The buzz surrounding the premiere of “The Gallerist” at this year’s Sundance Film Festival was palpable. Fans lined up for blocks in Park City to see heavyweights Natalie Portman and Jenna Ortega share the screen for a dark comedy set in the high-stakes world of fine art. The premise promised a biting takedown of influencer culture and the absurdity of modern valuation. However, the final product feels less like a masterpiece and more like a rough sketch that was never quite finished.
Director Cathy Yan attempts to blend chaos and commentary in a film that ultimately struggles to find its footing. While the star power is undeniable and the costumes are exquisite, the narrative collapses under the weight of its own ambition. Audiences expecting the next great art world satire will likely leave the theater feeling short-changed.
Chaos Erupts Inside The Polina Poliski Art Gallery
The film wastes no time dropping viewers into the stressful epicenter of Miami Art Basel. We meet Polina Poliski, played by Natalie Portman, a gallery owner teetering on the edge of financial ruin. Her survival depends entirely on the success of her latest exhibition featuring up-and-coming artist Stella Burgess. Da’Vine Joy Randolph steps into the role of Stella with a grounded energy that anchors the film’s early moments.
Disaster strikes just minutes before the VIP doors open. The gallery’s air conditioning system fails and creates a hazardous puddle right in front of a massive, dangerously sharp sculpture. The tension rises immediately. You can see the accident coming a mile away, yet the film treats it as a shock.
Matters worsen with the arrival of Dalton Hardberry. He is an obnoxious art influencer portrayed by Zach Galifianakis. He demands early access and ignores all safety warnings. The inevitable impaling of the influencer on the sculpture serves as the film’s inciting incident. It is grotesque and shocking. For a brief moment, the movie finds a dark, humorous rhythm that works.
Polina and her assistant Kiki, played by Jenna Ortega, make a frantic decision. They choose not to call the police. Instead, they attempt to pass off the gruesome scene as a hyper-realistic art installation. It is a plot point that requires a massive suspension of disbelief. The narrative then follows their frantic attempts to maintain this lie as the gallery fills with wealthy collectors and critics.
Natalie Portman and Jenna Ortega standing in modern art gallery
A Cast That Shines Brighter Than The Material
The ensemble cast does their absolute best to elevate the uneven script. Jenna Ortega delivers a performance that distinctly separates her from her famous “Wednesday” persona. She plays Kiki with a frantic, nervous energy that contrasts well with Portman’s character.
Natalie Portman leans fully into the campiness of the role. She wears a striking white wig and affects an insecure pretentiousness that makes Polina strangely endearing despite her questionable morals. You can tell Portman is having fun with the absurdity of the character. She is trying to channel the energy of a desperate social climber clinging to relevance.
The standout performance belongs to Catherine Zeta-Jones. She enters the film as Marianne Gorman, a legendary art broker and Kiki’s aunt. She steals every single scene she is in. Her delivery of the line “I thought hyperrealism was dead” upon seeing the body is one of the few laugh-out-loud moments in the theater.
Key Cast Performances:
- Natalie Portman: brings campy, frantic energy to the desperate gallery owner.
- Jenna Ortega: proves her comedic timing as the overwhelmed executive director.
- Catherine Zeta-Jones: commands the screen with icy, deadpan delivery.
- Da’Vine Joy Randolph: provides the only voice of reason amidst the madness.
Even Sterling K. Brown makes an appearance as Polina’s wealthy ex-husband. However, his talent feels wasted on a subplot about their divorce that adds little to the main story. The actors are clearly committed. They just deserved a better screenplay to work with.
Cathy Yan’s Stylistic Gamble Misses The Mark
Director Cathy Yan is known for her bold visual style in previous films. She attempts to bring that same kinetic energy to “The Gallerist.” The entire movie takes place within the confines of the gallery space. To avoid visual boredom, Yan utilizes a constant barrage of moving camera shots.
The camera swirls around the characters relentlessly. It follows them from room to room without a break. This technique is meant to create a sense of urgency. Instead, it becomes dizzying and distracting. A few static shots would have allowed the jokes to land more effectively. The constant motion undermines the comedic timing of the actors.
Thematically, the film tries to tackle the conflict between art and commerce. The writers drew inspiration from real-world art scandals. Specifically, they reference the viral sensation of a banana duct-taped to a wall that sold for millions. The movie wants to mock the idea that anything can be art if the price tag is high enough.
However, the satire feels dated. The jokes about influencers and modern art are low-hanging fruit. We have seen these observations made sharper in other films. The script relies on on-the-nose metaphors rather than clever subtext. It feels like a missed opportunity to say something new about an industry ripe for mockery.
An Uneven Mix Of Dark Humor And Missed Opportunities
The film struggles significantly with its pacing. The high point of the movie is undoubtedly the death of the influencer Hardberry. This happens early in the runtime. The remaining hour and fifteen minutes feel like a slow deflate.
The plot becomes repetitive as Polina and Kiki fend off different threats. Charli XCX makes a cameo as Hardberry’s girlfriend Alex. She realizes the truth about the “sculpture” quickly. This introduces a new conflict, but the resolution feels rushed and convenient.
The solution proposed by Marianne to save the women from prison involves selling the “piece” to a naive collector. The plan is to ship the body to a tax-free haven in Miami before it decomposes. It is a bleakly funny concept. Yet, the execution lacks the tension needed to make the finale exciting.
Audiences are left with a film that feels like an extended sketch. It has the premise of a “Saturday Night Live” skit stretched to feature length. The absurdity stops being funny when the internal logic of the world falls apart. Even the charisma of Zeta-Jones cannot save the third act from dragging.
Ultimately, “The Gallerist” is a disappointment. It has all the ingredients for a cult classic but fails to mix them correctly. The satire is too dull to cut deep. The comedy is too sporadic to keep you laughing. It serves as a reminder that a great cast cannot fix a flawed foundation.
The film serves as a cautionary tale for the industry. Star power helps get a movie made. It helps get a movie into Sundance. But it does not guarantee a good movie. “The Gallerist” opens the sale but ultimately cannot close the deal.
