Ostlund’s trite and vulgar satire on the heartlessness of the monied classes is the most overhyped film of the year.
The top prize at the Cannes Film Festival and now a smattering of critical accolades. What gives?
Making his English language feature debut, director Ruben Ostlund loses any of the gravitas or penchant for humor he showed in his Swedish films “Force Majeure” and “The Square” while retaining his tendency to start on a promising note and then lose his way.
“Triangle of Sadness” is divided into three parts, and only the opening sequence of the first part – an audition for male models – is any good.
Part two takes place aboard a ship where the rich and primarily elderly patrons are easy pickings for Ostlund to degrade as they vomit and defecate during a storm which conveniently occurs just as the staff is serving dinner.
Part Three occurs on a (possibly) deserted island where a few remaining passengers and crew disembark after the ship runs aground. There are a few laughs here courtesy of Dolly de Leon as Abigail the ship’s toilet cleaner who now gains some power over her previous tormentors. However, even this journey into “Lord of the Flies” territory runs out of the stream and the ending, in typical Ostlund fashion, is simply the director running out of ideas.
Quite dreadful.
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