The Laundromat

Director/cinematographer/editor Steven Soderbergh's latest curiosity, THE LAUDROMAT is, like several of his filmed experiments, a bit iffy throughout.  Then comes that final scene with headlining star Meryl Streep.  A real head shaker.  A fourth wall breaking rant that concludes with her extended right arm toward the sky, as if she's Lady Liberty herself.   The entire film includes characters who address the audience, explaining the complex workings of "shell companies" that truly aren't worth too much more than the intrinsic value of the paper they're printed on.  An essay on greed that includes animation and various graphics to highlight salient points, much the way a grad student would in an especially ambitious Power Point presentation.

THE LAUNDROMAT, based on real events, is plenty ambitious itself, interlocking several vignettes to a pair of unapologetically amoral law partners of a Panama City firm, which is linked to multiple entrepreneurs and politicians around the world. Gary Oldman (with a questionable accent) and Antonio Banderas respectively portray Jurgen Mossack and Ramon Fonseca, hosts of this sometimes dry, other times colorful filmic essay, who educate us in the dealings of offshore accounting, tax evasion, and fake insurance policies.  One victim is Ellen Martin (Meryl Streep), whose husband dies when a tour boat capsizes.  She is offered a less than acceptable compensation, prompting her to dig deeper into this rabbit hole of fraud, leading to our sardonic tour guides.  It's a depressing ride, with detours to the stories of other poor victims, some of whom fall prey to their own family members.

Scott Z. Burns' screenplay is filled with somewhat interesting tales, and a lot of technical data.  Viewers may be reminded of THE BIG SHORT with Soderbergh's far from subtle presentation, though THE LAUNDROMAT is filmed with far more skill and polish.  Problem is, while we may agree with all of its barbs, the damned thing is so uneven.  Dull at times.  Also, shame on the director for using CGI for bloody gunshot wounds.  C'mon Steven! It looks so phony! If you want your movie to be taken as cinema (It is a Netflix production, which had a brief theatrical release), pull out a squib.  It looks so much more realistic.

Streep plays more than one role here, and removes her makeup for that finale of which I spoke.  I was a bit embarrassed for her, even if, again, I concurred with the points.  This bit felt like a home movie made for other Hollywood types to watch in their screening rooms.  Maybe THE LAUNDROMAT would've fared better (and thus be judged much less harshly) as a mere TV special.

Eventually, the shit hit the fan and journalists leaked damning documents of their super wealthy clients in the infamous Panama Papers.  Justice? Mossack and Fonseca served short sentences.  As our duo reports, there are many more like them in the world.