The line between art and business has always been a blurry one. And in the age of influencers, franchise IP, media monopolies and late stage capitalism – where everything is a commodity and all relationships are transactional – the line is all but nonexistent. Objectively, “The Gallerist” may not be the best executed package to examine these ideas, but sometimes you just need to stand on business and love what you love. Never has a film been more “me” coded; a deeply unserious and cartoonishly satirical sledgehammer to the art world filled with over the top characters, campy dialogue, hyper stylized camera work and a largely single setting location. I genuinely love all of that in cinema, and because of that I was able to find its true core beneath the surface and mine for what this film is really trying to say and love this when others did not.
Strangely, the conversations of art and business is a common theme among Sundance this year, with “The Gallerist” sharing similar thematic bones to “I Want Your Sex” in how it talks about art. Admittedly, the latter does it better, Gregg Araki feeling passionately expert in his dialogue while “Gallerist” feels like all of the art jargon was ripped straight from Wikipedia. That may sound like an indictment, but it’s more meant to give some validity to the harshest criticism you’re bound to see from others out of the festival. While I can see where they’re coming from, ranking “The Gallerist” as the worst film at Sundance feels wildly exagerated and needlessly hyperbolic. You don’t have to be down with everything it’s serving, but sometimes it’s ok to just have fun with things and let its absurdity draw you in. When you let go, the purposefully pretentious approach in “The Gallerist” unlocks a wavelength that makes it more than meets the eye.
Written and directed by Cathy Yan (“Dead Pigs,” “Birds of Prey“) “The Gallerist” follows Polina (Natalie Portman), a struggling divorcée who’s premiere at the Art Basel features debut work from emerging artist Stella (D’vine Joy Randolph). Desperate to make a splash as a last ditch effort to save her gallery and reputation, she invites art influencer Dalton (Zach Galifianakis) to preview the show. He eviserates it and her, and in a series of unfortunate but somewhat predictable hijinks, he slips and falls and is impaled on a sculpture. Rather than heed the advise of her assistant Kiki (Jenna Ortega) to call the police and report the accident, she decides to use her art knowledge to stage the body and pass it off as part of the exhibit. Of course, the piece is a viral sensation, attracting some of the biggest buyers and sellers and curators who all want to see it up close. What transpires is a series of escalating situations as they struggle to keep their secret while also sell the piece and save the gallery. The film also stars Catherine Zeta-Jones, Sterling K.Brown, Charlie XCX, and Daniel Bruhl.
This is a vibes pick film, and I vibed with “The Gallerist” all the way. From the way Portman plays into the ridiculousness of her delusions of grandeur to Zeta-Jones showing up and absolutely serving to Bruhl going all out as a spoiled Cuban mogul. It just may be my favorite Ortega performance – every time she retches I bursted out laughing. Everyone seems clued into what Yan is trying to accomplish, and “The Gallerist” is better for everyone knowing the part they’re suppose to play and why they need to be as big as possible. There’s such a pretension and manufactured interest from these characters – much like art lovers themselves – that really sells the bigness of “The Gallerist.” It’s bight and colorful and neon almost to a fault, using its cast and lighting to feed into its own self aware absurdity.
It asks very quickly to suspend disbelief, and being dialed into that wavelength I was able to do so and enjoy the entire, wacky ride. Yan goes crazy with style here, sweeping the camera this way and that, zooming in and out, shifting from oners to wideshuts to fade ins all within a single scene. I am a sucker for single location chamber pieces no matter how ridiculous, so “The Gallerist” had me at hello with how much it leans into its own absurdity and satire. This IS a satire, but not necessarily the subject you think. Art is merely the vehicle with which Yan is communicating what really matters to her and what she wants us to take away, and it’s easily missed if you’re not careful. “The Gallerist” isn’t a commentary on the art world. It’s an indictment of how we consume it, how we mangle it into content and business and lose sight of what truly matters to artists and their creative output.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve written something or created something that I’ve been really proud of and put out into the world only for it to go largely unnoticed and unseen. Meanwhile, the things that don’t represent me or are just throw out there without passion or thought blow up for inexplicable reasons and can’t be duplicated or taken back. The internet is dark and full of terrors and sadly that is where all art lives and dies, and “The Gallerist” understands this, deconstructing it piece by piece through its nearly unbelievable hijinks. Our best works, the art that matters is pushed aside for what can be commodified and manufactured. A dead body on a sculpture is repackaged and repurposed as art for no other reason than it sells and draws eyeballs. It doesn’t actually represent Stella, but it can be sold and therefore defines her whether she wants it to or not.
That sounds bleak and dark but the film does end with some hope and everything in its right place. Buried underneath the bright colors and shifting camera work and silly people, “The Gallerist” actually has something really resonate to say. I’m gonna be on an island here I feel, but I really loved this film. Yan isn’t the first to explore these things and frankly she’s not even the best at the festival to do so, but she does tap into something that really struck me and the wild package she chooses to deliver those themes worked for me greatly. And let’s be clear: “The Gallerist” is only deep if you want it to be. If you don’t want to look for it, the film is still a zany, funny, satirical romp with fun performances and an unbelievable premise. Also Charlie XCX popping up in her 3rd film at Sundance is always welcomed, and she’s genuinely hysterical.
If it’s your speed, “The Gallerist” is a blast and quite possibly the best film at Sundance. Just a ton of silly fun that mocks the low hanging fruit of pretentious modern art and art critics. It’s a brand of humor that I adored and sustained me through its breezy 88 minute runtime. I don’t think “The Gallerist” is for everyone, but who it’s for will love it and die on their hill to defend it against the slings arrows of outrageous criticism.
Natalie Portman is a goddess for doing this entire film in those hideous white cow toed clogs.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
“The Gallerist” had its World Premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 24th, 2026.
