The Congress
The interior of the huge dome where the futuristic Congress takes place, during the animated sequence, is based on the Reich's Great Hall, a massive project made by Adolf Hitler and his Minister of Defense, Albert Speer. The building, if it had been built, would have been one thousand feet tall, and able to house fifteen thousand spectators, making it the largest interior space up to date.,Robin Wright: Does that make sense? Or is this just in my mind?
Robot: Ultimately, everything make sense. And everything is in our mind.,Featured in Half in the Bag: The Bruce Willis Fake Movie Factory (2022),Forever Young
Written by Bob Dylan
Performed by Robin Wright,The Congress, Ari Folman's film based on the novel by Stanislaw Lem (The Futurological Congress) - follows five years after Folman's equally inventive and thought provoking Waltz with Bashir. Like Waltz... The Congress also combines animation with live action footage to great dramatic effect, propelling the viewer into an increasingly psychedelic other-world that presents huge challenges to Robin Wright's state of mind. She is playing an alternate univers-ion of herself, and is surrounded by a very fine cast including Harvey Keitel; Paul Giamatti; Jon Hamm; and Danny Huston (a stand out) who are joined by Kodi Smit-McPhee (still to cast off the ineffectuality of Let Me In) and Sami Gayle. The Congress is a bold attempt to visualise what clearly must be a challenging novel. There is a lot to admire in the attempt, including some good performances, grand animation and an effective score, again by contemporary composer Max Richter. It's a pity that The Congress did not find a bigger audience, since Folman is a very interesting filmmaker, clearly not afraid to take on what must be difficult projects. His next film should be eagerly awaited.,