★ 6 / 10
Moutainhead"aspires to be more, than it reasonably achieves
MovieGuys
"Moutainhead"aspires to be more, than it reasonably achieves. In one sense its an exercise in moral relativism. Moral judgements for four wealthy tech…
"Moutainhead"aspires to be more, than it reasonably achieves.
In one sense its an exercise in moral relativism. Moral judgements for four wealthy tech executives are only true or false, when viewed from their perspective, which is mired in hyper capitalism. For them, morality is grounded in the ruthless pursuit of individual wealth, allegedly to leverage technocratic human evolution (trans-humanism).
When one of them challenges this world view, during a rich pals getaway, things turn darkly comical.
You can see the rather understated critique of the modern obsession with an on line life this film presents. A place where truth is allegedly manufactured, not told.
The gleeful, almost childlike immaturity, wilful recklessness and narcissism, of those who have built it. Also on a certain level, the tech elites uselessness. One can't even boil an egg. So much for the value of social media, right?
Well yes and frankly, "no". This film overplays its hand. It tries to promote the mainstream media as a source of truth, when in fact, people have turned to social media precisely "because" of mainstream journalism's unwillingness, to tell truth to power.
In spite of its flaws, social media has given genuine investigative journalists and courageous whistle blowers, a platform to expose the malfeasance of corrupted power. Something this film, rather too conveniently, overlooks.
In summary, this is not a bad film. As a mild, dark comedy, it very reasonably makes wholly valid points about social media and by extension, big tech's, shortcomings. Where it falls short, its its inability to tell the other side of the story. In vogue labels, like "misinformation", so popular with glib politicians and the less than transparent mainstream media, could as easily be applied to them, as they could, the high tech, on line world and those who built it.
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★ 5 / 10
Narcissism is... glitchy
Succession creator Jesse Armstrong directs this timely feature about how unchecked AI and deep fakes could lead real people in real countries to start real…
Succession creator Jesse Armstrong directs this timely feature about how unchecked AI and deep fakes could lead real people in real countries to start real turmoil. The world reaches its breaking point just as four tech bros embark on a "no deals (= no business), no meals (= no staff) and no high heels (= no women)" retreat to Mountainhead, one of their luxury abodes in Utah, where they gaslight themselves into insouciance for having society's blood on their hands.All four narcissists arrive with personal demons. Ven (Cory Michael Smith) wants to go "post-human" to relieve the stress that plagues him as the richest man alive. Randall (Steve Carell) is terminally ill and wants to live forever. Soups (Jason Schwartzman) is an insecure centi-millionaire desperate to crack the billionaires' club. And Jeff (Ramy Youssef) is the young upstart whose conscience weighs him down, though it's unclear whether that's a pre-existing force in his life or just the result of the technology he sells (i.e., guardrails for AI). Regardless, Jeff is the voice of reason and the audience participates through his journey. Whatever happens to Jeff can be seen as happening to all of us.The Succession vibe is felt on every frame, surely by design. Armstrong brings back Nicholas Britell to provide the score, along with many of Succession's producers and crew in their respective roles. Since there's no way for a 100-minute film to replicate the nuances that made the show so popular over four full seasons, Mountainhead's cast attempts to re-create the same magic from scratch.On that front, the actors hold their own. Carell and Schwartzman are reliable as ever, but Smith and Youssef are the real standouts. They somehow land their lines without getting in each other's way. This is particularly important given the tech-speak that permeates the script: boss cock; surpasso; emotionally incontinent; AI dooming; hyper-scale data centers; deceleration alarmism; doom-looping; de minimis; 8K photo-real; the antidote to bad tech is good tech... I mean it's an endless stream of rapid-fire gobbledygook--- but you never feel trapped or disoriented as a viewer. I credit that to their preparation as individuals and chemistry as a unit.In terms of the point of the movie, I feel it could have been tightened up somewhat. In one hilarious sequence, a character is pressured by the others to acquiesce to *their plan for *his future: "Smile... show your teeth!" It's a brilliant, meaningful line that gets reiterated a few times, albeit too subtly for my taste. I think it could have been uttered at least once more to emphasize the idea of smiling for the camera while being forced against one's will, and thereby summarizing life under an oligarchy: we're merely pawns in somebody else's game.Another exchange I enjoyed which reflects the dialogue in the film:"I just feel if I could get us off this rock it would solve so much!" - Ven"Well you know, it's a solid starter planet but we've outgrown it, no doubt..." - Randall"I just want to get us transhuman! Life up on grid, Tron biking around, digital milkshakes-" - V"To actually be in Plato's Academy *with Plato!" - R"I just feel like the universe is taking a grip and tearing me apart. Like my torso's getting pulled apart with tremendous force and the emptiness of the galaxy is just rushing in." - V"Mmm, not good." - R-Whether Elon-Zuck-Bezos actually talk like this is besides the point. The film is fair in marking their priorities, in the same way that insiders believe the satire of Dr Strangelove could have easily happened in real life. To me, we can pursue life "up on grid" when we're dead- I'm sure there's plenty to discover out there lol! But to push into new galaxies at the expense of the world we've been blessed with is self-defeating. Mountainhead is clear about this, as well as the absurdity of rich people having the power to impose their will on the rest of us, plunder the earth and promote chaos in order to bankroll their next project, especially when none of the fruits will even be seen in our lifetimes-I think this is where they want me to show my teeth.
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★ 6 / 10
At first I was like 'what is this?' but then it totally got me
sinefili
This movie is basically four rich guys talking in a fancy mountain house - that's it. And weirdly... I really liked it. At first I thought it was gonna be…
This movie is basically four rich guys talking in a fancy mountain house - that's it. And weirdly... I really liked it. At first I thought it was gonna be boring, but after 20 minutes I was fully in.The characters are so over-the-top but also weirdly real. You really feel how disconnected they are from normal people. The dialogues are smart but not too heavy, and some moments are actually really funny in a dark way.Souper was my favorite - trying so hard to be a billionaire with a meditation app, but clearly lost inside. The tension between the characters is always there, like something bad could happen anytime, but it never turns into a cliché.There's no action, no music really, not much going on visually, but it still keeps you watching. It's just... different. And in a good way.If you liked Succession or enjoy dark comedy with smart dialogue, give this one a shot. I didn't expect to like it this much.Bonus points for making me laugh and feel a little uncomfortable at the same time.
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TOMATOMETER
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AUDIENCE
· 500 ratings
5.4/10
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absolutely the most BORING snoozefest.....what a disapointment