Premiering at the renowned Cannes Film Festival, Jessica Hausner's "Club Zero" presents a unique concept but fails to fully deliver on its potential. This manipulation-focused film explores the theme of conscious eating through the perspective of Miss Novak (Mia Wasikowska) a teacher who joins an internation boarding school to instruct a conscious eating class, advocating for the idea that eating less is synonymous with being healthy. However, despite the intriguing premise, the film falls short in execution and leaves the audience wanting more.

The theme of manipulation is very important in this film and it prompts viewers to reflect on societal pressures regarding body image and the often unhealthy relationships people develop with food. However the films lack of narrative depth for example the fact that Miss Novaks motivations and backstory remain largely unexplored make it challenging for the audience to fully invest in her journey. Similarly the students that participate in the conscious eating class lack the complexity needed to engage viewers on a deeper level. The unengaging and poor visual execution on top of the previous observations leads me to conclude that the film fails to leave a lasting impression and struggles to engage its audience beyond surface-level observations on conscious eating and manipulation

Frank Loveland