Review of Carnage (2011) by Hoops2448 — 03 Mar 2012

The general premise of two couples meeting to discuss their sons doesn't really work as a feature film, let alone a feature film directed by Roman Polanski. However the general idea of the film as alluded to in the title is that even in the most civil of all surroundings, things can fall apart into absolute chaos and Polanski shows this thanks to some brilliant performances by all four actors (Jodie Foster, John C Reilly, Kate Winslet, Christophe Waltz) and some resourceful direction.

The film works as a drama but at its heart it is a very dark comedy that is outrageously funny in the way it slowly destroys these four people. Waltz's antagonistic lawyer is married to Kate Winslets uptight investment banker and they are avoiding the fact that deep down they hate each other.

Jodie Foster and John C Reilly are the more liberal couple but they too are burdened by problems which are only exacerbated by Waltz and Winslets presence. The whole film seems completely realistic aside from the eloquent play like dialogue with a decent amount of twists and turns to keep things trundling along.

The film blends physical and spoken comedy really well with both Winslet and Waltz showing great skill at the physical gags. There are some pretty interesting themes during the film with the key one being everyone is unhappy about something, you just need to know how to exploit it.

Fortunately Polanski and his skilled cast know exactly how leading to some unbearably funny moments. Even if they don't want to admit it, each character is a deeply horrible person and watching them attempt to avoid their baser instincts and put up a facade is absolutely delightful.