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Allegedly, Triangle of Sadness is a comedy. That’s not to say that the movie does not have some great comedic moments, however, the subject matter does not lend itself to be easily viewed as a conventional comedy. It is in this disconnect that Triangle of Sadness has one of its major issues; it does not know what type of movie it wants to be. At times it tries to be a comedy, it tries to be a drama, and at times it tries to be the diametrically opposite version of comedy in the same scene in a weird juxtaposition of gross-out moments and political or philosophical debates.
Triangle of Sadness follows three stories in the relationship of Carl (Harris Dickinson) and Yaya (Charlbi Dean Kriek) as their relationship begins, they vacation and they (as one would expect) end up stranded on a deserted island together. They interact with various members of society’s elite on their vacation and see for themselves the divide between the haves and the have-nots.
From the onset of the second story, it is obvious what Triangle of Sadness is trying to do. It is attempting to occupy the same place in the cultural zeitgeist that Parasite did back in early 2020. It is trying to tell a story about wealth inequality and the difference between those with money and power and those without. The problem (in a strange way) mirrors the difference between what the DCEU accomplished during its run (or the Dark Universe at Universal or the expanded universe of Fast and the Furious) and what Marvel Studios accomplished during its run. The former saw the success of the latter and attempted to replicate it, however, they did not understand what made it work in the original case. Here, Parasite is a lot more subtle in its execution while Triangle of Sadness is more explicit in its messaging, which makes it a little more of a slog to get through.
Arguably the strongest part of the movie is the opening where Yaya and Carl are debating the semantics and finances of dating in the modern era. The two actors have great chemistry when they are on screen together and they do carry the scenes where they appear. Supporting cast like Woody Harrelson, Iris Berben, Dolly De Leon, and Zlatko Buric do their best to keep the viewer’s attention, however, even their best efforts are not enough at times.
At the end of the day, Triangle of Sadness is probably the weakest of the Best Picture nominees, however, it is still an interesting watch with some fun performances and a few great comedic beats. That said, the downtime between these moments is a little much to sit through, especially for a movie that is a little under two and a half hours long. Triangle of Sadness is available on Hulu now so it does not require a trip to the theater to watch, which definitely is the way to enjoy this film.
Final Rating: 7/10
