wit coupled with a genuinely engrossing mystery. Like Blanc, we're hooked on the idea of solving this mystery. Read full review
89
Austin ChronicleTrace SauveurNov 23, 2022
It’s blunt but not grating, a result of Johnson’s deft touch as a filmmaker. He toes a line of getting too gratuitous, with maybe one too many celebrity cameos, but there’s an infectious quality to the worlds he builds onscreen. Read full review
88
ObserverEmily ZemlerDec 24, 2022
This is the sort of riotous good time you want to watch in a crowd with shared laughs and gasps. Read full review
88
The AtlanticShirley LiNov 30, 2022
Like the beachside wardrobe the cast dons for its sun-kissed retreat, the movie is colorful and breezy. Glass Onion is mayhem-filled fun, best enjoyed with a crowd. Read full review
88
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliNov 28, 2022
Glass Onion is a late year present from a director who rarely disappoints. Read full review
88
Boston GlobeOdie HendersonNov 21, 2022
Craig may be the main character, but “Glass Onion” belongs to Monáe. Johnson has scripted one hell of a role for her, and she plays it with such a wide range of emotions and tones while modeling a stunning array of power suits that she drops the audience’s jaws. Monae’s performance turns on a dime with whiplash precision, so when the film folds in on itself, we grab hold of her hand for dear life. She pulls us along with such glee that it makes one giddy. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattNov 23, 2022
Glass Onion doesn't feel like a movie that's meant, really, to be peeled. It's here strictly to dazzle you with money and murder and famous-people pandemonium, then sharpen its knives for the next installment. Read full review
83
CNETRichard TrenholmNov 11, 2022
This second stab is another twist-filled treat, having fun with the whodunnit genre while also just being very funny. Read full review
83
The Film StageChristopher SchobertSep 11, 2022
While Glass Onion is not better than the 2019 outing, it is almost as enjoyable––a noteworthy victory in and of itself. Read full review
80
Film ThreatAlan NgJan 5, 2023
Spoilers prevent me from saying anything about it, but the finale is a satisfying good vs. evil ending while reinforcing the true nature and values that Blanc holds as an investigator. Even then, when it’s all said and done, this is a light comedy. The story, mystery, and conclusion are fun, but it’s not Agatha Christie, nor should it be. Read full review
80
Total FilmJamie GrahamDec 21, 2022
It’s the filmic equivalent of a Penn and Teller magic trick: amaze, show the mechanics, amaze again. Read full review
80
SlateDana StevensNov 28, 2022
If there were an ensemble acting award at the Oscars, Glass Onion would be a lock for a nomination. The dialogue is fast-paced and verbally dense, and everyone in the cast volleys it back and forth with as much deftness as apparent pleasure. Read full review
80
Paste MagazineKathy Michelle ChacónNov 28, 2022
In Glass Onion, everything is more. More jokes. More self-reflexivity. More twists and turns. And, undeniably, more fun. Read full review
80
The IndependentClarisse LoughreyNov 27, 2022
It’s a film that’s lighter, brighter, and far more straightforwardly comic in approach, trading its predecessor’s shadowy, creaky Massachusetts mansion for the Mamma Mia splendour of a private Greek island. Knives Out may have bottled a cultural moment, but Glass Onion seems built for longevity: it’s populist entertainment with its head screwed on right. And there’s plenty of value in that. Read full review
80
CNNBrian LowryNov 23, 2022
Writer-director Rian Johnson again assembles a solid cast behind Daniel Craig, but it’s his use of language – where nary a word is wasted – that finally gives the sequel its edge. Read full review
80
The Irish TimesDonald ClarkeNov 23, 2022
For all that self-aware fuss, Glass Onion works darn well as a mystery romp. It is a little smooth to the touch, but there are beautiful chicanes along the route to a satisfactorily clamorous conclusion. Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Wendy IdeNov 23, 2022
The real star? Johnson’s crisply mischievous screenplay, which crams in so many laughs you almost don’t notice the occasional plot holes. Read full review
80
The GuardianPeter BradshawNov 23, 2022
