Don’t Look Up, An Allegory Of The Asteroid

Adam McKay’s Don’t Look Up is an asteroid movie that isn’t quite about the asteroid disaster. The star-studded satire on Netflix takes a metaphorical journey across our current social and political landscape to show, among other things, how the appeal of populism and drive for immediate gratification blinds us from the impending. The movie curves out the sear helplessness and frustration faced by many scientists and critical thinkers while setting the stage for any serious discussion in a society that has lost the appetite for anything serious or significant or worth pondering with a crucial and long-term view.

In the reign of insignificance, the protagonists, yes, there is a duo (Dr. Mindy played by Leonardo DiCaprio and doctoral student Dibiasky, by Jennifer Lawrence), struggles to bring society’s attention to the apparent trajectory of doom that’s impending soon. The most disturbing fact is that nobody denies or disbelieves them, but everybody is in a state of numbness. As if we are all drunk with some substance called “pursuit of happiness.” It’s as if you’re talking about possible contamination in the city water system in a radio show, and the RJ tries to crack a failed joke about how morbid it sounds and moves on to a commercial break. Don’t Look Up shows us the true Kafkaesque horror of the post-truth society. It makes us feel the sense of helplessness, the rage, and the sear awareness of not being able to make a mark on the glassy minds of the people who make up the society where a simple act of making a fact-based statement takes on Byzantine conduits of media posturing, sentimental backlash from various groups, not to mention disgraceful memes as a freebie.

If you’re looking to be entertained, even in an intellectual sense, this movie isn’t for you. Don't Look Up doesn't aspire to be profound. What this movie intends to do is make us feel helpless and disgusted. It tries to sting you with the pain thousands of environmental scientists are feeling day in and day out to pass on the most straightforward facts across the society backed by clear observational data points. The movie also urges us to address the hard problems of society, looking square in the eyes. I hope this movie shakes us enough… Imagine what we could achieve even with a small number of people determined to try till the end to bring tangible change.