I had the pleasure of going to a screening of 'Her' at Birmingham's Electric cinema (http://www.theelectric.co.uk/home.php)The Manger gave a short talk to the students we took on the runing of the cinema, a little about the film and also some disscussion regarding sci-fi, which with regard to this particular film makes for interessting disscussion. We got to have a nosey inside the projection room too which was pretty amazing.
Her follows the story of Theodore Twombly, as he deals with the break down of his marriage to Catherine (Rooney Mara) and falls in love with his OS. Set in a Utopian Los Angeles, though with definite elements of dystopia, this postmodern film deals with something of a contemporary topical issue. Human relationships. Or lack of, may be more accurate here. Shot in a dreamy soft light, with plenty of graceful lens flare, director Spike Jonze poses the idea that people are more attached to technology than they are other people. Human intereaction is rapidly disappearing dispite the fact that 'social media' is designed to increase interaction.
Scarlett Johansson voices the Operating System that Joaquin Pheonix falls for and is every bit as loveable as you'd want her to be. Joze has meticulous thought through every detail of this film. Twonbly (A reference to the artist here?) himself works as a love letter writer for those who cannot find the words themselves. Something that seems a fairly feesable profession in the none too distant future.The very real possibilty of such a thing happening is exactly what makes this flim work. Sci-fi films begin by setting out ideas and rules that the world of the film can live by, thereby convincing the audience that such a world could exist. In the case of Her, we are placed in a hyper-real world, the set of rules laid out feel entirely possibly. Jonze has explored a societal issue that many of us can, in some way, relate to.
Though at times this film can be a little slow, it acheives what I feel it sets out to do. Jonze has successfully created an intelligient film, cleverly creating a world we can fully believe in. He puts in a world of relative lonliness, yet still makes it feel warm. Its heartfelt and poetic style offers the audience a fascinating take on the rom-com. It is a beautifully crafted, quirky, postmodern love story that leaves you thinking about the all-to-credible prediction of our societies future.
This is a great article on the film ... http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2013/12/why-em-her-em-is-the-best-film-of-the-year/282544/
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