Year of Release: 2019
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, Melissa Rauch, Sharon Stone, Jeffrey Wright, David Schwimmer, James Cromwell, Will Forte, Chris Parnell, Nonso Anozie, Larry Wilmore, Matthias Schoenaerts, Rosalind Chao, Robert Patrick, Larry Clarke
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 6
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Synopsis and Review:
Another week, another release from Netflix, this time around partnering with the stupendously talented and prolific director, Steven Soderbergh. After his announced pause, Soderbergh has released in the last two years "Unsane" and earlier this year, "High Flying Bird". He has also already completed "Let Them All Talk" which will premiere in 2020. "The Laudromat" which premiered at the Venice Film Festival of 2019, follows the type of comedy/exposé hybrid, which Adam McKay perfect with "The Big Short" (and to a lesser extent, with "Vice"). The film follows the story of Ellen Martin, who while celebrating her 40th marriage anniversary, suffers a dramatic accident on a cruise boat, which capsizes, killing 20 people in the process, including her dearly beloved partner. The company who owns the boat has it insured, and Ellen is due for a settlement, however through her lawyer, she becomes aware that in reality, the insurance company who provided the coverage, is in fact part of a fraudulent scheme, tied with offshore companies. Ellen basically has to settle for much less than she expected, however that doesn't prevent her from wanting to know more about these offshore havens, the companies that profit from them, and bring to light the fact that these money laundering havens are a safety blanket for all sorts of illegal activities.
"The Laundromat" veers into the territory Steven Soderbergh previously explored with "The Informant!", without being as clearly comedic, or as tightly written. The film is impeccably acted and staged, not in an overly didactic tone, but it lacks a tighter editing and a more dynamic pacing, which becomes crucial for films where the characters address the audience directly, and are exposing facts in a machine-gun type of style. The combination of segments, where Meryl Streep's widow commands the lion share of attention, while diverse and engaging, falter ever so slightly when Gary Oldman and Antonio Banderas come onscreen, as the narrators/foil characters, to all the events taking place on the screen. These narrators are often times going through the details of what entails to create offshore accounts, handle tax write-offs and elaborate on other financial driven topics, and try deliver it in a mix of ironic and informational way (money laundering for dummies), but at times their schtick seems to go on for far too long. There are a series of characters coming and going, illustrating the tentacles of how these financial schemes operate, however the one who actually provides a beating heart to the story is Meryl Streep, who is fantastic once again, playing multiple characters. An uneven, yet worth watching film from one of the best directors working these days.
"The Laundromat" veers into the territory Steven Soderbergh previously explored with "The Informant!", without being as clearly comedic, or as tightly written. The film is impeccably acted and staged, not in an overly didactic tone, but it lacks a tighter editing and a more dynamic pacing, which becomes crucial for films where the characters address the audience directly, and are exposing facts in a machine-gun type of style. The combination of segments, where Meryl Streep's widow commands the lion share of attention, while diverse and engaging, falter ever so slightly when Gary Oldman and Antonio Banderas come onscreen, as the narrators/foil characters, to all the events taking place on the screen. These narrators are often times going through the details of what entails to create offshore accounts, handle tax write-offs and elaborate on other financial driven topics, and try deliver it in a mix of ironic and informational way (money laundering for dummies), but at times their schtick seems to go on for far too long. There are a series of characters coming and going, illustrating the tentacles of how these financial schemes operate, however the one who actually provides a beating heart to the story is Meryl Streep, who is fantastic once again, playing multiple characters. An uneven, yet worth watching film from one of the best directors working these days.
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