Where does one start with a film like Greatland? There’s so much to unpack it’s truly difficult to know where to begin. Set in a dystopian world where everything is “great” all the time, our young protagonist Ulysses (Arman Darbo) begins to question everything when his friend is banished from the land.
The first thing that strikes you when watching Greatland, is how visually immersive it is. A whole world has been created. The aesthetic is heavily rooted in childhood with bright colours dominating the screen. Every shot contains a myriad of details that pertain to the creation of this world. My initial impressions led me to think of the Barbie film, with the bold colours and impressive sets being used in a similar way. The artistic directors have truly captured what it might be like to live Groundhog Day while stuck in a CoComelon video.
The second thing that strikes you is how politically charged the content is. Very early on a couple of things are abruptly dropped in to the narrative that make you think, “Oh, so we’re going to be infantilising typically left-wing agendas and making out that if certain people had their way, we’d all be living in this dystopian ‘snowflake’ society? That’s a shame because this film actually looked fun.” Or at least that’s what I though. When part of the structure of the filmic dystopian society is that everyone appears to be non-binary, non-heterosexual, vegan, and giving birth has been outlawed, it feels particularly aimed to mock and belittle. The perpetrator of these “vicious” ideals is a woman named Mother who appears only through electronic devices. Of course, anyone being forced to be/ not be anything against their will is wrong and dystopian in itself, but the issues raised in Greatland feel particularly pointed as discussions of gender, sexuality and reproductive rights are always in the headlines, even today (four years after the film’s release).
Figuring out where the film stood on these issues bothered me for a while as I looked for what the filmmakers were trying to say. And the reality is, due to deep divisions that discussing these topics reveals, there will be no single unifying discourse. What the film is trying to say is mostly determined by what the viewer wants to hear. I decided quite early on that this dystopian world is a manifestation of the average homophobe’s worst nightmare. It’s playing on what some people think the world will descend into if we give everyone equal rights and treat everyone with care and respect. From this point, the film became not a criticism of reality but a parody of a reality that only exists within the closed minds of bigots. Making fun of those who think teaching young people sex education is merely showing them porn, that the existence of fertility treatments is one step away from a ban on natural conception.
I’m sure there are more nuances to the world of Greatland than this – it’s a complex world with its own political and social factions and an intricate narrative weaving throughout it. While the potential for the film to be read as a right-wing manifesto is worrying, I believe it invokes a similar reception to Fight Club– a film commonly misunderstood as a manifesto for nihilism. This is because people are inclined to look for confirmation of what they already know, rather than being receptive to a totally different view point. Is it the filmmakers’ fault if the point of a film is not made clear enough to be understood? That’s a different argument.
My favourite part of the whole film is a group of people called The Optimists. They seem to be a type of law enforcement effort. They’re also a bunch of vivacious men in outrageously fun attire. Apart from the fact they track down and kidnap Ulysses’ girlfriend Ugly Duck (Chloe Ray), they’re just a lot of fun!
There’s a lot going off in the narrative – so much so it’s occasionally hard to follow. But ultimately Ulysses leaves Greatland to rescue Ugly Duck, and on his journey finds his father. Some other stuff happens including an election between a cat and a dog. The attention to detail throughout is impressive. The locations are varied and stunning and the costumes are sensational. Something that truly captures the filmmakers’ commitment to detail is when Ulysses is asked his name, he replies “nobody” on more than one occasion. This has strong Homeric associations as when Odysseus (protagonist of The Odyssey upon which James Joyce’s Ulysses is based) is asked by the cyclops what his name is, he also replies “nobody” in order to trick him.
There is truly so much going on in this film, it’s impossible to mention it all. But with all round strong performances, especially from Darbo and Ray, you definitely won’t be bored. Nick Moran as Ulysses’ father and Eric Roberts as Alpha Altruist are also excellent additions, giving the film more depth in it’s latter half.
Watch the trailer below and watch the full film on Amazon prime!