Glass Onion is never anything less than entertaining, with its succession of A-lister and A-plus-lister cameos popping up all over the place. And Johnson uncorks an absolute showstopper of a flashback a half-hour or so into the action, which then unspools back up to the present day, giving us all manner of cheeky POV-shift reveals. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzNov 22, 2022
The enormously appealing thing about Glass Onion is watching the cast have an obviously good time with their characters and with each other. Read full review
80
EmpireJohn NugentNov 21, 2022
A fizzy, gaudy, joyfully entertaining couple of hours. If there’s any right in the world, Rian Johnson and Daniel Craig will continue making films in the Benoit Blanc Cinematic Universe forever. Read full review
80
ScreenCrushMatt SingerNov 21, 2022
In general, Glass Onion is a much sharper comedy than Knives Out, with snappier dialogue, flashy cameos, and quirkier characters. Read full review
80
Time OutPhil de SemlyenNov 8, 2022
It’s a winning combo of satire and sleuthing – Succession with police tape – and a perfect slice of high-calorie escapism. Read full review
80
We Got This CoveredTricia GilbrideNov 4, 2022
With Glass Onion, Johnson and Craig have created a sequel that not only earns its keep but promises that subsequent installments in the franchise will deliver both reinvention and all the comfort and intrigue of the classic whodunit that filmmakers come back to time and time again for a reason. It’s pure fun, and it’s clear Johnson reveres the genre enough to cleverly break the rules. Read full review
80
Screen RantMae AbdulbakiSep 12, 2022
Glass Onion: A Knives Out mystery is a strong and fulfilling sequel. It will leave fans wanting even more of the charismatic detective and the situations that bring him into the middle of enticing whodunits that put his mind to work. The cast, the writing, and the twists and turns the story takes will leave the audience intrigued right up until the very end. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangSep 12, 2022
The central mystery hinges on an audacious structural coup that produces a succession of giddy, breathless moments in the movie’s second half, as cinematographer Steve Yedlin and editor Bob Ducsay excel at reframing earlier plot points from revelatory new perspectives. Read full review
80
Screen DailyWendy IdeSep 10, 2022
While it’s not quite as light on its feet in terms of the plotting, and while several key incidents and character motivations are rather questionable, it’s an immensely enjoyable movie which is at least as funny as the first outing, if not more. Read full review
80
VarietyOwen GleibermanSep 10, 2022
Even more than the first “Knives Out,” “Glass Onion” is a thriller wrapped in a deception tucked inside a riddle. It is, of course, a murder mystery with multiple suspects, but it’s one that comes with byways and flashbacks and bells and whistles, not to mention two whodunit homicides for the price of one. Read full review
75
USA TodayBrian TruittNov 23, 2022
It’s a bigger, showier follow-up, from the A-list cast to the twistier twists, even if it doesn’t have the same witty punch as the original. The script is taut and surprising, though, and Daniel Craig's return as super-sleuth Benoit Blanc is a Southern-fried godsend. Read full review
75
LarsenOnFilmJosh LarsenNov 23, 2022
As with Knives Out, Johnson takes care to add a bit of political bite to the proceedings. This is a movie interested in unmasking killers, yes, but also emperors who wear no clothes. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperNov 23, 2022
Glass Onion doesn’t have quite the zest and freshness of the original, and there are times when it’s a little too self-pleased with the social commentary and the meta references, but thanks to Johnson’s crackling good dialogue, the impressive production design and the sparkling performances from Craig and a whole new cast of possible suspects and/or murder victims, this is a whip-smart, consistently funny and sure to be crowd-pleasing affair. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireNov 23, 2022
The clever details, amusing name-drops, and precisely pointed digs at vapid celebrity culture keep Johnson’s movie zippy when it threatens to drag. Read full review
75
Washington PostAnn HornadayNov 22, 2022
By turns silly and scathing, Glass Onion once again demonstrates Johnson’s gift for critiquing culture in the name of good fun — or, perhaps more precisely, having fun by critiquing culture. Read full review
