The Square (2017)
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A museum curator's attempt to manage a controversial art exhibition spirals into a series of social and personal disasters.
The story
Christian, the curator of the X-Royal art museum in Stockholm, finds himself entangled in a series of escalating conflicts. After being the victim of a confidence trick, he attempts to reclaim his belongings through an anonymous letter campaign, only to face unexpected consequences. Simultaneously, he must navigate the promotion of a new exhibition titled 'The Square,' which carries a statement of radical trust. When a promotional video for the exhibit goes viral for all the wrong reasons, Christian faces intense public scrutiny and professional fallout as he struggles to balance his personal life with the museum's public image.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Christian, a museum curator in Stockholm, is interviewed by a journalist before being robbed in a pedestrian zone. He tracks his stolen phone to an apartment block and sends anonymous letters demanding its return, eventually receiving the items back at a 7-Eleven. Following a brief romantic encounter with a woman named Anne, Christian faces a series of personal and professional crises. He is confronted by a young boy who accuses him of being a thief; in a moment of frustration, Christian pushes the boy down the stairs. Meanwhile, the museum promotes an art piece called 'The Square,' which advocates for a sanctuary of trust. An advertising agency creates a violent promotional clip for the piece, which Christian accidentally approves. The video goes viral, causing a public outcry. Christian is forced to resign as curator following a press conference where he is attacked by both the media and the public. Seeking redemption, Christian attempts to find the boy he pushed, only to learn the family has moved away.
- First release year
- 2017
- Runtime (minutes)
- 151
- Production countries
- Germany; France; Denmark
- Original languages
- Swedish
- Directors
- Ruben Östlund
- Writers
- Ruben Östlund · writer
- Cast and characters
- Claes Bang · Christian; Elisabeth Moss; Dominic West; Terry Notary · Oleg
- Genres
- satirical black comedy; comedy-drama
- Themes
- masculinity; privilege; social inequality; art world decadence
- Tone and mood
- satirical; surreal; disquieting; merciless
- Premise and plot tags
- art-world satire; social commentary; comedy-drama
- Source material / true-story basis
- Partly inspired by an installation by Ruben Östlund and Kalle Boman.
- Reception
- The film received largely positive reviews, winning the Palme d'Or at Cannes. Critics praised its satire and ambition, though some found it overlong or structurally loose. It holds an 85% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 73/100 score on Metacritic.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 85% · review count: 219; Metacritic · score: 73 · scale: 100 · review count: 33
- Awards and nominations
- Palme d'Or · Best Film · Won; European Film Award · Best Film · Won; Guldbagge Award · Best Director · Won; Academy Award · Best Foreign Language Film · Nominated
- Production trivia
- The gallery in the film is based on Sweden's Stockholm Palace.; The film was inspired by a true incident where a woman ran to a man claiming someone was going to kill her, which turned out to be a ploy to steal a cellphone.; One scene features a performance artist imitating an ape, inspired by a real incident involving artist Oleg Kulik.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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