Effective satire requires precision, but this new film from Guy Maddin, alongside Evan and Galen Johnson, doesn't quite hit the mark, becoming a meandering, unfocused experience that somehow manages to blend messages and symbols that are both obscurely subtle and plainly obvious. The story unfolds at a G7 summit in Germany, where leaders from the host nation along with their counterparts from the United States, Canada, Great Britain, France, Italy, and Japan (as well as representatives of the European Union) gather annually to discuss global affairs and congratulate themselves for doing a seemingly good job—despite lacking the skills necessary to achieve anything substantial beyond maintaining their positions. They offer empty pronouncements about various topics while attempting to draft one of their customary joint statements—position papers that the American president openly acknowledges are never actually read. This communique is intended to address some sort of vague global crisis, hinting at apocalyptic undertones. However, during their “work”—an endeavor for which they’re clearly unprepared—they quickly find themselves overwhelmed as the surrounding infrastructure begins to deteriorate, a situation made more unsettling by the appearance of strange apparitions and zombie-like creatures drawn from classic folklore and central European fairy tales. One might expect this to create an intriguing foundation for a surreal satirical story about modern global politics, but the execution is so flawed that it ultimately amounts to little more than excessive intellectual and symbolic indulgence—depicted here in a somewhat literal and repetitive manner. To further complicate things, the narrative includes numerous unexplained developments, some of which seemingly relate to the symbolic weakening of a dominant patriarchal world order in favor of a female-led system, while others are simply so bizarre that they defy description, explanation or purpose (and there’s more of that indulgence again, only this time reflected in the screenplay). The final product is a jumbled movie that, despite featuring a talented cast and atmospheric cinematography and design, ultimately fails to resonate. The insights it aims to convey aren't particularly original, groundbreaking, or humorous. We are already well aware of how incompetent many world leaders appear to be today, including their participation in what amounts to unconscious acts of self-promotion—and even self-importance—but do we really need a film to remind us of that (particularly one as poorly made as this)? No. I would suggest finding something else to watch at the cinema (or simply skipping it altogether).

Source on TMDB