Rian Johnson burns it all down... again

And the first 'Stranger Things' spinoff revealed?

What to watch

This is such an easy one. Netflix’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is a blast and a half. Improving upon the original, Rian Johnson’s second whodunnit is punchier and far funnier.

While a little less conventional as far as Agatha Christie-esque murder mysteries go—the movie is more of a puzzle box—Glass Onion takes a razor sharp knife to the culture of celebrity and wealth. Johnson really let himself go with this one, dialing up the satire and sense of fun, while maintaining his signature subversions. Remember when he burned the Jedi texts in Star Wars: The Last Jedi? That Rian Johnson showed up for Glass Onion. So if you’ve got general reverence for things people are supposed to revere, like say entrepreneurial billionaires or the Mona Lisa, you might not like what RJ is serving here. On the other hand, if you love to see some obnoxious tropes and misplaced values get literally and metaphorically torn to the ground, welcome.

Johnson has also cooked up one hell of twisty pot boiler. The script takes hairpin turns with lightning speed that are as impressive as they are enjoyable to watch. The entire, starry cast is game for the shenanigans, with Daniel Craig leaning in even more than he did the first time around — but it’s Janelle Monáe who deserves the biggest shout out. Let her do more stuff like this, Hollywood! The production design, locations, and costumes are sublime. The editing is clever and splashy when called on, but reserved when necessary. Speaking broadly, it’s all killer, no filler.

As if he wasn’t already, this movie cements Rian Johnson as one of the most exciting pop filmmakers working today. His penchant for subverting conventions with pointed irreverence is never not fun. Honestly, why aren’t you watching Glass Onion already?

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What to know

• Netflix reportedly planning Stranger Things anime spinoff… The first Stranger Things spinoff might be on the way — and it’s a Japanese cartoon. “An encounter with the Upside Down evolves into a grand adventure for video game-loving twin brothers living on the outskirts of 1980s Tokyo,” in Stranger Things Tokyo. Sounds good! I’m excited to see how the canon will expand and wonder what the Duffers involvement is. 🙃

• Avatar: The Way of Water closing in on $1B in under 3 weeks… Are these the long legs we kept hearing about? Seems like it as the movie becomes the third highest grossing movie of the year and third to achieve $1B in ticket sales. While Way of Water made more than the original in its first 10 days, it likely won’t match the nearly $3B heights of its predecessor due to a softer global market. (The movie has brought in just $104M in COVID-stricken China.) But according to Variety, Way of Water’s threshold to profitability is $1.5 billion, which seems doable at this point. 🌊

• Bob Iger tries to make amends with Disney diehards in personal email… The new-old CEO thanked the brand’s most loyal fans and promised, “we will continue to do our best to exceed your highest expectations.” It seems Iger is thinking more about the company’s reputation with customers than Chapek may have been — which is a good sign for the future. 🐭

• HBO Max has the most in-demand movies, study shows… Followed by Netflix and Disney+. It makes sense HBO Max would be one, as WB was aggressive getting its new movies to streaming and HBO literally means home box office. Though, I’m a bit surprised Disney+ isn’t higher considering it has the world’s most beloved franchises. 🤔

• Rian Johnson not happy Glass Onion has “Knives Out” in its title… I understand why he bristles at serialization and I get his desire for it to be “another novel off the shelf,” but Netflix didn’t pay half a billion dollars not to have something they could market as a Knives Out franchise. 🧅

• Barack Obama’s favorite movies of 2022 includes Emily the Criminal… The rest of the list was pretty predictable, but it’s cool to see this under appreciated Aubrey Plaza movie make the cut. 😮

• James Cameron cut 10 minutes of gun violence from Avatar 2, saying he doesn’t want to ‘fetishize guns’ anymore… Good for him! Now if only more directors followed suit. 👏

• Netflix CEOs getting $35-40M salaries next year… Maybe if Netflix is serious about turning profits, it could start here? 🍿

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What’s new

• Kennedy Center Honors — Dec 28 | CBS & Paramount+ award show

• Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl — Dec 28 | Disney+ concert special | 🍅

• White Noise — Dec 30 | Netflix drama film | 🍅 63%

• Kaleidoscope — Jan 1 | Netflix action series | 🍅

• Returning: The Circle s5

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For all past ‘what to watch’ recommendations, see the full list here!