Locarno 2024 Review: 100,000,000,000,000 Examines Modern Alienation in Monaco's Glittering Void

French director Virgil Vernier returns to Locarno with his latest film, 100,000,000,000,000, following his previous works such as Sophia Antipolis and Sapphire Crystal. Once again, Vernier blurs the line between reality and fiction, delving into themes of alienation and melancholy among the younger generation.

The film opens with an intimate scene featuring a young escort, 18-year-old Afine (Zakaria Bouti), engaging in pre-coital conversation with a client. Afine has turned paid companionship into a full-time lifestyle.

The title, 100,000,000,000,000, refers to the enormous sum of money imagined by Afine and his three colleagues as a means to achieve freedom and happiness. These young escorts, who share an apartment, often gather to discuss their unusual experiences with clients and speculate about their futures and dreams of a better life.

Vernier’s narrative shifts unexpectedly from Afine’s professional encounters to his personal interactions with his colleagues. While his friends decide to spend Christmas and New Year in Dubai, Afine remains in Monaco, continuing his work during the holidays.

Vernier’s style, refined through years of blending fiction and documentary realism, is evident in 100,000,000,000,000. His previous films, such as Sophia Antipolis (2018) and Mercuriales (2014), explore the lives of contemporary characters shaped by their environments.

Vernier continues this approach, using Monaco not just as a backdrop but as a character in itself—a paradoxical paradise that highlights the isolation of its inhabitants. However, this film is more narrative-driven than Vernier’s previous experimental works, embracing an ambient, impressionistic style.

The film features sparse dialogue and lingering shots of the Monaco skyline, often illuminated in saturated fluorescence, evoking a sense of longing and disconnection. These visual elements mirror the internal states of the characters, who experience existential alienation within Monaco’s glittering yet empty urban landscape.

In addition to Afine, the core cast includes Vesna (Mina Gajovic), a Serbian babysitter in her 30s who dreams of opening a shop selling healing stones, and Julia (Victoire Song), a 12-year-old whose wealthy parents have left her alone over the holidays to oversee a construction project on a man-made island.

During Christmas and New Year, Afine, Vesna, and Julia form an unconventional, makeshift family, enacting traditions brought by Vesna in an effort to create a sense of belonging. While Vesna initially hires Afine to combat her loneliness and possibly fulfill other desires, his presence remains asexual, and he forms a bond with Julia, who evolves from being silent and passive to revealing herself as a precocious child.

Afine is portrayed as a drifter, both physically wandering Monaco’s opulent streets and emotionally detached from his surroundings. His interactions are marked by a sense of dislocation, which Vernier captures through a minimalist aesthetic.

This approach underscores the emptiness of the characters’ lives against the backdrop of a city designed for excess. The use of semi-impressionistic imagery in soft pastel colors contrasts with moments of raw, documentary-like realism, highlighting the tension between appearance and reality.

100,000,000,000,000 is an intriguing piece of psychogeography, albeit less textured and saturated than Sophia Antipolis. Vernier employs a tighter narrative structure, focusing on the cognitive dissonance of a protagonist who navigates the dualities of being both a prince and a pauper in ultra-wealthy Monaco. The film occasionally touches on themes of globalized capitalism and materialism, with fleeting surreal references to past lives and apocalyptic visions disrupting Afine’s journey and audience´s viewing experience.

Vernier deliberately avoids conventional narrative structures, encouraging the audience to engage with the film on a more introspective level. This approach prompts reflection on themes of alienation, materialism, and the search for meaning in a world increasingly defined by superficial values.

As the film progresses, what initially appears to be Vernier’s most conventional work gradually departs from traditional storytelling, incorporating strange allusions and hints that challenge narrative norms and the perception of a seemingly straightforward story.