"Mountainhead": The spiritual successor of Succession.

Succession is one of my favorite series of recent years, and this is largely due to Jesse Armstrong's excellent work on the script. The idea of following the story of a family that owns a media conglomerate and is searching for the heir to this empire was the perfect vessel for a satire that depicted the profound disconnect between the truly privileged class and the common citizen.

Source

However, this never deprived the project of its heart, introducing us to a host of characters we could empathize with and connect with, even though they appeared to inhabit a very different reality than our own. "Mountainhead" is a project that takes a very similar starting point, and in thematic and audiovisual terms, it even dares to repeat several of the same notes (for example, Nicholas Britell is once again in charge of the musical pieces that accompany us). Unfortunately, while the relentless pace of Armstrong's script and direction is still present, making it virtually impossible to be bored with the final result, Mountainhead seems to lack this heart, and, as a result, the lack of subtlety in its own satire weighs a little more heavily on us.

While in the first half hour of its running time, I thought this was a direct consequence of not understanding half of what its protagonists were saying (who, by the way, are brilliantly played by Steve Carrell, Jason Schwartzman, Cory Michael Smith, and Ramy Youssef), as the minutes passed, I began to discern the true direction its plot would take, something much closer to an episode of Black Mirror (from the later seasons) than to the brilliant story of the Roy family.

However, I repeat, I don't think this is something that affects my ability to enjoy it; it's just that it fails to bridge this gap between another HBO exclusive and genuinely quality cinema.

It's fun, and it makes good use of the morbid curiosity generated by seeing four filthy rich tech geniuses end up destroying each other, but, although it exploits a relatively "new" trope, for some reason we feel like we've seen this story hundreds of times, while examples like Succession, Silicon Valley, or even Black Mirror itself, have done it much better.

It's visually appealing, and I like the idea that at least 90% of the film takes place in the same location—a cold mansion in the middle of nowhere. I also appreciate how incredibly realistic and relatable certain moments feel (especially when it comes to the risks of artificial intelligence). I don't know if I'd watch it again, but at least I endured finishing it.

This score was taken directly from my letterboxd account