Celebrity culture and parasocial relationships have long been the subject of debate. Are they fandoms or full-blown obsessions? What do they do to our brains? How far is too far?
A24’s latest psychological thriller “Opus” attempts to answer these questions, but unfortunately stumbles along the way, delivering more confusion than clarity.
Released on March 14, the film follows young journalist Ariel Ecton (Ayo Edebiri) as she unexpectedly receives an invitation to a secluded weekend event hosted by Alfred Moretti (John Malkovich), a legendary pop star who has been on hiatus for 30 years. What begins as a career-defining opportunity soon spirals into something far more sinister.
At first, “Opus” sets up a promising premise, one that could have unraveled into an interesting take on fame, power and devotion. However, what unfolds is a plot riddled with holes, pacing issues and underdeveloped ideas. While there are some great moments, they exist almost entirely within the performances of its two leads.
In 2023 and 2024, Edebiri received several awards for her role in “The Bear,” and after seeing “Opus,” it’s clear that they were deserved. Even though the script didn’t give her much to work with, she absolutely shined on screen, and I truly cared for her character.
Malkovich leans fully into the role of an egotistical, aging pop star, his performance both unsettling and insufferable. Moretti is meant to be larger than life, but instead, he’s just exhausting. His endless monologues are meant to be profound but are more like drawn-out ramblings that drag down the film’s momentum.
The supporting cast — including Stephanie Suganami, Juliette Lewis, Amber Midthunder and Murray Bartlett — was not horrible, but their characters felt hollow. None of them had redeeming qualities and they didn’t leave a lasting impact.
For a movie about music, the score was entirely dull. They make Moretti out to be this international superstar, with his upcoming album being number 18 of his career. Fans camp outside of his home just to catch a glimpse of him, news outlets are all over his resurfacing and his childhood home has been turned into a museum.
You would think that with these features the music would be good, but it was so mediocre that I couldn’t even differentiate when a new song was playing. Of course, this is all fiction, so it doesn’t really matter if I personally like the music or not — but after modeling this guy after Elton John and David Bowie, I feel like the music should have been more memorable. It questions the influence of his character and fanbase.
I can’t say much about the plot as it would give too much away — which is ironic given that I also found an issue in how much was going on at each moment. There were so many components to this story and a lot to keep up with, but somehow it felt like nothing was going on at all.
While definitely a new take on celebrity culture, it also felt very similar to other A24 movies in terms of cinematography and atmosphere, and not in a good way.
There’s also the larger question of Moretti’s control — how exactly does he command such unwavering devotion? The film gestures toward a cult-like dynamic but fails to provide any meaningful exploration of how or why his followers surrender themselves so completely.
During one of Morretti’s big performances, for example, the other people who live and work on his compound stand to the side listening as their eyes glimmer. It is a very prominent part of the film, the shine in their eyes being focused on for many consecutive shots. The poster for the film even shows them in Edebiri’s eyes. Yet they never expand on this.
Is it brainwashing? Supernatural influence? The film never says. Similarly, an ominous focus on specially prepared drinks hints at a “Get Out” style reveal, only for it to amount to the downfall of a secondary character.
To cite a Letterboxd review from @moviemattk that I found both particularly funny and similar to how I feel, “Don’t Worry Darling, I will Blink Twice to signal for us to Get Out if The Menu looks Mid this Summer.”
All in all, “Opus” does not necessarily do anything new and says the same thing about society that other A24 films do. I give a generous two stars for the acting, concept and captivating first act.
2/5 stars
ajones11@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of futurecdn.net
