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From The Fly to A History of Violence: our writers pick their favourite Cronenberg movies
Cosmopolis
Cosmopolis is far from the most-loved of Don DeLillo’s novels, and it’s safe to say the same about Cronenberg’s 2012 cinematic adaptation. That’s a shame, because this piece of intellectual malarky centered around a Bezos-rich twentysomething stands out among the auteur’s post-millennial movies. Also, in an era where lone angry men committing acts of gun murder has become commonplace, the film is sadly relevant and prophetic.

Cosmopolis takes place across a single day, as billionaire man-child Eric Packer rides in his limo across New York City to get a haircut. He faces increasingly direct threats to his life, although appears unconcerned, or even welcoming of the potential violence as a novelty. With the plot all but a red herring, the texture of Cosmopolis takes center stage. The limo itself is one of Cronenberg’s slickest, strangest simulated realities, and I can’t imagine many film-makers exceeding the job Cronenberg does of rendering DeLillo’s unique dialogue – blending absurdism, stark humor, pop cultural currency, and postmodern theory-speak – into brilliant repartee that’s at once sardonic, ludicrous, and deep. The film can be scrutinized for insight into how massive, transnational flows of money warp our sense of body and ethics, or it can just be enjoyed as a stupidly entertaining romp, complete with a subplot of rats – one of New York City’s most plentiful natural resources – becoming the latest trendy currency (crypto-bros take note). Ultimately a tale of a murder in search of a justification, in which the victim seems in cahoots with his assassin, it is singular Cronenberg. Veronica Esposito

Maps to the Stars
Though David Cronenberg has made a Stephen King adaptation, a big hit remake, and an Oscar-nominated drama, he’s not really associated with the ins and outs of Hollywood studio film-making – which makes the sort-of satire Maps to the Stars both an unusual project for the film-maker and an admittedly strange pick for a favorite. In truth, it’s not Cronenberg’s absolute best; my far more basic choice would be The Fly, that aforementioned hit remake. But I’ve returned to Maps repeatedly, puzzling out why I respond so warmly to the entanglements of Havana (Julianne Moore), an aging actor; Agatha (Mia Wasikowska), her mysterious personal assistant; Jerome (Robert Pattinson), a limo driver; and Benjie (Evan Bird), a child actor, among others.

Part of it is Cronenberg’s talent for teasing darkness out of the sunshine. Though it’s not precisely a horror film, Maps is full of gothic touches, like the gloves Agatha wears to cover her extensive burns, the various characters’ hallucinatory encounters with ghosts, or the ghastly family secrets eventually unveiled. Typical Hollywood-satire talking points are sidestepped in favor of depicting a vivid sense of rot, and even some common logistical compromises – shooting parts of this Los Angeles-set movie in Canada – emphasize the industry’s disconnected, alien qualities. Mostly, I love Maps to the Stars because Cronenberg seems to be spending the movie thoughtfully considering whether to burn the whole city down – the perfect prelude to the eight-year break he took after making it. Jesse Hassenger
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