Downsizing (Alexander Payne)

[TGM]

DOWNSIZING

Director: Alexander Payne

imdb

[Dead & Messed Up]

Don't worry, I'll cover the poster image:

[TGM]

This was a bit meh. It's way too long and often feels like it just doesn't even know what it's even driving towards, and I checked out right around the same time the rest of my theater did [

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as they're at a gathering where it's being discussed to move their civilization underground

], as at that precise moment, I could hear so many people fidgeting in their seats, and someone else on my aisle actually started snoring. And I honestly can't say I really blame him, either. I was just ready for this thing to be over with, and had no clue how much longer we had to go.

There's some good here, particularly the dynamic between Damon and the Vietnamese woman, which I would've preferred to see even more of their relationship explored here. But otherwise, outside of the movie's message, very little is actually done with the "downsizing" concept, so much so that the handful of times later on where they explicitly point out that they're small, I was like, oh yeah, that's right.

It wasn't awful, but was totally misguided, and incredibly too long, running out of momentum about halfway through. So this gets a mild nay from me.

[TGM]

Don't worry, I'll cover the poster image:

Yeah, going in I was expecting this, but for adults. But honestly, it's really barely that.

[Peng]

I normally am keen towards shapeshifting films, but this shapeshifts right out Payne's satirical wheelhouse into a more sincere plea, which isn't his forte. And for this more intimate mode to work, the story needs a strong central figure. Just this past year Damon proves he can play everyman, but he's given so little to work with; this might be Payne's blandest character, which for this particular story kinda sinks it and makes the latter half just feel ambling endlessly. 5/10