Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson’s film Rumours is very telling of what I like about cinema. Everything I love about the art form is found in this picture: experimentation with an ever-changing aesthetic, satirical jokes that take zero prisoners, and a slight jab at the audience for sitting through a movie that does not reward or fulfill them in any way. Whether this is good or not is up to you to decide, but it certainly won’t be for everyone. It boldly starts out as a satire focusing on G7 Leaders preparing a joint statement related to an unspecified global crisis and quickly morphs into surreal territory that will admittedly bewilder or disgust viewers, depending on their subjective perception of cinema.
It’s very much in line with Maddin‘s previous works, and it likely will be a massive ask for anyone unfamiliar with the Winnipeg-born filmmaker, but far distinct from anything he’s ever done up to this point. And there’s something inherently fascinating about a satire that deftly mocks the uselessness of summits that amounts to virtually nothing when the movie itself amounts to virtually nothing, especially when watching it through a conventional lens.
Looking at Rumours through the lens of plot efficiency (or a traditional three-act structure) will likely break the brains of moviegoers who had their conformist pre-conceptions already thrown out of the window with films like Megalopolis, and We Live in Time. Martin Scorsese famously said, “Movies don’t have acts.” Maddin et al. starkly remind us of this fact throughout their 118-minute runtime.
Perhaps one can consider Rumours to have a ‘first act’ when it introduces audiences to its world leaders from Germany, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, and Italy, respectively played by Cate Blanchett, Charles Dance, Denis Ménochet, Nikki Amuka-Bird, Takehiro Hira, Roy Dupuis, and Ronaldo Ravello. The table is set for a productive conversation on a vague joint statement that will hopefully resolve the crisis at hand, but it’s clear these people don’t care about what’s occurring around them. For instance, the U.S. President wryly says, “Let’s start with the date. Better write that down.” (an all-too-classic symptom of procrastination) before dozing off in incomprehensible gibberish (hmmm… I wonder who they’re parodying?). Sometimes, the satirical nature of the movie gives us on-the-nose commentaries on the leaders we currently have, but they aren’t as evident as the jab Maddin et al. give to Joe Biden in this specific moment.
Rumours‘ satire is nail-bitingly hilarious
Some will argue that Roy Dupuis is imitating Justin Trudeau, but is he really? Apart from his, “I LOVE STRONG WOMEN! I LOVE THEM TOO MUCH!” diatribe, there’s no discernible point of reference for the Canadian Prime Minister, just like its other world leaders. I mean, a United States President with a British accent? There’s no world where this would ever happen, even if the commander-in-chief himself was born and raised in the U.S. of A. One has to suspend their disbelief to fully appreciate the madcap swings of Rumours, which seem designed to make you vehemently angry at the movie, never giving you the answers you desperately crave and instead taking far more left turns than you think it will.
Many will get bemused at a circle of mummified corpses masturbating in front of a fire or the sight of a large brain not adding much to narrative development or even its subtext. One could even argue that the movie has no subtext or deeper meaning beyond the images it shows to the audience. However, I was more taken aback by how razor-sharp its satire was, attacking the useless policymakers who enjoy their lavish perks with little to no regard for middle-class and low-income families.
Of course, this is a familiar trope that has been treated repeatedly in cinema, most recently in Adam McKay’s horrendous Don’t Look Up (also starring Blanchett). But Maddin and co.’s commentary is urgent, even if its approach is far less evident than in McKay’s film. Unapologetically, the trio of filmmakers discuss societal collapse in the wake of Trumpsim, or, more accurately, a post-truth era that has lost complete confidence in the state and institutions built to help society. One doesn’t know the crisis the characters must resolve, but climate change seems like a clear parallel once cinematographer Stefan Ciupek showcases a world on fire, slowly decaying in the eyes of its leaders.
The bulk satire is told through specific, dark humor by way of its political figures. As a fan of well-thought-out dark humor myself, Maddin’s sense is perfectly in tune with what constitutes a great dark joke, juxtaposed by a wholly distant score from Kristian Eidnes Andersen, immediately recalling the work of the late Angelo Badalamenti. Many will obviously point out its Lynchian influences through the purposefully stilted acting, musical patterns, and ever-changing, inexplicable atmosphere that may hinder a deeper meaning (or not), but it’s far more than that.
It feels more in line with Maddin’s constantly evolving style as an artist, from his experimental drama The Forbidden Room (also starring Dupuis), his “docu-fantasia” My Winnipeg, or the film that set a name for the auteur, The Saddest Music in the World. He never makes the same film twice. Collaborating once again with Evan and Galen Johnson, Maddin creates an indescribable, singular aesthetic while enjoying one (or two) callbacks from directors he appreciates.
Roy Dupuis gives a career-best performance
With actors who are at the top of their game, it’s hard not to be entranced by Rumours’ multiple idiosyncrasies. It’s great that Cate Blanchett can add this film to her resume, post–Borderlands, because it not only is a thrilling against-type performance but one that reminds us of her qualities always to be dedicated to each character she portrays (unless you’re named Lilith). Blanchett’s turn is more Theresa May-coded than recalling Angela Merkel, but that’s what makes this entire affair so compelling to watch.
No one plays the characters defined by their country in Rumours. Roy Dupuis, in particular, is not doing Trudeau but an elaborate push-pull between teetering close to a federalist Canadian Prime Minister or a nationalist Quebec premier. It’s a career-defining portrayal, rivaling the absurdities he set forward with André Forcier in Coteau Rouge or Forgotten Flowers. Of course, he wouldn’t have ever been able to pull off such a feat without collaborating with Forcier since 2005. However, his Prime Minister is far more riveting in his constant desire to be as absurd and as boisterous as he can, and it’s part of the reason why no one can pinpoint to who he’s parodying in particular.
Hell, why is Charles Dance, one of the most British actors out there, playing the U.S. President? In fact, when someone asks him why he has an accent, the movie cuts to another character finding out something, rather than informing us of the President’s origins. It doesn’t care about this frivolous detail, and neither should you. Stuff like this occurs throughout the entire runtime, which makes Rumours an entirely tantalizing object to experience instead of understanding.
Final thoughts on Bleecker Street’s Rumours
I’d be lying if I said I understood everything about this movie, and certain moments feel more open to interpretation than actual meaning (or not, perhaps he’s trolling us, which is quite epic, if so). But that’s part of the joy of watching a Guy Maddin motion picture. You’re not going to get it. You’ll likely be frustrated by it, even storm out of the cinema in anger at the unsatisfying conclusion it gives its protagonists and story. But that’s precisely why I loved it. Sometimes, we must wrestle with our preconceptions of cinema for a more liberating viewing experience based on feeling and mood rather than plot and arbitrary “acts.”
With Rumours, Maddin and the Johnsons certainly tell us to stop watching movies, thinking it has three defined “acts.”
We should follow suit.
Rumours is hitting theaters this weekend. Do you plan to check this one out? Let us know on social media @mycosmiccircus!
Caddo Lake is A Precautious Tale of Family and Will
Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh Shine in the Button-Pushing We Live in Time
