‘Triangle of Sadness’ lacks a clear theme
Ruben Östlund’s “Triangle of Sadness” is a film with underlying themes and claims about generational wealth, and its effects are attempted through its characters However, the film feels overall messy and unhinged in a bad way.
Many plot points are introduced, but not further explored. The first act explores supermodels Carl and Yaya’s relationship. While some plot points like gender stereotypes and being an “H&M versus Balenciaga” model are interesting, the act feels confusing and rushed.
We are never clearly introduced to who Carl and Yaya are, or even what they are doing attimes. Viewers just see them fight over the bill, and then fight in an elevator. There is no character development or even introduction.
After the lovers quarrel, they board a luxury cruise. Many of the ship’s guests feel especially entitled to all their wants, serving as a comment on generational wealth.
Some examples are the elderly couple Clementine and Winston, who made their fortune manufacturing grenades, and the Russian oligarch Dimitry and his wife Vera.
Östlund makes a comment with the way he structures the guests on the ship from the very beginning of this act. The rich guests enjoy the sun on the deck, the white staff linger in the middle and the non-white staff can be seen in the hull.
The guests display a clear loss of touch with reality on top of this divide. Carl gets jealous of a worker that catches Yaya’s attention, and later sees the worker get fired. Later a passenger makes the whole crew go for a swim, although the crew insists the food will spoil if they cannot attend to it.
The night gets chaotic as the rich guests get food poisoning. The scene shows the guests’ vomit, bodily fluids and diarrhea, all in the midst of a storm that injures several people.
While the scene is cinematic, there’s not a lot of substance to it. It is overall gross rather than entertaining. Östlund’s intent to show the pretentiousness of the rich is further explored in the last act, making the second act’s longevity unnecessary.
In the last act, a small group of survivors from the boat’s crash make it to an island. After hearing many different noises, including a wild animal barking, they are prompted to light their last flare.
