Triangle of Sadness (2022) Review

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDvfFIZQIuQ

THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

If there is one thing we learned about the drastic changes that can come for our lives, you won’t always see it coming.


PLOT


Triangle of Sadness follows a series of events that go from subtle to catastrophic.


Part 1: Carl and Yaya follows the two titular models who have been dating for some time. After the former has a casting call, they have an argument during dinner where the latter expects him to pay each time. She even admits that she’s with him for social media clout and wants to be a trophy wife, but he believes she’ll grow to love him unconditionally.


Part 2: The Yacht follows the couple go on a luxury cruise for a social media promotion. Among the rest of the guests include: tech millionaire Jarmo who Yaya flirts with, Therese who is wheelchair bound due to a past stroke, elderly couple Clementine & Winston (Amanda Walker & Oliver Ford Davies) who made a fortune manufacturing weapons, and Russian oligarch Dimitry along with his wife Vera (Sunnyi Melles). As everyone luxuriates on the yacht, they’re oblivious to the fact that head of staff Paula has the crew meet their every need as ridiculous as possible. It goes so far to the point of the kitchen crew swimming when warned by the chef the food will go bad if unattended. Carl even inadvertently gets a crew member fired for being shirtless in front of Yaya. During the trip, the yacht’s captain, Thomas Smith, spends time drinking in his cabin. When a storm emerges, the staff does carry on with holding a fine dining dinner for the guests, but all fall ill from food poisoning and seasickness due to the food being left out. As the storm goes on, Thomas gets along with Dimitry as they share a drunken debate over communism & capitalism. It gets so hectic that while the menial staff tries cleaning up, the guest staff sabotage the lower just to cut off the intercom. When the morning finally arrives, pirates attack and they cause the yacht to sink with the use of one of Winston’s grenades. 


Part 3: The Island follows a handful of survivors reach an island. The ship’s mechanic Nelson (Jean-Christophe Folly) and toilet manager Abigail reach the island alongside Carl, Yaya, Dimitry, Paula, Jarmo & Therese. As Dimitry suspects Nelson to be a pirate, the roles get reversed Paula & Abigail when the latter shows to have survival skills compared to everyone else. As she rises to power, everyone curries her favor with gifts & labor. With everyone camping together, she uses a lifeboat for private shelter. Abigail would also lure Carl into a sexual relationship in exchange for food, which makes Yaya resentful. After Jarmo kills a wild donkey on his own, Therese would find a beach vendor but would be unable to speak to him of her situation due to her condition. When Yaya & Abigail go hiking together, they find a lift built into the rocks, realizing they’re near a resort. Not wanting to go back to being powerless, she intends to kill Yaya with a rock. She gets hesitant when the latter offers to let her be an assistant should they get back home. Before she can decide, the film ends with a cutaway of Carl running through the jungle.


THOUGHTS

There are always a handful of movies that come out and have you thinking “I can’t believe this exists” in all the right ways. Writer/director Ruben Östlund succeeds in creating something that is the definition of bombastic because there is no other way to define this movie after you sit through it. At the end of the day, this is a comedy at heart because the whole experience is unserious that you can’t believe so many things happen the way they do. It is one thing to have Woody Harrelson be too cynical of a captain as Thomas Smith who does more trouble than good, but then you’re just laughing uncontrollably with the grenade bit, the argument of who should pay for dinner or just how everyone loves that mental power of wealth once everyone is in the middle of an island. This is where the drama blends in well and making a standout story that deeply sells the point that said wealth doesn’t guarantee true wealth and the power dynamic will reverse in a heartbeat. If you don’t think that’s possible, then you’re part of the reason inequality goes on. Through a colorful ensemble, I think there is a pay off with the message as each characters have that power shift. You for sure couldn’t keep a straight face with Zlatko Burić be so boisterous as Dimitry and rather than be punished by the group for worsening everyone’s sickness before the pirates, he makes up for it with him adapting to the jungle. I’ll definitely give a shoutout to Jarmo though because while not as confident upon first encounter, Henrik Dorsin showed him to be adaptive overtime since he did lead a successful hunt that everyone was proud of. If anyone was the biggest victim here, it has to be Therese because no matter how much emotion Iris Berben unleashes with the phrase, ‘In den Wolken’, which is German for ‘in the clouds’, no one cares for her as much as she should and it’s a shame she’ll likely remain stuck on the island should everyone else find the lift. Moving on, Paula was a huge example of the dynamic shift because Vicki Berlin showed her as one who expected things to remain as is just because she things that’s a priority. It was like an instinct for her to act like that until being put in place that that’s not the way to go about survival. Enter Dolly de Leon who quietly enters the story and takes over the third act as Abigail. She’s someone who shows her worth more than tell, rather than wait for help because she didn’t grow up with that privilege. The second she showed her capabilities, everyone fell in line. Apart from Therese, a part of you wants to root for Carl & Yaya not because they begin the story, but for the fact you want them to improve their relationship should they get home. Harris Dickinson & the late Charlibi Dean have such great chemistry as this dynamic couple who define opposites attract. The former is all about wanting to be genuine on how he feels with things, only to become completely narcissistic when it comes to survival mode. As for the latter, she’s openly manipulative in comparison to her counterpart and hates it most when losing whatever power she had because it was a big part of what defined her. She does end up adapting like everyone, but does pull off remaining opportunistic when finding a chance to regain what she misses. It’s definitely a 50/50 moment when it came to wondering what does happen between her and Abigail since we don’t know what happens to them and the group. It’s a moment left for interpretation because if Yaya is spared by Abigail, it’s a gamble for the latter to try maintaining her leverage & respect should they go home. If not, then that just shows her desperation to keep such control she can’t guarantee keeping. The only thing that feels certain is the high chance of leaving Carl behind because they don’t need him at that point. If he did find the lift as well, that could explain running through the jungle and it’ll of course be up to him to catch up before being forgotten. In conclusion, Triangle of Sadness is a instant classic of a dark comedy for just finding new ways to be full of surprises, earning the Best Picture nominee in the process. If surprises are what you seek in movies, see this now.