From Oscar-winning producer, director, and comedian Adam Mckay, comes Netflix’s newest black comedy Don’t Look Up. Featuring some of the biggest names in Hollywood (Leonardo Decaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, and Timothee Chalamet to name a few), the cast itself was enough to leave viewers star-struck. Beyond the performances given by the lead roles, the movie’s plot offered a well-balance of comedic elements interwoven with serious topics. However, with its creators making it clear to the media that the movie was a metaphor for climate change, Jonah Hill’s political satire performance no longer felt like a laughing matter. While the flashy casting was undoubtedly a grab to gain viewers and the plot could be predictable at times, the actors’ performances took the cake and the realistic display of our disconnected society proved to make the film an interesting watch if you have two and a half hours to kill.

The movie follows Ph.D. student Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence) and her professor Randall Mindy (Leonardo Decaprio) as they go on a journey to warn the world of a comet that will hit Earth in a few months and wipe out humanity. While the astronomers attempt to spread the word, they are thrown into the chaotic world of politics and the media. 

The acting in Don’t Look Up was objectively good (and sometimes a little too true to real life). Decaprio’s portrayal of his squirmish character was able to make audiences just as anxiety-ridden as Randall himself. Not to mention, Lawrence perfectly depicts Kate’s character development in a smooth and well-paced transition throughout her time on screen. Although the two characters’ many frustrating flaws were highlighted on their journey dealing with President Orlean (Meryl Streep) and daytime television star Brie Evantee (Cate Blanchett), it made the story all the more genuine, displaying the complexities of human beings forced to reckon with a sense of impending doom. Timothée Chalamet, Jonah Hill, and Ariana Grande offer the most humor. The three of them, while never interacting with each other, were able to fairly weigh the serious aspects of the movie with humor.

The movie’s metaphor for climate change is not hard to comprehend. We know about climate change, and we know it will destroy the earth, so why are we distracting ourselves from it and not taking action to stop it? The characters within the film (one being an out-of-touch billionaire who bears a glaringly obvious resemblance to Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg) are extremely lifelike to those in power who occasionally treat such dire issues in the real world with unmatchable ignorance as well. 

Despite the cast giving the script their all, the plot felt predictable and quickly lost whatever nuance it began with to focus on characters that were based on real-life people in order to make a statement. In fairness, this may be the wake-up call we need to reflect on how we fit the roles of those depicted in the movie and the implications of our occasionally narrow-minded attitudes. Unfortunately, the lack of any new revelations caused the movie to come off as boring and sometimes more out-of-touch than the characters themselves. For example, Timothée Chalamets character, Yule, often fell victim to being a stereotypical millennial with cringey lines and an absence of social awareness. His lack of sensibility can be credited to his carefree lifestyle, a stark contrast to Kate, who is a hardworking Grad student that approaches topics with logic and appears to be grounded in reality.  

Overall, the serious nature of the film is worth sparking up a conversation over. The talented cast was able to compensate for the somewhat drab storyline making for a fascinating movie that’ll be sure to give you an existential crisis and possibly a crush on Jennifer Lawrence in an orange mullet.