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Summary
Denis Villeneuve ’s short filmNext Flooris a darkly comedic and darkly vex movie . Long before directorDenis Villeneuve was creating blockbuster transportation likeDune , he was absorb in even unusual project likeMaelströmand the 2008 short filmNext Floor . In the twelve - minute short , a group of wealthy - look individuals posture around a mesa where a wakeful serving staff brings them mount of food for their consumption . As the diners eat , their table breaks through to the elbow room below . The waiter quickly follow them to continue serving the moth-eaten group . This happens over and over , withthe only row being Maître D ’s command to his staff , " Next floor " .
Many Denis Villeneuve movieshave queasy vista in them , from city - sized spider inEnemyto annoyance box inDune . He is a director who can find lulu in the grotesqueand his camera oeuvre inNext Flooris stunning , but what he prefer to sharpen on is revolt . There are oyster shells with something that bet like wit glistening inside . There are whole braise bounder - looking beast . There is a stark gazelle with its back undefendable and serving forks stick around out . It ’s bizarre and inhumane and hard to look away from . As a near - wordless shortstop , there are multiple interpretations of Villeneuve ’s imagination of a dreaded banquet .
Enemy ’s closing is one of the most disgraceful and unforgettable , but it ’s also notoriously ambiguous . So what does that gargantuan wanderer really meanspirited ?
The Characters In Next Floor Are Being Punished For Their Gluttony
One of thetheories about whatNext Flooris about is that the diner are being penalise . It could be the diner are deceased and the waitstaff are demons , " [ The buffet car are]Forced to eat themselves at tight forward speed , they gorge and gorge until they sink ever deeper into Hell , " viaIndieWire . The ocular motif of the diners falling down an impossible number of floors and still surviving certainly imply that there is something diabolic go away on with the meal . What ’s more , the waitstaff seems fain for this eventuality .
Thebiggest of backup for this theory comes from the behaviour of the diners and the waitstaff . Though garment high and being served as if they are in charge , none of the people at the board seem particularly lancinate to eat on . They pick and jab at raw and bloody offerings , only taking small bite . It is n’t until they fall deep into " hell " that they give up any pretense and begin voraciously go through the meal , give into their torture . The Maître D ’s long spirit into the camera to shut the short is almost a threat to the audience , warning them of the price of overconsumption .
Next Floor Is A Commentary On The Dangers Of Human Consumerism
While gluttony is one of the themesNext Flooris examining , it ’s really concerned with overconsumption in general . The fauna that are convey to the tabular array are not the single that are ordinarily wipe out . They are exotic Lion , warthogs , rhinoceros , and more . Overconsumption , often a result of the wealthy like those sit at the table , is n’t just destructive to the natural environment , it ’s destructive to themselves . efficaciously knock the base out from underneath all humanity .
That ’s why the buffet car look uncertain as they are presented with the fruits of their overconsumption . It is n’t until they ’ve fallen through multiple levels of " netherworld " that they give up . It ’s a lost crusade at this percentage point , so people may as well exhaust as much as they can . It ’s a grim portrait of humanity inNext Floorand Villeneuve does n’t excuse those not actively participating in the consumption . The server may not be eating the food , but they are more than happy to bring it to the board . Some hoi polloi may not actively ruin the environment , but they may still be happy to gain from its demolition .
