Cosmopolis (2012)

Riding across Manhattan in a stretch limo in order to get a haircut, a 28-year-old billionaire asset manager's day devolves into an odyssey with a cast of characters that start to tear his world apart.

Director:

David Cronenberg

Writers:

David Cronenberg (screenplay), Don DeLillo (novel)

Stars:

Robert Pattinson, Sarah Gadon, Juliette Binoche

3 wins & 9 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Pattinson	...	Eric Packer
Sarah Gadon	...	Elise Shifrin
Paul Giamatti	...	Benno Levin
Kevin Durand	...	Torval
Abdul Ayoola	...	Ibrahim Hamadou
Juliette Binoche	...	Didi Fancher
Emily Hampshire	...	Jane Melman
Bob Bainborough	...	Dr. Ingram
Samantha Morton	...	Vija Kinsky
Zeljko Kecojevic	...	Danko
Jay Baruchel	...	Shiner
Philip Nozuka	...	Michael Chin
Mathieu Amalric	...	André Petrescu
Patricia McKenzie	...	Kendra Hays
Ryan Kelly	...	Rat Man #1

Storyline

Riding across Manhattan in a stretch limo in order to get a haircut, a 28-year-old billionaire asset manager's day devolves into an odyssey with a cast of characters that start to tear his world apart.

---

Plot Keywords:

haircut | billionaire | woman on top | taxi driver | anarchist | 

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some strong sexual content including graphic nudity, violence and language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [fr]

Country:

Canada France Portugal Italy

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 May 2012 (France)

Also Known As:

Cosmópolis

Filming Locations:

Union Station, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Box Office

Budget:

$20,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$70,339 (USA) (17 August 2012)

Gross:

$743,636 (USA) (14 September 2012)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Alfama Films, Prospero Pictures, Kinology

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Colin Farrell was originally cast but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts with his movie Total Recall. He was replaced by Robert Pattinson.

---

Quotes

Benno Levin: I wanna be known as Benno!

---

Crazy Credits

The final credits are inspired in ROTHKO's paintings which are part of the conversation between 'Juliet Binoche' (qv) and 'Robert Pattinson' (qv).

---

Connections

Referenced in Cinema 3: Episode dated 24 November 2011 (2011)

---

Soundtracks

"Mecca"
Lyrics by Don DeLillo and K'Naan
Performed by K'Naan

User Reviews

Dialogue-driven and emotionally empty, "Cosmpolis" requires an intense desire for philosophical discourse

Let's say that for every 10 "Twilight" fans, at least one is guaranteed to give "Cosmopolis" a go for no other reason than Robert Pattinson. And among those "Twilight" fans dumb enough to mindlessly try the film out, at least 9 of 10 will despise what they see.

David Cronenberg rather faithfully (from what I understand) adapts Don DeLillo's socio- economic commentary rolled into a film about young billionaire Eric Packer, who goes on a long limo ride across New York City for a haircut. What he fails to recognize, however, is that he was completely wasting his time; "Cosmopolis" has no business being a movie.

Cronenberg's clean and tight approach to the film can't be denied its technical kudos, but everything he films is emotionally anemic. "Cosmopolis" has no story; its characters are talking heads and its scenes just a collection of political gospel and esoteric ideologies.

Not an ounce of this film goes into giving its characters souls, and the more you hunt in search for just a sliver of one, the less attention you pay to the themes so fundamental to the film's core. If you can focus long enough in any given scene, you'll pick up some thought- provoking nuggets, but our natural curiosity as an audience is to look for the story behind the highbrow dialogue. Doing so, however, distracts from paying attention to all that can be praised about this material.

Therein lies the reason Cronenberg should have left the novel alone. Ideas like the ones presented in "Cosmopolis" deserve time to simmer. If I had read the book, I certainly would have taken the time to re-read portions of it to process the commentary on capitalism rather than thinking at multiple times throughout the film "oh, there are rats, that's a symbol for what this film is trying to say about capitalism!"

With the exception of Packer's newly made wife (Sarah Gadon), the cast of supporting characters suffers a similar fate in spite of some big names in Juliette Binoche, Paul Giamatti and Jay Baruchel. By the time you can begin to so much as chew on the ideas raised in one of any of the several scenes in which Packer meets with a new character in his limo and talks about big-time stuff, that character is gone from the film completely. You never get a moment to catch up so that you can be in step with what's going on.

Providing further distraction from understanding anything that's said in this movie is how Cronenberg — as he always does — charges this film with sexual and violent tension. He's not adding any that's not already in the story, but he accentuates it. Consequently, moments in the film will yank you out of your perpetual state of philosophical processing and snap you back into the moment of the film, usually a violent outburst or a quick cut to a sex scene. That's part of what makes Cronenberg a revered director, but in this case it's what makes "Cosmopolis" such a tough watch.

For those hoping to see what Pattinson does as a top-billed star given weighty material, "Cosmopolis" proves to be an unfair judge. He seems comfortable with the bizarre style of dialogue, but the character and the story are so empty that the film can hardly be considered a fair judgment of his would-be dramatic prowess.

As with any work of art steeped in its ideas, the more you sit with it or re-experience it, the more you're likely to warm up to it, and I have no reason to believe that will not be true of "Cosmopolis." At the same time, a majority of viewers will likely not be equipped with the experience of processing this language as the film necessitates, and the first run-through (obviously the most important) suffers drastically as a result.

~Steven C

Thanks for reading! Visit moviemusereviews.com