fine art house

Rating: 7/10 (4 July 2018)

Retired concert conductor Fred Ballinger (Michael Caine) is vacationing at a peaceful Swiss spa with long-time friend Mick Boyle (Harvey Keitel). He is asked to perform for the Queen but he refuses for a personal reason. Mick is a filmmaker working on his next script with his troop of young contributors. Fred's daughter and assistant Lena (Rachel Weisz) is married to Mick's son but he has left her for a pop star for the sex. The other hotel clients include actor Jimmy Tree (Paul Dano), an obese Diego Maradona, a bitter silent elderly couple, and a young girl.
The surrealism sometimes work but not all the time. I like the Nazi outfit, the soap bubble girl, but the dream of Mick's female characters don't register. The grassy hill swallows them up. They are better off lined up in a row in emptiness. As for the main roles, I'd like for Fred and Mick to spend more time together. I love the time that Fred spends with Lena. Dano is hit and miss. His best is with the little girl. I would have love to be told that it was Maradona right from the start. I'm not a soccer fan and I wouldn't know him even if he's not obese. This is definitely a movie with its own style. Director Paolo Sorrentino has an unique sense of rhythm and isn't for everybody. This is for the stylish art house fans.