The Congress

Ari Folman’s Waltz With Bashir, an autobiographical animated documentary of the 1982 Lebanon conflict, caused a sensation in 2008, scooping a cabinet of awards.

The Congress is the latest written and directed by the Israeli filmmaker – but fans of Folman's previous work, be warned. His latest is a complete departure: a surreal blend of sci-fi and Hollywood satire, in live-action and animation.

The lead is Robin Wright playing the character Robin Wright (à la Being John Malkovich) an actress 'too old' to find roles. Running out of options, Wright gets an offer from a Hollywood Studio wanting to scan her body and emotions: “We want to own this thing called ‘Robin Wright'.”

From here, the film leaps into animation, providing the most visually stunning sequences, with a dystopian vision that is scarily believable. It’s a backward flip structurally from Waltz With Bashir, which is animated the whole way through until a devastating final section of real archive footage of the conflict. The animation in The Congress is jazzy, almost garish, and very different from the dark hues of Waltz: a stylistic change suited to the shift from critiquing political issues in the Middle East to critiquing Hollywood.

Some may find this film harder to swallow than Folman’s 2008 masterpiece. Nevertheless, this is an important film: a thoughtful cautionary tale, which addresses contemporary concerns with remarkable insight.