‘Opus’ Review: They Finally A24’d Too Close To The Sun

Opus is the first feature film by Mark Anthony Green, who is better known for his work with GQ. The film follows Ariel, played by Ayo Edebiri, who is one of the few people invited to hear the next album by best selling singer Moretti, played by John Malkovich. Trapped in a cult-like compound with his many devoted followers, Ariel realizes not everything is as it seems. This new A24 horror comedy has all the usual tricks, but never ends up doing anything as interesting as the studio’s other films. In fact the film reminds me of a lot of recent horror movies, such as Blink Twice, Midsommar, and The Menu, but never reaches the highs of these other films. Read our full review of Opus below. 

Sadly, Opus is just a lesser imitation of other films you could watch instead. The film never fully commits to anything and left me more or less indifferent. The cult in Midsommar has more intrigue, Blink Twice takes more chances, and The Menu is more clever. I left Opus feeling nothing. It is not scary, not particularly funny, and never dives deep enough to its premise. The only shining star in the film is Ayo Edebiri, who proves at every turn that she is one of the best young actors working today. She decides to play the character in a very subtle way. Edebiri is not given a big, explosive freak out scene, instead having her appropriately match the situation. A worse actor would play it up, but Ayo hits the sweet spot at every moment. 

Of course, I have to talk about John Malkovich. From the start the audience is informed that his character is a pop sensation that has made some of the greatest hits of all time, high bar. For the most part I think the music shown in the film barely matches this standard. Were they the best songs I have ever heard, no, were they pretty good pop songs, yes. It kind of sounded like The Weeknd but not really as memorable as his greatest songs. The film really sets itself up for failure by trying to convince us that this man is a Taylor Swift, Michael Jackson, or Beyonce level of talent. When we meet Moretti you are instantly shown that he is weird, but not that he is this life-altering talent. John Malkovich was never gonna reach that bar, but he does have some weird and fun moments. Not gonna go down as an all time great horror or cult leader performance. It is perfectly serviceable. 

The main problem with Opus is that it plays it safe. There were so many places this film could go and the direction it went with was disappointing. Instead of bringing in a random ideology, the film should have been an examination of how pop star and fan relationships can turn parasocial in a toxic way. We see so many videos online of people collecting twenty vinyls of the same album, crying over a song their favorite sings, or fans sending death threats because someone disagreed with them. There is so much to chew on that the film never decides to bring up. Instead just making him a weird famous man with a cult. With a better writer the film could have really been something, but instead became one of the most forgettable horror movies I have seen in awhile. 

Opus is written and directed by Mark Anthony Green. The film stars Ayo Edebiri, John Malkovich, Juliette Lewis, and Murray Bartlett. Opus is in theaters on March 14.

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