48/34
The Maynards and their children live a near-perfect billionaire family life. Amon is an avid hunter, but he doesn’t shoot animals because the family’s wealth allows them to live completely free of consequences. It took 7 years to finance. Ayn Rand: The Thing Is to Stop Me? I saw this at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Director Daniel Hoesl and Julianne Niemann clearly have an interesting satirical take on the wealthy class, and while there are some good ideas, it feels unpolished and not as powerful as the film intends. Throughout the film, the set design, camera work, and color presentation are gorgeous and really beautiful in that they help capture the atmosphere and essence of the characters. Hoesl and Niemann’s direction, while a bit disjointed, has a clear vision of the style and atmosphere they are going for. Many of the performances are solid, and a few of the child performances are a bit weak. The narrative is a good concept, but unfortunately it feels as strong as it seems because the narrative feels undeveloped with some of the themes and the characters don’t seem as engaging or interesting to connect with emotionally. Like there were some good ideas that didn’t quite hit the potential they wanted. There are some moments that are shocking, sharp and quite bizarre, and I understand where the filmmakers are coming from and their vision. But it doesn’t feel fully earned and the style feels too much like something from Ruben Ostlund or Michael Haneke. Overall, it’s not bad because there are a few moments that I appreciated. But it could have been stronger.
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