Recenzja: Don’t look up
Julita Pietroń
Black comedy is not dead.
American black comedy film Don’t Look Up, directed by Adam McKay, is a 2021 apocalyptic vision of how the society actually works. The film tells a story of two astronomers: Kate Dibiasky, played by Jennifer Lawrence, a young PhD at the Michigan State University, and her professor, Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio). They attempt to tell the world about a comet that will destroy human civilization. After NASA confirms Dibiasky’s findings, they fly to the White House in order to contact the President (Meryl Streep). Their arrival is not met with much interest. As it turns out neither the White House, Television nor anyone else cares about the end of our world. Money, politics and some celebrity affairs appear to be more interesting. After all this film portrays the civilization that is doomed by itself rather than the apocalypse.
The first thing that appeals to every cinema-lover is probably the cast: Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, Rob Morgan, Jennifer Lawrence, Cate Blanchett, Johan Hill, Timothée Chalamet… It couldn’t go wrong really. All the characters are written in a characteristic way –at least one of their character traits is exaggerated and their attitude toward what is really important for them is exposed. It creates a good balance between their egoistic, flat, ignorant personalities and the depth which actors try to create.
Another interesting fact is how good a parody McKay presents to us. There are not many real black comedies created these days. We can see some horrors which are so bad that we go and laugh (like the 2021 Polish slasher film). We have comedies with black humour (usually not really well suited) and we have action movies where there is always that one hero who will tell an inappropriate joke. And this is not how a true black comedy should work. McKay gives his audience a real black humour. He shows us the distorting mirror image of ourselves and he does it quite accurately – this is the scariest part of this movie. Also it is not a typical apocalyptic film. There is a number of tragicomedies about the end of the world. All of them end well. Usually there is one hero without much competence who saves humanity anyway. Additionally there is some kind of romance and then – the happy end. Dear Hollywood, it is boring!
For me one of the best elements of Don’t Look Up is that it ends as it should and includes a lot of things we can see in the history books or any news. Ignorant politicians focused on money and bureaucracy? Check. Billionaires who enjoy special treatment? Check. Stupid gossip about some personal life of celebrities? Ariana Grande performed the best mainstream parody this film could have had. Some people who care and have no power because they are random people with no significance, even though they try to do good? It has it all! Finally, we have got a realistic movie base on how the world looks like, with a good cast and a clear vision.
At first, I was not sure whether I wanted to watch this film. There are too many apocalyptic visions that have nothing to do with reality (the worst thing is when the main character grabs a rifle, has no idea how to use it and kills the target antihero without loading the weapon (directors should be punished for this). We won’t find a similar scheme here. Don’t Look Up is unlike any other end-of-the-world film. There are some things that could have been done better such as the animations at the very end. Or the President, because the political satire is so strong that it is too obvious who is the bad guy. The film lacks objectivity when it comes to political issues so it might easily alienate people with views other than the director. Some moments are just distasteful when it comes to political approach.
I really recommend watching this movie. Don’t Look Up was given 15 awards and was nominated 86 times[1] for a reason. McKay found an ideal balance between the depressing vision of a possible scenario and the humoristic approach to highlight the absurdity of the modern society. Maybe it is a bit painful to watch how the society works, maybe it is hard to acknowledge those pessimistic aspects, but it is absolutely worth watching. This movie can open your eyes wider than you have ever expected. It is simply amazing.
[1] Nie patrz w górę (2021) – IMDb, access date: 4.05.2022.