It’s a little perfect infinity poolWritten and directed by Brandon Cronenberg, Debuts like the subject of “newborns” (those who have gained an unfair professional advantage through family ties) is frantically popular. It’s not entirely unreasonable to ask who gets the keys to our collective cultural ship, but in the case of David Cronenberg and his son Brandon, it’s clear that not since Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach began writing piano tunes like his old man Johann Sebastian has there been a more father-son dynasty. Excitement in the arts.
As for his third feature, the younger Cronenberg does not so much align with his father’s style as expand on it. With infinity poolcompared to the Cronenberg sheikh is good but not great future crimes, you could even say that he mastered it. In his previous films, Anti-virus And Owner, and more so with his latest work, Brandon is drawn to whatever mysterious genetic mutation sparks his fascination with body horror, social paranoia, sexual perversion in a group setting, and the counterintuitive allure of self-destruction. If you’ve seen David Cronenberg’s 1996 movie collide – collideAnd Perhaps the most extreme movie under his belt, then Brandon’s new movie is for you.
infinity pool (They are named for elegantly designed swimming pools with a vanishing edge, often near the ocean, so from certain angles they give the illusion they will last forever) at a luxury resort where romantically distant couple James (Alexander Skarsgård) and Em (Cleopatra Coleman) fancy themselves on vacation. At first, this suggests that the film will be a condemnation of the elite class and how they fail to realize how difficult their problems actually are, such as Sadness triangle. But Palme d’Or winner Ruben Östlund, drenched in vomit and feces, is normal compared to what’s going on here.
James is a frustrated author. fortune married. He can’t collect it for a follow-up book and is happy when he meets a fan at the resort. Gaby (Mia Goth) invites him to dinner with her husband, Alban (Jalil Lesper), which he accepts, upsetting Em because it’s the same place he just said he didn’t want to go to.
G/O Media may earn a commission
Up to $100 credit
Samsung Reserve
Reserve the next gen Samsung device
All you need to do is sign up with your email and boom: credit for your preorder on a new Samsung device.
At a cringey Chinese restaurant (not a lot of Chinese people among the waitstaff), they plan an excursion outside the fenced-in tourist section of whatever unnamed Instagram-ready paradise they’re in. The journey gets weird (and features a surprisingly frank and spirited sexual act in extreme close-up) and then bloody when James accidentally runs over an islander in their borrowed car. He wants to stay and find help, but the others know that the law in these parts is incredibly strict, so they flee.
The next day, James is interrogated and realizes that he must be executed for his crime. However, if he pays a fee, a “double” can be manufactured that can die in his place. Is this code for some luckless local who’ll dress in James’ clothing and face the penalty? No, it means a sentient human duplicate with an awareness of death will be created and then killed by the victim’s young son.
This is strange, certainly, but we’re just getting started. Much of Infinity Pool’s strength comes from how it dives completely into unexpected and unnerving territory. It truly cannonballs into the deep end when James joins a group of veterans versed in the local style of crime and punishment. An agreeable dose of Philip K. Dick (or Dead Rangers) when we wonder which version of the character we’re seeing. Of course, we’re all in for a ride on this crazy holiday called life, but to see it laid out metaphorically (and in beautiful settings and modern interiors) infinity pool winner.
The movie does not shy away from physical and emotional violence. There are a few moments when it may be necessary to protect your eyes from the blood on the screen. But the disturbing aspects of the film remained. Everyone, even the most well-adapted person, dances around with self-destructive behaviour. How else can we explain Wendy’s Baconator? This drive has been well explored in movies and literature, but what Cronenberg did here spins the centrifuge so much that we are left face-to-face with its basic elements. And you may not like what you see.
(infinity pool It will be released in theaters on January 27)