I was looking forward to watching this movie since it was announced around a year ago. The cast alone is intriguing, but the concept and satire promised from the trailers and the promotional videos got me even more excited.
However, I was severely let down by its execution. While it clearly makes a very necessary point about climate change and people’s lack of recognition of it until it is likely too late, the rest of the movie fell flat for me. Very flat.
Without spoilers, my favorite moments of the film were the ending and scenes with Timothee Chalamet. The ending was touching, made a solid point, and jarring in the right ways. It was emotional and well-executed. Chalamet’s character also played a major role in the final scene and often added more dimension through the movie when the jokes fell flat. The post credits scene is also one for the books. Not entirely necessary but I would say it completes the semi-cliffhanger.
Overall, I did not laugh out loud once. The humor did not make me want to laugh and the pacing was rough. At times the plot felt like it leaped forward and at other times it felt like it was at a stand still. The incorporation of big stars in this movie was not enough to make me recommend it to family or friends. I want to emphasize how I really wanted to love this movie but it let me down. I enjoy other films by this director (Adam McKay) so I was hoping that this movie would end the year with a bang, but unfortunately that is not what happened.
Lastly, while Jonah Hill’s character, as well as most of the other characters, had the opportunity to be powerfully funny and satirical, they did not feel three dimensional and I could not find myself relating to them. I think this is the reason for my lack of enjoyment of this movie. The characters were not well-developed and left me feeling “on the outside” and not attached in any way.
If you have a few free hours, give this movie a watch if you’re ok with being let down, or if you want to see a few “meme-able moments” that are funnier out of context than in the film. But other than that, I would not say that this film is one that you need to watch. You can skip this one and not miss out on anything. Unless you don’t believe in climate change, then maybe give this one a watch and rethink your reasoning.
5/10
*Disclaimer: Making a movie is hard. Sometimes you have an idea and it is not interpreted how you intended it to be. All directors, producers, writers, and everyone on set should be proud at what they created and I do not want to diminish that. I just want to share my opinions so we can learn from movies and see what works and what didn’t. 🙂
Aloha Arianna 