MANILA, PHILIPPINES — “Mothering,” pronounced as muh·thr·uhng – an internet slang to describe a powerful performance from a female artist. What better way to describe the now-internationally acclaimed star, Dolly de Leon for Triangle of Sadness.
“In the yacht, [I’m the] cleaning lady. Here, captain,” de Leon’s character Abigail declared during the third act of this scathing satirical black comedy from Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund. In the film, the proudly Filipina actress steals the show’s third act with her Golden Globe and BAFTA nominated turn as the lowly toilet manager of the hyper-luxury yacht who turns the table against their wealthy guests.
The film, penned and directed by Östlund in his English-language feature film debut, is served in three acts, with the first one following oh-so beautiful model couple Carl (Harris Dickinson) and his influencer girlfriend Yaya (the late Charlbi Dean). We are introduced to the bickering couple as they discuss money and gender roles after arguing over who should pay their dinner bill (apparently, in the modelling industry, men only earn 1/3 of what women gets).
“We shouldn’t just slip into the stereotypical gender-based roles everyone else seems to be doing. I want us to be equal,” Carl told his girlfriend, who later admitted that the reason she wanted him to pay for dinner is to feel some assurance that he intends to take care of her. “I’m a model, honey,” she told him. “The only way for me to get out of this life is to become someone’s trophy wife.” He dissed the idea of becoming a trophy wife, only for him to actually become one in the film’s third act.
The film followed the couple joining a band of money-eyed elites, from business tycoons to heiresses, aboard a 250 million dollar luxury yacht commanded by their unhinged captain, Thomas Smith (Woody Harrelson), along with their downtrodden staff who must respond to their every belittling whims. Of course, things didn’t go as planned as the yacht gets shipwrecked after a storm, leaving the surviving guests and crew on an island. Among the lucky ones who managed to get out of the tragedy alive and unscathed were Carl and Yaya, together with Russian oligarch Dimitry (Zlatko Burić), wheelchair-bound Therese (Iris Berben), the yacht’s head of staff Paula (Vicki Berlin), lonely tech millionaire Jarmo (Henrik Dorsin), Nelson (Jean-Christophe Folly) who claimed to be a ship mechanic, and Abigail (De Leon). On the island, the hierarchical structure was upended as Abigail’s survival skills became the only currency available.
Known for his satirical black comedies, Östlund has made a name for his films Force Majeure (2014) which deals with the aftermath of a humiliating incident involving a husband prioritizing his own safety and leaving his wife and children during an apparent avalanche in the French Alps, and The Square (2017), which serves as a takedown on the contemporary art world.
For his latest film, he delivered a scathing satire on classism, consumerism, capitalism, gender roles, and the never-ending exploitation of the third world workforce industry. While all of these themes aren’t anything new anymore, considering the current trend of f*ck-the-rich movies, Östlund managed to surpass expectations with his brutal and unapologetic take on the rising subgenre.
He took a sharp stab on the morally corrupt elite comprising 1% of the world’s population who takes advantage of other nation’s poverty and suffering as long as they make a profit out of it, like the elderly couple Clementine and Winston (Amanda Walker, Oliver Ford Davies), who have made their fortune manufacturing weapons used in war and terrorism. As Capt. Thomas Smith told his guest: “While you’re swimming in abundance, the rest of the world is drowning in misery.” But aside from its razor sharp commentary, the film also delivered big laughs, with the most hilarious sequence being the disorienting and chaotic Captain’s dinner set.
It’s also filled with engrossing performances from its cast, led by Harris Dickinson as Carl and the late Charlbi Dean as his girlfriend Yaya. But it is our very own Dolly De Leon who stole the spotlight as the toilet manager turned captain, Abigail. While we only saw glimpses of Abigail in the film’s first half, the entire third act belonged to her, with De Leon delivering a star-making turn with her portrayal of the overseas Filipino working class who manages to turn the tables with her wit and survival skills.
The now-acclaimed Filipina actress, who started out in a bit role in 1991’s Nanay episode of Shake, Rattle, and Roll III (the one with the acid-spitting Undin that eventually killed mean girl Ai-Ai de las Alas), has always been in the sidelines, accepting small roles in an industry that prioritizes face value and popularity over actual talent. A fan of Hollywood icon Bette Davis ever since she saw her in the 1962 film, What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?, De Leon finally gets her long overdue recognition, leading to her being listed as one of the 31 Of The World’s Most Famous Stars by British Vogue, and making her the first Filipina to earn a nod from prestigious award-giving bodies including Hollywood’s Golden Globes and UK’s BAFTA awards. De Leon might as well be Philippines’ very own Bette Davis, who also earned a nomination from the British Academy Film Awards for the said 1962 film.
A scathing satire on classism, capitalism and gender norms, Ruben Östlund’s black comedy is a savage AF takedown of the rich and influential, propelled by a career-defining performance from Dolly De Leon. From its crude and gross humor, it’s basically Parasite on a boat, involving lots of bodily fluids – a riotous black comedy best enjoyed with a crowd and a platter of oysters.
ABOUT THE WRITER
Jayson A. Laniba is a film buff with more than eight years experience of writing about movies. He has written reviews for online publications such as LionhearTV, Grimoire of Horror, and the Society of Filipino Film Reviewers (SFFR). Now, he spends most of his time blabbering about local cinema on his Instagram page, @FilmCircleReject.
