A WEEKLY FILM NEWSLETTER PROMOTING ARTHOUSE, REPERTORY, ART, SHORT FORM AND EXPERIMENTAL CINEMA SCREENING IN THE CITY OF MELBOURNE

15 June 2023

Infinity Pool

(Brandon Cronenberg, 2023)

Screening daily at Cinema Nova

DCP Courtesy: Kismet Movies

Classification: R 18+

Words by Bruno Slonek

On Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool (2023) and the

limits of the Wealthsploitation trope

In acclaimed developer FromSoftware’s latest masterpiece Elden Ring (2022), the lowly Tarnished’s first major foe is Godrick the Grafted, a grotesque amalgam of vanquished souls represented by the innumerable arms he’s affixed to his hulking body. Godrick holds a Great Rune, a powerful shard of the titular Elden Ring necessary to access the life-giving Erdtree, so that the player may rightfully earn the status of Elden Lord. Though impressive, Godrick is in fact the mutilated and degenerate offspring of the first Elden Lord, Godfrey, whose indomitable strength and nobility is manifested in pure golden light. Godrick’s combination of body horror, nepotism, and failure perfectly encapsulates Brandon Cronenberg’s sophomore effort Infinity Pool (2023), which, while vastly eclipsing his gory debut Possessor (2020) still leaves audiences wondering if he truly is David Cronenberg’s son. However, unlike the second phase of the battle against Godrick, Infinity Pool only gets weaker the longer it’s endured, lending new potency to the term ‘infinity’. 

To ground this analysis, I’d like to contrast the politics and philosophy of Infinity Pool (and by proxy, 2022’s The Menu) with the historic voyage of the Philosophy Steamer from Petrograd to Stettin, Germany in 1922. Carrying a plethora of exiled anti-communist intellectuals, the ship’s motley crew of philosophers, economists, historians and theologians simply could not understand what they’d done to warrant expulsion by the Bolshevik regime. Nikolai Lossky, for example, believed his only crime was to have enriched Russia’s cultural and intellectual life, and there’s little reason to believe that this self-appraisal was inaccurate. It did, however, completely miss the basis of such an inversion, or, the systemic violence necessary for Losskys’ previously comfortable way of life to exist in the first place. Lossky’s liberal opposition to direct (physical) and ideological violence (racism, sexism, etc.) is of course hegemonic today, but crucially obscures other forms of violence (the systemic) upon which the liberal order depends.

Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool attempts to manifest this reversal but, unlike the Russian example, there’s nothing revolutionary about it. Indeed, despite some genuinely funny and disturbing scenes, Infinity Pool is barely distinct from other superficially anti-bourgeois black comedies like The Menu (now streaming on Disney+) or Triangle of Sadness (now showing at Nova). This wave of ‘wealthsploitation’ cinema (for lack of a better term, as wealth and exploitation are intimately linked) operates through this aforementioned inversion: that is, by turning the systemic violence inflicted by the bourgeoisie order back on itself in literal and often gleefully grotesque ways. We see war profiteers blown up with their own grenades, gluttonous culinary tools utilised as implements of torture, or, as in the case of Infinity Pool, simply watch as the rich eat one another alive. To its credit, however, Infinity Pool is generally more nuanced and entertaining than Mark Mylod’s irredeemably self-indulgent The Menu. Cronenberg jr. explores the devastation that wealthy tourism wreaks on the imperial periphery, seemingly aloof from local customs and indeed any consequences for doing so. Yet it nonetheless revels in the sole parlour trick endemic to its generic bedfellows, or, the schadenfreude of seeing someone immunised against adversity finally facing the glorious and unrepentant violence upon which their wealth depends. However, unlike the Philosophy Steamer, the film’s cheap acts of placation are directly antithetical to whatever political aesthetic it seeks to imitate, thus obscuring the harsh realities of imperialism by separating the audience from its machinations. Instead, Cronenberg merely punishes the supposedly real beneficiaries of global capital (in this case, Alexander Skaarsgard) without meaningfully critiquing the structural violence that benefits both himself and consumers of his work.

Despite its flaws, Infinity Pool is aptly titled. Although there’s no actual infinity pool, 'infinity' encapsulates its structure, particularly the temporal sensation of sitting through its second act. Once the film plays its only card (a huge moment, to be sure), it replays it ad infinitum until an initially interesting comic absurdity devolves into tedious repetition. The point here isn’t that all cinema should aspire to be nuanced or revolutionary, but that satire isn’t predicated on toothlessly ‘punching up’. For example, Ostlund’s recent Palme d’Or winners (The Square and Triangle of Sadness) are excellent regardless of their political content because – above all else - they’re at least consistently funny. Reflecting this thesis, The Menu opens with stock footage of someone smoking a cigarette, its vacuity embedded from the outset in the formal qualities of the film itself. Indeed, despite the rife exploitation of the hospitality industry, the righteous vengeance with which we’re meant to empathise emanates not from the underpaid, over-exploited chefs and staff, but a Ramsay-esque culinary kingpin (Ralph Fiennes) frustrated that bourgeoisie sensibilities have drained any passion for his craft. His employees are even sacrificed for his revenge, but rather than deployed to reflect on the coercion inherent to labour are instead empty vessels for more joyless gratuity. Ultimately, it is a movie not worth seeing - which is why I have not bothered to watch it before writing this piece.

