Review: 'Triangle Of Sadness' Is Clever, Yet Unfocused

TRIANGLE OF SADNESS (2022)

Ruben Östlund’s latest project, Triangle of Sadness, is deeply humorous and original as it takes on the most affluent in society in a perplexingly uneven, yet intensely intriguing film.

When a couple (Harris Dickinson and Charlbi Dean) embark on a luxury cruise amongst the rich and powerful, they end up shipwrecked on an island. Triangle of Sadness is quite the loony ride from the very beginning. It’s a film that features strong, intelligent writing that subtly makes its point in sharp dialogue. Those who have heard about Östlund’s film likely know that there is a scene that was causing quite the stir, leaving some people literally throwing up. After seeing it, yeah, I get it. Triangle of Sadness is a film that seems to quirky to work, which it mostly does, and features some hilarious, talented performances as well. While Dickinson and Dean are consistently solid, Woody Harrelson steals the show in a minor supporting role that allows him to be just absolutely ridiculous. Dolly De Leon is also captivating once her character steps up in importance after being sidelined for the first two-third of the film. 

Where Triangle of Sadness lost me, unfortunately, is in its structure; it may work for some, but it resulted in a disconnected narrative that thrived in each part (as the film is separated in parts) due to different focuses and performances instead of one constant throughout. As the characters become marooned on an island, so too does the cleverness of the earlier moments in the film, ultimately serving as a vessel for De Leon to take over the reigns. It almost feels like a Saturday Night Live skit that went on far too long with different writers for the various parts and an uncertainty as to what the ultimate goal of the film was. Triangle of Sadness certainly loses its way the longer it goes on. 

Rating: 3/5