Opus
Written and Directed by Mark Anthony Green
Starring Ayo Edebiri, John Malkovich, Juliette Lewis, Murray Bartlett, Amber Midthunder
Rated R
Runtime: 1 hour and 43 minutes
Available in theaters starting March 14th

by Emily Maesar, Associate TV Editor

Celebrity is one hell of a cult. But, as it would happen, a cult is also a hell of a cult.

Opus, Mark Anthony Green’s feature directorial debut, chronicles the return of Alfred Moretti (John Malkovich), a pop star who took the world by storm for years before disappearing. Ariel Ecton (Ayo Edebiri) is a reporter trying to make her mark, with the dream of eventually writing a book. When she gets invited, along with her editor Stan (Murray Bartlett), to the first listening party of Moretti’s new album, things start to go off the rails.

Rounding out the illustrious guests invited to the listening weekend are Clara (Juliette Lewis), Bianca (Melissa Chambers), Emily (Stephanie Suganami), and Bill (Mark Sivertsen). It’s a mixed bag of people from Moretti’s life, including Clara’s talk-show TV personality, Emily’s online influencer, and Bianca’s paparazzi. Not to mention Sivertsen as another musician that Moretti used to be friends with, information that heightens the tension as Ariel tries to uncover the darkness she senses in the compound.

In terms of visuals, Robert Pyzocha’s production design is lush—it feels equally like a place of absolute freedom and like the most beautiful prison you’ve ever been in. It’s suffocating in its wide, open spaces and around the clock surveillance, like Ariel’s concierge Belle (Amber Midthunder). This, of course, is heightened by Tommy Maddox-Upshaw’s beautiful cinematography. Every image put to film is as stunning and horrific as the next, with absolutely jaw dropping close-ups.

However, the hardest part of making a film with a musician in it, especially one where they’re meant to be established and ultra-famous, is nailing the actual music. Opus doesn’t shy away from that, positioning Moretti as a David Bowie-type pop star with enough magnetism to make you see stars (and past the creepy greeters and general vibes). Not to mention the music, written by Nile Rodgers and The-Dream, actually rules. And Malkovich reminds us of what an absolute star he is in both his acting work and in the multiple songs’ vocal performances.

But Malkovich is not the only person who stands out. In a cast full of some of the most interesting people working, Edebiri cements herself as one of the greats. Her and Malkovich are truly circling each other, going toe-to-toe. She not only holds her own, but the film rests on the two of them and their ability to be together and apart in the strange world of Moretti’s making. I would also be remiss to not mention Midthunder—someone I’ve been following since her role on FX’s Legion, one of the great weirdo shows of the last decade. Midthunder doesn’t speak a lot in Opus, but her physicality is unmatched. It’s certainly a trait carried over from Legion and Prey (2022), put to great work here as she lurks in the background and is one of the most intimidating characters on the compound.

The main question at the heart of Opus is, between Ariel’s writing and Moretti’s music, what is the actual “opus” of the film. Who gets to have that claim to their greatest work and what does it mean for the future of the world? It’s quite clear by the end of the film, and I think Green does a pretty masterful job of getting you there—with interesting twists and turns. Through all the intrigue and horror, though, Opus is interested in the idea of creativity and what people we deem as “important artists” are allowed to get away with—ostensibly in the name of that creativity. However, I don’t know that the film has a lot to add to the conversation about it, though it’s a fun vessel for observing those elements in our lives. In the end, Opus is a wild ride that’s entertaining from start to finish, with stunning performances, great music, and tension that can only be cut with a knife.

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