However, unlike The Menu, Infinity Pool is interesting enough to warrant a visit to the silver screen, and I’d urge resident Kinotopians to place it on their maybe pile while waiting for this year’s festival season. The performances of Skaarsgard, Mia Goth, and local export Cleopatra Coleman are captivating enough, and the film’s high moments are deeply memorable despite their ceaseless repetition. Perhaps the film’s transient connection to Australia (Coleman) might convince Justin Kurzel or James Wan to pen a remake, albeit with enough gore and insanity to make it consistently horrifying and absurd. Here at Kinotopia we not only love movies, but also the cinemas that reluctantly permit us to watch them. So in service of our local institutions, make sure to catch Infinity Pool before the season turns (but only if you haven’t seen Aftersun yet).

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WEEKLY FILM LISTINGS

June 15 - 21

ACMI

Jane Campion: The Cinema Woman
Julie Bertuccelli, 2022
Screening Thursday 15 June 6:30pm

The Piano
Jane Campion, 1993
Screening Saturday 17 June 4pm

The Portrait of a Lady
Jane Campion, 1996
Screening Saturday 17 June 6:30pm

An Angel At My Table
Jane Campion, 1990
Screening Sunday 18 June 4:30pm

Sweetie
Jane Campion, 1989
Screening Monday 19 June 6:30pm

Holy Smoke
Jane Campion, 1999
Screening Tuesday 20 June 6:30pm

Because We Have Each Other

Sari Bathwaite, 2022

Matinee screening Daily

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Ang Lee, 2000

Screening Sunday 18 June as part of Goddess Sundays

ARTIST FILM WORKSHOP

No screening this week

ASTOR CINEMA

Spanish Film Festival

Screening almost daily - Program Here

Two Many Chefs (Opening Night)
Joaquín Mazón, 2023

Screening Thursday 15 June

Fados

Carlos Saura, 2007

Screening Sunday 18 June

History of the Occult
Cristian Ponce, 2022

Screening Sunday 18 June

J: Beyond the Flamenco
Carlos Saura, 2016

Screening Wednesday 21 June

-

Casablanca

Michael Curtiz, 1942

Screening Sunday 18 June

The Prestige

Christopher Nolan, 2006

+

The Wizard of Oz

Victor Fleming, George Cukor, Mervyn LeRoy, Norman Taurog, King Vidor, 1939

Double feature screening Monday 19 June

BBBC CINEMA (GALLERYGALLERY BRUNSWICK)

Closed until summer

THE CAPITOL

No screenings this week

CHINATOWN CINEMA

The Roundup
Lee Sang-yong, 2022
Screening Daily

Journey to the West
Kong Dashan, 2023
Screening Daily

The Procurator

Alan Mak, 2022

Screening Daily

Godspeed
Xiaoxing Yi, 2023
Screening Daily

Yesterday Once More

Gavin Lin, 2023

Screening Daily

CINÉ-CLUB (Carlton)

Closed for winter

CINEMANIACS (ACMI)

An Evening With Barry Pearl

Playing Monday 19 June 7pm

CINEMA NOVA

In the Mood For Wong Kar-wai Season

Happy Together,

Wong Kar-wai, 1997

Screening Daily

In The Mood For Love
Wong Kar-wai, 2000
Screening Daily

Fallen Angels
Wong Kar-wai, 1995
Screening Daily

Chungking Express
Wong Kar-wai, 1994
Screening Daily

Petrol
Alena Lodkina, 2022
Screening Daily

You Hurt My Feelings
Nicole Holofcener, 2023
Screening Daily

One Fine Morning

Mia Hansen-Løve, 2022

Screening Daily

Happy 50

Éric Lavaine, 2022
Screening Daily

Merkel
Eva Weber, 2022
Screening Daily

Sweet As
Jub Clerc, 2022
Screening Daily

Saint Omer

Alice Diop, 2022

Screening Daily

Blue Caftan
Maryam Touzani, 2022
Screening Daily

Limbo

Ivan Sen, 2023

Screening Daily

Marlowe

Neil Jordan, 2023

Screening Daily

Infinity Pool
Brendan Cronenberg, 2023
Screening Daily

November
Cédric Jimenez, 2022
Screening Daily

Cairo Conspiracy
Tarik Saleh, 2022
Screening Daily

Polite Society

Nida Manzoor, 2023

Screening Daily

Beau is Afraid

Ari Aster, 2023

Screening Daily

The Giants

Rachel Antony, Laurence Billiet, 2023

Screening Daily

Suzume

Makoto Shinkai, 2023

Screening Daily

EO

Jerzy Skolimowski, 2022

Screening Daily

Broker

Hirokazu Koreeda, 2022

Screening Daily

Of An Age

Goran Stolevski, 2022

Screening Daily

Aftersun

Charlotte Wells, 2023

Screening Daily

Triangle of Sadness

Ruben Östlund, 2022

Screening Daily

DOGMILK DEGUSTATIONS: Season Two @ Miscellenia

Stay tuned for details on details Season 3.

