Musicals about the apocalypse or the end of the world are certainly not new territory, but they all succeed to various mileage. While there is no world where a Mad Max-type movie is going to put to song, Joshua Oppenheimer’s (The Act of Killing) newest, The End, certainly tries to make the most quintessential apocalyptic musical with an insanely stacked cast, for better or worse, and the results certainly are a bag of mixed nuts, who may also be the right audience for this over-the-top apocalyptical musical. While some things certainly do not work, some things do, and some of it just catches the audience completely and utterly off guard. Maybe Oppenheimer’s The End is the end of apocalyptical musicals for a while.
L-R: Tilda Swinton as Mother and Michael Shannon as Father in THE END. Photo Credit: Felix Dickinson. Photo courtesy of NEON.
We start off by exploring a cavern that looks like it’s been ripped out directly from Ridley Scott’s brain and was unused Alien footage — something dark, desolated, barren — but, ultimately, this is just the surrounding area of the encampment of the family we follow. The family consists simply of Mother (Tilda Swinton), Father (Michael Shannon), and Son (George MacKay), as they’re in their habitation area with their doctor (Lennie James), their butler (Tim McInnerny), their maid (Danielle Ryan) and their old friend (Bronagh Gallagher) as they’ve all been around since the before times. Immediately, this creates the assumption this family had money and was in power. We also get from early dialogue that they possibly led to the destruction of the world itself. They mention that they were involved in an industry, later to be revealed as oil, that contributed to global warming and whatever apocalyptic event has occurred leading them to live underground.
George MacKay as Son in THE END. Photo Credit: Felix Dickinson. Photo courtesy of NEON.
Son was born in the bunker and never knew of a world above ground. Mother and Father, along with everyone else, protect him at all costs, but when Girl (Moses Ingram) ends up, somehow, in their baron cave and eventually with the family, cracks start to show in the story they’ve shown Son, and their true identities start to rear their ugly heads. While there is turmoil, ultimately Girl is allowed into the inner circle, so to speak, but there is a lot of hesitation and uncertainty about allowing an outsider to enter. Can the family coexist with a newcomer, or will something far more sinister and evil rear its ugly head in the remote isolated underground home.
While there are musical elements of this self-touted apocalypse musical, it’s lacking a lengthy musical endeavor. Sure, there are musical elements and songs throughout The End, but at a hair over two and a half hours, there are not enough numbers to classify this film as a full-blown musical. On the note of musical and, thereby, ability, as well, no one surprised me more than George MacKay (1917; The Beast) who has some incredible pipes in him and can truly carry his own amongst any actor who has also sung (the distinction being actor as he’s a very talented singer, but he can’t out sing professional singers). Michael Shannon (Knives Out; The Shape of Water) and Moses Ingram (The Tragedy of Macbeth; All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt) also delight with their musical abilities. However, it is Tilda Swinton (The Killer; Constantine) who hasn’t yet done a musical prior to Oppenheimer’s film and, honestly, never should again. Granted, she doesn’t sound as bad as most people who think they can sing and cannot, but she certainly doesn’t belong in a musical in any way, shape, or form, similar to Tina Fey in 2023’s Mean Girls let out a little then keep it in, forever.
Moses Ingram as Girl in THE END. Photo Credit: Felix Dickinson. Photo courtesy of NEON.
Moreover, thankfully, as previously mentioned, The End is a musical in spirit and not entirely in execution, meaning the performances and the acting that come from the cast is at the epicentre of this politically-charged apocalyptic musical. The performances are the strong suit, along with the script. They are at the center of their adventures and misadventures and allow the audience to get lost in the chaos which plagues them. Tilda Swinton is not only the one bad singer in the film, but also one of its strongest performers. Tilda brings forth a powerhouse performance that is engrained in motherhood and selfishness and is equally devilish towards those around her, truly exceling in all attributes. While Michael Shannon has one pivotal moment that showcases his character’s true colors and is something that generally takes the audience by shock at the time. George MacKay playing Son with unadulterated, innocent, practical child-like wonder is the perfect juxtaposition to his parents’ sinister personalities and it truly breathes fresh air into the film.
Tilda Swinton as Mother in THE END. Photo Credit: Felix Dickinson. Photo courtesy of NEON.
The End is a hodgepodge of exertion that is riddled with chaos both in execution and plot but finds the delicate balance along the way. While the musical elements are uneven and weak at points, the performances from the entire ensemble together bring something titled as a conclusion to a whirlwind of passion and ingenuity that just stumbles along its way. Oppenheimer dazzles crowds with his previous outings, but this being the safest story to tell is certainly one that poses to be the most inaccessible and the one to challenge the audience into new territory in which they may struggle to survive.
Screening during Toronto International Film Festival 2024.
In select theaters December 6th, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Toronto International Film Festival 2024 The End webpage.
Final Score: 3.5 out of 5.
Share this:
Categories: In Theaters, Reviews
Leave a Reply