Director Ari Aster follows up his horror hits Hereditary and Midsommar with this ambitious surrealist comedy horror. Joaquin Phoenix stars as Beau Wassermann, a meek and anxious man living in a grotty apartment in a crime infested neighbourhood. He makes an attempt to visit his Mum, and ultimately his Mum’s funeral, but his journey becomes a weirdly surreal odyssey.
There are some effective moments of very dark humour, and the opening nightmarish city scenes have the same unsettlingly quality as Midsommar did. Also, flashbacks to Beau’s childhood work well and are enlivened by the brilliant Julia Anonelli as the girl he falls in love with.
However, at three hours long, the movie is incredibly self-indulgent. There is an extended sequence involving a travelling acting troupe that is mind-numbingly tedious, and things never really recover. The trial scene that ends the story totally lacks impact.
The overrated Phoenix gives a detached performance that is quite irritating in a film that only works when it has some semblance of reality. Aster might be looking to be compared favourably to David Lynch, but instead, the worst excesses of Charlie Kauffman were brought to mind.
Rating: 5 out of 10