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Christian is chief curator at a contemporary art museum. When asked about the meaning of such things as \u201cexhibition\/non-exhibition\u201d and \u201cthe construction of publicness in the spirit of Smithson’s site\/non-site\u201d on the museum\u2019s website, he is at a loss for an answer. He somehow manages to bumble through, but that\u2019s only the beginning of a movie full of unintelligible contemporary art jargon. There is at once an indescribable sense of disquietude that oozes out from the clumsy interaction between interviewer and interviewee.<\/p>\n
This is additionally intensified in a scene in which an equestrian bronze statue is removed from the museum\u2019s front yard using a crane. Supposedly made in the 18th or 19th century, the statue (probably of the country\u2019s king) slips, crashes onto the pedestal, and breaks into pieces. While the viewer is dumbfounded, everyone in the movie remains unshaken. The incident probably indicates that former icons of power have served their purpose, however there are also foreboding signs in it.<\/p>\n
Set up in lieu of the old icon is a new cultural device: a square outlined using luminescent material \u2013 a piece of contemporary art that became the title of this movie. Attached to it is an inscription board that reads, \u201dThe Square is a sanctuary of trust and caring. Within it, we all share equal rights and obligations.\u201d It is a participatory work that appeals to the viewer\u2019s sense of solidarity, as it declares that anyone who steps inside the square has the right to ask for help, and people have to offer help to those who demand it.<\/p>\n
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\u00a9 2017 Plattform Prodtion AB \/ Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 Parisienne de Production \/ Essential Filmproduktion GmbH \/ Coproduction Office ApS<\/p><\/div>\n
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Even in Scandinavian countries that are known for their advanced welfare systems, issues related to immigration and the gap between rich and poor keep inflating. Together with a friend, director Ruben \u00d6stlund had the idea to create some kind of symbol that takes effect in a society penetrated by indifference toward others (the bystander effect), something like a zebra crossing where people automatically follow certain rules. In 2015, they eventually exhibited a work at a museum in V\u00e4rnamo, a town in the southern part of Sweden. It was \u201cThe Square.\u201d The fact that the work in the movie is not fictional but an artwork that really exists charges the movie with a unique sense of reality (\u201cThe Square\u201d was later moved to a public square in V\u00e4rnamo, and was also installed at two other locations in Sweden.)<\/p>\n
The story, however, takes a cruel turn. During the planning of an exhibition around \u201cThe Square\u201d as a centerpiece, Christian\u2019s wallet and smartphone are stolen, which prompts him to do exactly the opposite of his credo of a \u201creconstitution of mutual trust between human individuals.\u201d Due to his carelessness, a promotional film made by a PR company to advertise the exhibition ends up causing a stir on YouTube. The further he is driven into a corner, the more he falls back on clich\u00e9s and lets off childishly haphazard comments such as \u201cWhy is that so hard to admit that power is a turn-on?\u201d or \u201cNothing should stand in the way of freedom of expression.\u201d<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s not only about him. Most other characters that appear in this movie are somehow out of balance. There is Christian\u2019s assistant, who advises him to write a threatening letter in order to get his wallet and smartphone back; the museum restaurant\u2019s chef, who suddenly yells at people; an American journalist who lives with a chimpanzee; members of the museum\u2019s PR department and PR company employees who enjoy the buzz around their movie; a boy who chases Christian around, insisting that he apologize\u2026 All this culminates in the appearance of the performance artist Oleg as a monkey. His performance embodying \u201can animal that got lost in the civilized world\u201d that is supposed to entertain the board of directors at their party turns violent as Oleg runs wild. What is exposed here is the dark side of human society, and the things that get revealed when scratching the surface even of the wealthy upper class that supports the museum.<\/p>\n
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/realtokyo.co.jp\/_sys2024\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sub1-1024x549.jpg\")
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\u00a9 2017 Plattform Prodtion AB \/ Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 Parisienne de Production \/ Essential Filmproduktion GmbH \/ Coproduction Office ApS<\/p>\n
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Speedy as a slapstick tragicomedy, the 151 minutes of this movie are sprinkled with black humour, and tinged with \u201cintolerance and mistrust\u201d much rather than \u201dtolerance and solidarity,\u201d whereas it probably depends on the viewer how to interpret the repeated acts of people\u2019s estrangement from their personal creeds; the portrayal of a human nature that unintentionally causes harm to others in chains of coincidences; and matters of authoritarianism and deception in the cultural realm of \u201dcontemporary art.\u201d The \u201dX-ROYAL\u201d banner on the museum\u2019s facade presumably stands for \u201cex-royal,\u201d referring to a fictitious museum in Sweden after the extinction of the royal authority. Sweden is presently a constitutional monarchy, and the museum in the movie is Stockholm Palace, which is used as a royal palace still today. With this in mind, \u201cThe Square\u201d very carefully hints at the possibility that the cultural device that surfaces here in the form of a piece of contemporary art may even become a new authority. This is one movie rich in nuances that will leave you with complicated feelings.<\/p>\n
Translated by Andreas Stuhlmann<\/p>\n
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