A rip roaring good time, featuring a knockout lead performance by Janelle Monae.

Like "Knives Out," "Glass Onion" manages to weave some sharp social commentary into its murder mystery, but it does it so deftly that it never feels like we're being lectured. The mystery isn't even really much of a mystery, but Rian Johnson makes that fact the film's main point (we let a bunch of white noise distract us from obvious truths), so the big reveal at the end feels more like a punchline than a cop out. And anyway, like all good murder mysteries, the fun is had in the journey rather than the destination, and that's where this movie excels. A major plot twist mid-way through the movie immediately makes you want to watch it again from the beginning to see what clues were dropped along the way that you might have missed.

We need more movies like this right now -- films that remind us how fun going to the movies can be but that also have a brain in their head.

Grade: A.