“Triangle of Sadness” Review!
Director: Ruben Ostlund
Starring: Harris Dickinson, Woody Harrelson, Zlatko Buric
Director Ruben Ostlund's latest satire "The Triangle of Happiness" makes all three sides of the film's angular title, in which he tries to navigate the turbulent waters of wealth and privilege.
The film's most successful and most clearly enjoyable performance is its debut, depicting an increasingly volatile date between male model Carl (Harris Dickinson) and influential Yaya (Charlby Dean). Rushing through his life and perhaps expressing some frustration, Carl spends 45 minutes at a fancy restaurant going back and forth in an endless argument about who should pay the bill. As the film is in its subtle form, it's a very funny and well-developed sequence that would have made a great feature.
Things get crazy as we follow the couple on a luxury yacht where we meet a unique cast of humble yet wealthy characters, including Russian President Dmitry (Slatko Burik). And that's where Woody Harrelson—who stars—comes in with an inspired and mischievous turn as the world's worst captain, an alcoholic who first refuses to come out of his room and then becomes blind and drunk. An ending inadvertently seals the fate of passengers and crew in one of the most ludicrously strange scenes—sick, dirty, and an explosion of saliva spray that can entertain or test the patience of viewers—a deserted island.
As for director Ostlund, there's clearly transparency here: He doesn't hold back, and seems happy only to create a playground where the rich deserve to be defeated and subjugated. As a filmmaker, he has always excelled at creating stand-out scenes, moments of suspense and horror. Some of the once-filmmaker's artistic hand seems lost in the second and third volumes, especially the exploration of the film's most intriguing idea, which is that these men end up on a desert island where their class roles are reversed. The director is more interested in going off on a tangent with a slightly theatrical payoff.
Nevertheless, it is a very watchable and entertaining film. There's always something going on here to keep you busy, and the first part is a brilliantly funny and well-watched mini-opera of resentment and self-loathing. However, when director Ostlund's characters start hitting animals with large rocks in the final reel, the director's failure is to constantly feel the need to do the same to his audience.
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