The latest directorial venture from Jesse Armstrong, creator of Succession, is Mountainhead, a dark comedy that satirizes the world of ultra-rich tech moguls and their quest for global domination. The film takes place at an annual retreat in a remote snowbound getaway where four billionaire friends – Hugo Van Yalk (Jason Schwartzman), Randall (Steve Carell), Venis (Cory Michael Smith), and Jeff (Ramy Youssef) – engage in self-indulgent games, narcissistic excesses, and schemes that threaten the planet.
As they plan to orchestrate coups around the world and install themselves as various nations’ new leaders, their conversation turns into a deranged black comedy. The quartet debates the pros and cons of becoming tyrants, with Randall justifying it as akin to great historical turning points. Meanwhile, Jeff remains the moral conscience of the group, reluctant to go along with their vision of “progress.”
However, instead of rising to the level of humor, Armstrong’s satire falls flat due to its one-note portrayal of unlikable villains who are happy to stab each other and civilization in the back. The film lacks empathy for its 1%ers and instead renders them as lethal buffoons, making it frustratingly short on humor.
With a star-studded cast and a script driven by corporate jargon and tech-speak, Mountainhead promises an incisive portrait of 21st-century villainy. But ultimately, the film’s inability to locate the funny in the horror leaves audiences feeling disappointed.
Source: https://www.thedailybeast.com/obsessed/mountainhead-review-succession-creator-eviscerates-elon-musk-tech-bros