Modern society has satisfied most of our material needs. Why then, are we still so unhappy? This documentary proposes the reason: "status anxiety." In our ever meritocratic societies, the result of one's life seems more and more a reflection of their quality as a person. Thus, we're always working for and never satisfied with our status.
The subject matter was very interesting. It's something that even without evidence we can immediately recognize in ourselves. Botton interviews a number of interesting people, from the restaurant manager whose dream was to become a late night talk show host, to the naked Bohemians.
I disliked the lack of sections and organization. Also, the narration seemed to repeat itself a lot. The film could have benefited from better editing. I suspect it could be made much shorter.