75
The Associated PressLindsey BahrNov 22, 2022
As the title suggests, there are layers and layers to this mystery — even the central murder isn’t revealed until deep into the film, when Johnson rewinds and reframes much of what we’ve just seen. And it’s bigger, wilder and funnier than its predecessor. Read full review
75
The Seattle TimesMoira MacdonaldNov 21, 2022
You watch “Glass Onion” relaxed, feeling like you’re in good hands; everyone on-screen is clearly having a wonderful time, so you can’t help but join right in. The plot’s a clever, multilayered caper, echoing the elaborate structure the movie is named for, and Johnson fills the script with funny name-dropping . . . and lets the cast happily ham it up. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalKyle SmithNov 23, 2022
The film is smartly structured, and many viewers will happily cue up a repeat viewing to savor all of the matters that were not as they seemed the first time. The many puzzles and secrets and fakeouts keep things mostly amusing for two hours, and as with the first “Knives Out,” the cast is strong. Read full review
70
VoxAlissa WilkinsonNov 23, 2022
The joy of Glass Onion is that you can read into it, or just let it flow over you and enjoy the ride. Read full review
70
TimeStephanie ZacharekNov 22, 2022
Writer-director Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is that plate of morsels in movie form, a breezy caper that mostly sustains its novelty, even if it stumbles a bit in the last third. Read full review
70
Rolling StoneDavid FearNov 22, 2022
There’s a good deal of fun in Glass Onion too, along with some sharp throwaway lines and the joy of watching actors dig into parts in which the option of going over the top has already been built in. Read full review
70
Vanity FairRichard LawsonSep 12, 2022
His intricate craftsmanship is a pleasure to watch in motion, though a bad symptom of sequel-itis stalks the film: Johnson, facing all that daunting follow-up pressure, has decided to go bigger. Read full review
67
PolygonOli WelshDec 3, 2022
In Glass Onion, made amid the dissociation of COVID, [Johnson] just lashes out left and right at a series of easy targets: the utopian fantasies of Big Tech, the hypocrisy of liberal politics, the fatuousness of online image-making. It’s muddled stuff, embodied in a gaggle of callow caricatures that he struggles to establish a natural kinship between. Read full review
65
TheWrapMartin TsaiSep 12, 2022
Johnson freely bounces around buzzwords like “disruptors” and “influencers” with dripping mockery, but he stops way short of satire. He never entices us to take an active interest in this new cast of characters, and there isn’t much suspense or high stakes to speak of even when things start to head south. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineKenji FujishimaSep 14, 2022
The climax has a certain primally cathartic power, but it doesn’t quite dispel the air of self-satisfaction that envelops the script. Read full review
60
The New YorkerAnthony LaneNov 21, 2022
Frankly, who cares who assassinates whom? Read full review
60
BBCCaryn JamesSep 11, 2022
Craig's performance is wily and joyful, and the film's biggest flaw is that there is too little of him, as Johnson often turns the spotlight from Blanc to other characters. Read full review
60
The GuardianBenjamin LeeSep 10, 2022
Johnson’s more extravagant and often indulgent sequel will likely find those who prefer it to the original, it’s so stuffed with so much that it’ll surely prove more fun to those who appreciate getting more bang for their buck. It’s hard not to have fun when Johnson pulls the strings, I just wish he’d not pulled quite so many and quite so hard. Read full review
50
Movie NationRoger MooreNov 30, 2022
Writer-director Rian Johnson returns to the scene of the triumph with Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, and finds the going a bit slower, the supporting cast less colorful, less venomous and less star-studded and the mystery quite a bit duller than the last time around. Read full review
50
New York PostJohnny OleksinskiSep 12, 2022
Johnson still does whodunits better than Kenneth Branagh’s horrid Agatha Christie adaptations he keeps torturing audiences with. Yet despite the giggles and the beefier budget — explosions, an exotic locale, massive sets — “Glass Onion” comes off slight. Read full review
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