FRENCH FILM CLUB

No screening this week

GAY24

No screening this week

HITLIST (9 Gurtrude St, Fitzroy)

No screening this week

LIDO / CLASSIC / CAMEO

You Hurt My Feelings
Nicole Holofcener, 2023
Screening Daily

Full Metal Jacket
Stanley Kubrick, 1987
Screening Friday 16 June

The Last Daughter
Nathaniel Schmidt and Brenda Matthews, 2023
Screening Daily

The Tank
Scott Walker, 2023
Screening Thursday, Friday and Monday

Watandar, My Countryman
Jolyon Hoff, 2023
Screening Daily

We Were Once Kids

Eddie Martinez, 2022

Screening Daily

Sweet As
Jub Clerc, 2022
Screening Daily

Blue Caftan
Maryam Touzani, 2022
Screening Daily

EO

Jerzy Skolimowski, 2022

Screening Daily at Classic

Limbo

Ivan Sen, 2023

Screening Daily

Polite Society

Nida Manzoor, 2023

Screening Daily

Beau is Afraid

Ari Aster, 2023

Screening Daily

Aftersun

Charlotte Wells, 2022

Screening Daily

THE MELBOURNE CINÉMATHÈQUE (ACMI)

Targets
Peter Bogdanovich, 1968

Screening Wednesday 21 June 7pm
+
The Last Picture Show
Peter Bogdanovich, 1971
Screening Wednesday 21 June 8:50pm

MELBOURNE HORROR FILM SOCIETY

No screening this week

PALACE BALWYN / BRIGHTON /COMO / KINO / PENTRIDGE / WESTGARTH

Spanish Film Festival

Screening daily - Program Here

You Hurt My Feelings
Nicole Holofcener, 2023
Screening Daily

Isle of Dogs
Wes Anderson, 2018
Screening Thursday June 15 8pm”

The Last Daughter
Nathaniel Schmidt and Brenda Matthews, 2023
Screening Daily

One Fine Morning

Mia Hansen-Løve, 2022

Screening Daily

Happy 50

Éric Lavaine, 2022
Screening Daily

Merkel
Eva Weber, 2022
Screening Daily

Saint Omer

Alice Diop, 2022

Screening Daily

Blue Caftan
Maryam Touzani, 2022
Screening Daily

Limbo

Ivan Sen, 2023

Screening Daily

Marlowe

Neil Jordan, 2023

Screening Daily

Quant

Sadie Frost, 2021

Screening Daily

Saint Omer

Alice Diop, 2022

Screening Daily

November
Cédric Jimenez, 2022
Screening Daily

Beau is Afraid

Ari Aster, 2023

Screening Daily

The Innocent

Louis Garrel, 2022

Screening Daily

SUN CINEMAS YARRAVILLE

The Last Daughter
Nathaniel Schmidt and Brenda Matthews, 2023
Screening Daily

Wes Anderson Double Feature
(The Royal Tenenbaums, 2001 + The Grand Budapest Hotel, 2014)
Screening Thursday June 15 7pm

Sweet As
Jub Clerc
Screening Daily

Limbo

Ivan Sen, 2023

Screening Daily

Marlowe

Neil Jordan, 2023

Screening Daily

Infinity Pool
Brendan Cronenberg, 2023

Screening Daily

THORNBURY PICTURE HOUSE

You Hurt My Feelings
Nicole Holofcener, 2023
Screening Daily (except Monday)

The Endangered Generation + Q & A

Celeste Geer, 2022
Screening Friday 16 June 6:10pm

Man With a Movie Camera
Dziga Vertov, 1929
Screening Saturday 17 and Wednesday 21 June

Vagabond
Agnès Varda, 1985
Screening Saturday June 17 1:50pm

Sunday Too Far Away
Ken Hannam, 1975
Screening Sunday 18 June 3pm

Scream
Wes Craven, 1996
Screening Monday 19 June 6:10pm

The Giants

Rachel Antony, Laurence Billiet, 2023

Screening Wednesday 21 June

UNKNOWN PLEASURES (BILL MOUSOULIS + CHRIS LUSCRI)

Dancing Shadows: Erin M McCuskey + Q&A
Screening Tuesday 20 June 8:25pm