Rumours opens with a sarcastic "thank you" to the leaders of the G7 (Group of Seven) — a political organization consisting of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States (along with the non-enumerated European Union) — for their help with the film. This is an opening broadside from Canadian filmmakers Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson, and Galen Johnson before a dark, hilarious, and often bewildering evisceration of utter ineptitude and fecklessness. The damning point made is that the most powerful people in the world, who should be working together to solve critical problems, are flawed bureaucrats incapable of accomplishing anything.
G7 summits are held annually during the summer. The meetings rotate between member countries to not show any preference. In Rumours, the G7 leaders have gathered in rural Germany under the leadership of Chancellor Hilda Ortmann (Cate Blanchett), who smiles nonstop like the Cheshire cat. French President Sylvain Broulez (Denis Ménochet) yaps in an obvious effort to flaunt his perceived sophistication. UK Prime Minister Cardosa Dewindt (Nikki Amuka-Bird) looks uncomfortable. That's because of a smoldering, lustful stare from the hunky, man-bun-wearing Canadian Prime Minister Maxime Laplace (Roy Dupuis).
Sporting wide eyes and a simpleton countenance, Italian Prime Minister Antonio Lamorte (Rolando Ravello), follows the aged US President Edison Wolcott (Charles Dance), like a friendly puppy. Edison can barely stay awake while the Japanese Prime Minister, Tatsuro Iwasaki (Takehiro Hira), tries to discuss a looming existential threat. The group is taken to the sight of a recent archaeological discovery near the bucolic compound. They look at the blackened but sexually aroused "bog body" exposed in the muck. They're told he was a leader most likely sacrificed for failing his tribe.
Feckless Leaders Lost in a Surreal World
3.5/5
Rumours
Rumours is a comedy film directed by Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, and Guy Maddin. The film centers on seven leaders of rich democracies. While attempting to draft a global crisis statement, they become lost in the woods and struggle to find their way out.
- Release Date
- October 18, 2024
- Director
- Evan Johnson , Guy Maddin , Galen Johnson
- Cast
- Cate Blanchett , Rolando Ravello , Charles Dance , Nikki Amuka-Bird , Roy Dupuis , Denis Menochet , Takehiro Hira , Alexa Kennedy , Ralph Berkin , Alicia Vikander , Tomi Kosynus , Zlatko Buric
- Runtime
- 118 Minutes
- Writers
- Guy Maddin
- Studio(s)
- Square Peg , Buffalo Gal Pictures , Maze Pictures
- Distributor(s)
- Elevation Pictures , Plaion Pictures
- A very funny and damning critique of political ineptitude.
- Mesmerizing production design despite a relatively low budget.
- The actors are humorously eclectic and well-cast.
- The film will be too abstract and wacky for most audiences.
The G7 leaders walk to a gazebo for a private working dinner. As night falls, their relationships and personalities become apparent. Maxime aches for Cardosa, but she refuses to let their dalliance continue. Hilda lusts for Maxime and senses an opening. Sylvain blabbers on about their most important duty. They must draft a "provisional statement" regarding the coming crisis. An eerie fog descends around them. Hilda notices they're all alone. Where is security and their assistants? Why isn't anyone responding to their calls? What's happened to the phone network? A growing sense of dread takes hold as the G7 realizes something strange is happening.
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Rumours defies easy categorization. It's a biting satire, black comedy, horror thriller, and science fiction drama wrapped around incisive political commentary. The film requires a degree of patience and sophistication. Guy Maddin (My Winnipeg) and the Johnson brothers, famed directors known for working together on numerous films, including critical hits like The Green Fog and The Forbidden Room, are intellectually artistic. This is undoubtedly their biggest film, and yet they in no way sell out. Their message is purposely not delivered in a direct way. They want the audience to see the G7 leaders bumbling around in states of confusion and fear. Chaos reigns because they're completely useless and ineffective without the apparatus that supports them.
You'll laugh at their continuing efforts to draft a provisional statement while lost in the woods. Rumours' script has them bantering back and forth about previous G7 meetings and which provisional statements were the best. This word salad buffet is meant to highlight the absurdity of writing a provisional statement in the first place. It's a completely toothless gesture done to publicly display unity while taking no positive action. Their preoccupation with getting it done while stuck in a presumed apocalyptic scenario is both damning and hysterically funny.
A Brilliant Cast & Spooky Developments
Rumours is brilliantly acted by its veteran cast. The characters engage each other in a way that highlights their individual flaws and strengths. For example, Maxime sets hearts a flutter even further once he lets his flowing hair down and reveals a chiseled physique. He embodies a machismo appearance but is kind, caring, and genuinely empathetic. These traits are also shared by the sweet and lovably dumb Antonio. Ravello almost steals the show as a dunce with a big heart. Maddin and the Johnson brothers have publicly stated that their characterizations aren't meant to lampoon actual G7 leaders. But you can't help compare Maxime to Justin Trudeau, Hilda to Angela Merkel, and Edison, who can barely stay awake and takes repeated naps, to Joe Biden.
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Rumours deserves praise for its production design and cinematography. Most of the action takes place at night in a fog-shrouded forest. Maddin and the Johnson brothers use different lighting effects to set the collective mood. This is especially well done when the film's horror aspects take hold. There's something sinister brewing and it's visually represented. Aspiring filmmakers should take note of how the filmmakers use low budget methods and get fantastic results.
Rumours gleefully goes off the rails into truly bonkers territory. The wackier turn of events might be a bridge too far for some audiences. Abstract is an understatement here. I'll admit to getting lost in the WTF moments. That said, the good outweighs the weird in a fascinating climax. Let's just say that the provisional statement does not disappoint. Rumours is a production of Square Peg, Buffalo Gal Pictures, and Maze Pictures. It will be released theatrically on October 18th from Bleecker Street. Watch the trailer below:
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