TIFF Review: ‘Sacrifice’ is an Ambitious Mixed Bag of a Satire That Does Not Play Things Safe

A satirical thriller is hard to pull off. First of all, the satire of it all has to work. Then, there needs to be something thrilling at its core. Furthermore, the mixture needs to feel right. More often than not, one element is off, keeping the whole from succeeding. That’s the case with Sacrifice, which is very much a mixed bag of a movie. That being said, it has ideas that are among the most interesting at the Toronto International Film Festival. So, it can’t be dismissed too easily.

Sacrifice wants to resemble something like Triangle of Sadness, or really the work of Ruben Östlund on the whole. Being that Östlund rarely works for me, that could be an issue at play here. Still, it’s hard not to feel that there’s an inconsistency with the satire at play. When it’s hitting, things are pretty funny. However, that ends up being all too infrequently.

At an environmental benefit/concert being held in Greece, attendees this year already feel like something is off. Some of that may have to do with the celebrities that have essentially crashed the party. There’s actor Mike Tyler (Chris Evans), an action movie star who’s having an existential crisis. He’s arrived with his manager (Sam Richardson) in the hopes of capturing a viral moment that will work to his benefit. There’s also musician Braken (Vincent Cassel), there with his wife (Salma Hayek) in the hopes of generating support for a deep-sea mining effort that targets essential minerals. On their own, they would suck up all the oxygen in the room. However, something else is at play…terrorism.

An eco-cult group led by Joan (Anya Taylor-Joy) has taken the conference hostage. She and her people believe that a nearby volcano is about to destroy the world with its eruption, with one way to save the planet. The volcano needs sacrifices, and in both Mike and Braken, a couple of famous ones have presented themselves. Of course, even for Joan and her group, nothing goes quite according to plan.

Chris Evans is best in show here, playing an action hero stuck in a rut. The fun of his character is that, not only does he make a fool of himself with manufactured environmental stands, once he’s a part of the hostage situation, he finds that he likes the attention being given to him in that regard. Evans is a hoot, to the point where you wish that was the sole focus. Vincent Cassel is suitably off-putting as a musician now leaning into all the wrong billionaire tendencies, while Anya Taylor-Joy is well cast as a spacey eco-warrior. Unfortunately, Salma Hayek and Sam Richardson are wasted. The rest of the cast includes John Malkovich, among others.

Filmmaker Romain Gavras directs, while co-writing with Will Arbery. The visuals here are striking, especially the closer we get to the volcano. However, the script that Arbery and Gavras put out is the mixed bag of it all. The humor and satire work, especially when Evans’ Mike is the focus. Unfortunately, there’s a turn towards the serious in the back half that cuts down on the laughter, dulling the movie. I will concede that there’s a hell of an ending, which nearly redeems the whole flick.

Sacrifice is a hard film to shake, so even if it didn’t overall work for me, I respect the big swing being taken, all the same. A TIFF title that likely won’t break through in a major way, it still is the sort of movie that you’ll think about for a few days after seeing. It’s frustrating, to be sure, but also still a bit memorable, nonetheless.

SCORE: ★★1/2