Don’t Look Up Film Review

Released on the 10^th of December 2021 in cinemas and 24^th of December on Netflix, ‘Don’t Look Up’ is a science fiction psychological comedy-drama written, produced, and directed by Adam McKay. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence as “two astronomers attempting to warn humanity, via a media tour, about an approaching comet that will destroy human civilisation.” With many mixed reviews, people may be unsure of whether to watch ‘Don’t Look Up’ or not, which is why you should read on to find out more about the film and what other people are saying, as well as my own thoughts to help you decide on watching the film or not.

This film is a satire of the government and the media indifference to the climate crisis; there are multiple moments that seem depressing because of that, though there is a lot of humour mixed in with the belief that the world is coming to an end as well, which is quite impressive on the director’s part. Justin Chang reviewed the film for the Los Angeles Times and said, “Nothing about the foolishness and outrageousness of what the movie shows us—no matter how virtuosically sliced and diced by McKay’s characteristically jittery editor, Hank Corwin—can really compete with the horrors of our real-world American idiocracy.”

Mick LaSalle, from the San Francisco Chronicle’s, praised the film and said, “Don’t Look Up might be the funniest movie of 2021. It’s the most depressing too, and that odd combination makes for a one-of-a-kind experience. Writer-director Adam McKay gives you over two hours of laughs while convincing you that the world is coming to an end.”

Meanwhile, a negative review by David Rooney, from The Hollywood Reporter, called the film “A cynical, insufferably smug satire stuffed to the gills with stars that purports to comment on political and media inattention to the climate crisis but really just trivializes it.”

Similarly, Peter Debruge from Variety said the film is a “smug, easy-target political satire.” He said, “Don’t Look Up plays like the leftie answer to Armageddon—which is to say, it ditches the Bruckheimer approach of assembling a bunch of blue-collar heroes to rocket out to space and nuke the approaching comet, opting instead to spotlight the apathy, incompetence and financial self-interest of all involved.”

The reviews, as mentioned, are mixed, but there is no doubt in mind that ‘Don’t Look Up’ has a fantastic cast consisting of Rob Morgan, Jonah Hill, Mark Rylance, Tyler Perry, Timothée Chalamet, Ron Perlman, Ariana Grande, Scott Mescudi, Himesh Patel, Melanie Lynskey, Cate Blanchett, and Meryl Streep.

Ariana Grande and Scott Mescudi collaborated on the song “Just Look Up”, which is a part of the film’s soundtrack, so make sure you check that out too as you get to catch glimpses of the film!

Have a look at the teaser and the trailer for the film below:

Whether you are watching for the comedy or the science fiction part, you are sure to get both; personally finding this hilarious, yet depressing when thinking about the parody of the real world, it is a great watch and a very interesting take on the government and media’s play into climate crisis. Make sure you watch this film and see what you think!