Triangle of Sadness & Shape Island
Welcome back to Bad Dads Film Review! This week we’re embracing all things angular, round, and abstract with our Top 5 Shapes in Movies & TV, diving into Ruben Östlund’s Triangle of Sadness, and finishing up with a charming kids' pick: Shape Island. It’s geometry, but make it cinematic.
🟦 Top 5 Shapes in Movies & TV
1. The Monolith – 2001: A Space Odyssey
A perfect black rectangle that sparked humanity’s evolution and a thousand late-night debates. Kubrick gave us a shape that’s as mysterious as it is iconic.
2. The Triangle – Triangle of Sadness
Not just the title but the theme itself—a social and structural hierarchy explored through literal and metaphorical triangles.
3. The Cube – Cube (1997)
A sterile, deadly maze of identical cubes. A shape that’s both trap and metaphor for bureaucracy and existential dread.
4. The Circle – Arrival (2016)
Language as a shape. The alien "Heptapod" written language is a looping, circular system representing nonlinear time and communication.
5. The Star – Steven Universe
Used as both a motif and a symbol of identity, love, and cosmic destiny. Stars (and gems) have never been this emotionally complex.
🔺 Main Feature: Triangle of Sadness (2022)
Ruben Östlund’s Palme d'Or-winning satire takes aim at wealth, beauty, and power with savage precision. The story begins in the world of high fashion before shifting to a luxury yacht and ultimately to a deserted island, revealing how quickly social structures can collapse when survival becomes the priority.
The "triangle" here refers not only to the frown lines of male model Carl but also to the class pyramid, upended as the story progresses. Woody Harrelson shines as a Marxist captain, and Dolly De Leon’s Abigail becomes the surprise hero of the film’s biting third act. Expect vomit, revolution, and some of the best social commentary of the decade.
Östlund’s direction skewers privilege with style and discomfort, making Triangle of Sadness both a sharp-edged black comedy and a sobering reflection on the roles we play when no one’s watching.
🟠 Kids Feature: Shape Island
Based on the book Shape Trilogy by Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen, Shape Island is a wholesome, gentle series featuring Square, Circle, and Triangle as they navigate friendship, logic, and adventure on their geometrically delightful island.
With soft animation, smart writing, and a peaceful tone, this is perfect for younger viewers who like their storytelling sweet and their geometry friendly. It’s calm, kind, and surprisingly profound.
This week’s episode celebrates the humble shape—from high-concept sci-fi and brutal social satire to gentle kids’ tales. Whether it’s the sharp point of a triangle or the endless loop of a circle, there’s beauty, meaning, and even horror to be found in every edge and curve. 🎬🔷👨👧👦🍿
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Until next time, we remain...
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