Movie Review: Don’t Look Up
Rating 1 and 1/2 Stars
There is an undeniable flair to Adam McKay films similar to when you hear a notable hip hop producer with their own signature style. I wouldn't call McKay the Mannie Fresh of film direction, frankly, I’m not sure if there is an apt producer comparison.
McKay has his certified banger: The Big Short.
He has also his dud: Vice.
While they’re generally well-received, Step Brothers, Talladega Nights, and Anchorman (I prefer this one!) get differing responses depending on who you ask. McKay’s comedies are oft dependent on your enjoyment of a 2000s nonsensical slapstick Will Ferrell performance.
McKay shifted from his Ferrell-driven Brinks trucks to branching out into social commentaries with The Big Short and Vice. The Big Short was well-adapted to McKay’s zaniness and the script felt more grounded and guided by the subject matter. McKay’s Vice then took artistic liberties with the source material to tell the story of Dick Cheney. McKay was growing more comfortable with his directorial influence.
Along comes Don’t Look Up and McKay is fully in his element. Don’t Look Up challenges the current sociopolitical landscape by presenting its gaudiness and irreverence on screen. The result is not a pleasant experience.
It’s completely reasonable to deliver an unpleasant movie with unlikeable characters and a loosely strung plot, it’s almost like a modern take on Kubrick. Where Don’t Look Up fails to land is that it never takes off.
Leonardo DiCaprio stars as astrophysicist Dr. Randall Mindy. One of his students discovers a giant comet that is hurtling directly toward Earth. That student is Kate Dibiasky played by Jennifer Lawrence. DiCaprio plays a man who is ridden with anxiety, lacking self-confidence, and depression. Lawrence’s Kate is disaffected until she spirals into fits of rage between her sarcastic spats with authority.
Don’t Look Up goes ensemble heavy on the big names: Meryl Streep, Jonah Hill, Tyler Perry, Cate Blanchett, Ariana Grande, Kid Cudi, Ron Perlman, Timothee Chalamet. Liev Schreiber drops in to do a quick narration. A glance at this list and you’d think this was one of those holiday flicks that nobody watches.
Every character gets boxed into a stereotypical role that lacks any gravitas or weight. Streep plays a right-wing President with no brain, Hill is her silver spoon-fed son who happens to be the Chief of Staff. Grande and Cudi are modern-day Kardashians. Mark Rylance plays a tech “genius” who’s obviously not impersonating Elon Musk…
Don’t Look Up follows Dr. Mindy and Kate as they try to warn America about the impending comet and how its impact will be the end of the world. Nobody listens. Nobody cares. Mostly. Sideplots emerge. Factions take shape.
If McKay accomplished anything by making Don’t Look Up, the headliner would be DiCaprio plays an irredeemable and unlikeable protagonist. DiCaprio is committed like many of his cast mates but the material lacks substance to make any of the characters feel authentic. Most characters are written with an excessive level of dim-wittedness.
The trouble with Don’t Look Up is that while McKay’s directorial flair flashes symbolism, there’s no cohesive thread to follow along to make you wonder if there’s actually anything profound concealed beneath the surface.
In short, Don’t Look Up is a poorly conceptualized Black Mirror episode that assumes it’s prescient but lacks the necessary foundation to leave any lasting impact.
