The chapter examines the satirical portrayals of the upper classes in Ruben Östlund’s Triangle of Sadness and Roman Polanski’s The Palace, drawing on Mikhail Bakhtin’s concept of “grotesque realism”. Both films use grotesque and satirical imagery to critique the cosmopolitan elite. In Triangle of Sadness, Östlund, while ostensibly critiquing social inequalities, paradoxically mocks the corrupted ideals of equality, presenting a satire that neither endorses specific political ideologies nor aligns with materialist or post-Marxist stances. The recurring theme of food underscores the social hierarchies and dynamics at play, while the character of Abigail exemplifies a pragmatic and ruthless form of leadership that avoids romanticizing the subordinated class. Similarly, Polanski’s The Palace employs a heterogeneity of comedic aesthetics, blending slapstick farce with grotesque satire. The grotesque imagery, characterized by excremental and bodily fluid motifs, resonates with Bakhtinian concepts, such as the doubleness of the grotesque body, but lacks the regenerative vitality typically associated with it. Instead, Polanski’s film serves as a symbol of impotence and decline, emphasizing the sterility of the pseudo-elite world it depicts. Both films underscore the versatility of the grotesque as a tool for satirical inquiry.