[7]

Matt Damon stars in writer/director Alexander Payne’s (Election, Nebraska) film about a man who undergoes a miraculous new “shrinking” process so that he can live in a miniature utopia where his money is worth more… a lot more. Unfortunately, the man’s wife (Kristen Wiig) gets cold feet and bails on the procedure after he’s already been shrunk. From thereon out, Downsizing is about finding yourself and starting a new life. But at about the mid-point, the film becomes increasingly political. Damon’s naive character discovers a classe system in the utopian society after he meets a Vietnamese political activist (Hong Chau) who was shrunk against her will. The film also deals heavily with global warming — in a scary, sobering way.

Downsizing is full of ideas and I related with some more than others. I imagine the third act threat will be too existential for many audience members. (Many in my audience groaned when the movie ended.) I do wish Matt Damon’s character weren’t so empty-headed. He makes life-altering decisions like he’s picking items from a fast-food menu. Christoph Waltz and Udo Kier are on hand as rich opportunists — you’re never sure whether they’re friends or foes for a while. But it’s Hong Chau who absolutely steals the show as the hilarious and heartbreaking Vietnamese activist. If Payne’s goal is to inspire change, Chau is his secret weapon here.