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First, the Recap:
What IS the price for fame and fortune? Really. There’s the belief that in gaining everything in these respects one would desire, it subsequently equals completeness, self-satisfaction, and a life free of worries. In truth, why does it seem that, more often than we might wish to acknowledge, the exact opposite becomes reality? Then, once immersed so deeply in what potentially (though admittedly not exclusively) arises as the “pinnacle of success”, fleeting and deceiving, how can we come back down to realize what’s ACTUALLY best for us? Mika (Quentin Laclotte) yearns for acclaim. Thanks to this and a totally unscrupulous, greedy, and exploitively-motivated business partner Yanis (Alexandre Auvergne), Mika has created a streaming channel with a goal to reach “x” number of followers and rake in the monetary benefits that come with internet stardom. But, IS this truly achievement, or a harrowing vision of how the pursuit can all go wrong?
Next, my Mind:
Let’s speak of a concept that hits with the impetus of a massive wrecking ball while offering not just its harshly concussive, incontestable relevancy that mirrors our social media-centric society but a fully indispensable cautionary tale which honestly needs to be heeded and you might be pointing towards this Oscar qualifying, based-on-a-true-story short film from writer/director Hugo Becker, writer Sarah Malléon, plus producers Laurence Lascary and Lahoucine Grimich that delivers an unshakable and lasting impression upon your very being, something that has been highly prevalent amongst this awards season’s current long-listed offerings. It illustrates its points directly on the canvas of our humanity, daringly but with brazen truthfulness willing to make the all-too-real chasing of “celebrity” a center of contention as opposed to celebration. There is NOTHING wrong with success, but when it arrives at the cost of one’s wellness paired with the ramifications of those heartbreakingly misguided means to get there, much less in then maintaining it, we need to check ourselves.
Through a narrative focused on a troubled young man and his degrees of excruciating excess endured as a “mukbanger” for the sake of what he has concluded is personal prosperity and happiness, the film holds nothing back in choosing to depict the utter chaos, harmful mindsets, and many times painfully ambiguous directions people will chase after solely for the desire to see those precious “followers” and, we believe ideally, the associated (but NOT remotely guaranteed) financial gain to be had via the wrongly perceived “popularity” obtained if “fortunate” enough. There’s a portrait of warped “values”, declining sense of self worth, and the quite literal debasement of ourselves to satisfy the morbid curiosity and apparent fascination of the masses with other people’s dysfunction–for entertainment! The light this film shines on it all is candid, intelligent, and purposefully over-the-top in specific respects to ensure the statements being made are seen and heard.
But, what is ALSO present within this arena of discord is at least the possibility of not only recognizing the damage we are bringing upon ourselves when influenced by the wrong voices inwardly AND outwardly, but being open to hear those logical words of reason, empathy, desperation, and LOVE that arrive through those closest to us (in this narrative’s case, FAMILY) who truly wish to see us NOT hurt but rather heal and seek better roads to travel. It tempers the story’s acerbity enough to make you think and more than get on board with THOSE sentiments in order to see a person’s reality get altered definitively for their betterment. Thematically, the film fully addresses greed, the doubts that begin to fester when we’re confronted with the foolish behavior we’re engaged in, overt exaggeration in our actions to gain that yearned for recognition, having an impact, being “loved”, and supposedly having “fun” while ultimately manifesting that in spite of the circumstances, things may or may NOT change. The finale presented here firmly and candidly points this out with deep effectiveness and intent.
From a visual standpoint, the particular sequences that directly involve Mika’s character’s online broadcasts are just brutal in their unflinching depiction of gluttony on display for “amusement” (as well as the subsequent, equally visceral aftermath!!), with the accompanying emotional punch (as with so many other facets of the film) well-written and executed, undoubtedly, persuasively impactfully. Laclotte is one incredible force of nature, plain and simple, through his lead role as Mika, a man of sizable stature, appetites, ambitions, and degrees of what he and his soulless business partner consider “fame and success” via the webcasts Mika does as a mukbanger. But, even as the tolls already taken begin to surface more and more, causing Mika to start questioning all he’s doing, the arrival of his well-meaning and exceedingly, understandably concerned sister back into his life creates an even larger span of unease and tension for him as the quest for hypothetical “greatness” and admiration keeps holding him prisoner.
Watching Laclotte embody this worn out, world-weary, sadly broken man is gut-wrenching (in more ways than one!) and how the actor also displays the unadulterated level of keenly specific inner pain and newfound hesitancy Mika is now having to actually face is truly fantastic, fully believable through and through during the entire film. Auvergne makes his own form of lasting impression to the “nth” degree via his turn as Yanis, Mika’s business manager who we really see is a heartless money-grabber only out to exploit his current “best friend” as much as possible for the sake of his own twisted idea of personal and internet glory. Decidedly the figurative voice of the Devil in Mika’s ear, Yanis does everything he can do to separate Mika from his sister’s urgent pleas for him to quit violating himself for the deceptive “respect and prominence” he strives for. Whether Yanis will remain the bad influence he is gets fleshed out, and Auvergne infuses the character with such a deliciously vile demeanor, it allows the actor to manifest that quintessential “person we love to hate” VERY, VERY effectively! This, of course, is a testament to the actor’s talents.
Finally there is Suzanne Jouannet as Solène, Mika’s sister who comes to the studio where Mika and Yanis make their webcasts and begins to beg her beloved but wayward brother to stop his self abuse and just come home where he’s unconditionally cared about. Even as he fights her, despite the literal physical and mental agony he’s clearly in, Solène doggedly keeps trying while also having to confront Yanis about his part in the whole affair and the overt ruin he’s lead Mika into, no matter what their “success” has been. She’s the other primary character we’re ROOTING for, but it still remains questionable whether her words will end up falling on deaf ears or not. A heartbreaking performance that so deftly suits the film’s tone and the character’s necessary attitude. So, in total, “Mukbanger” frankly and with exacting sway teaches us the known but still pursued, relentlessly hard realities of today’s social media-driven quests for stardom and the measurable detriments that can come about because of it. Likewise, it illuminates the decision that must be made when it has evidently all gone wrong–will it be enough to STOP?
STAR RATING (out of 5):
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
