I am not entirely sure why I had reservations before I went into Her.
Considering Spike Jonz's previous works, I should have been looking forward to a beautifully crafted, funny, quirky film, which is actually totally what Her is. Instead, the low key posters and trailers had made me a bit nervous that I would find it all just a bit dull.
But yes, as I said, I was totally wrong. Despite a two hour running time in which not a whole lot happens, the time just flew by and the film effortlessly entertained throughout.
Joaquin Phoenix, in the lead role of Theodore, is completely captivating as a single man living in a possible near future world where everyone lives through their phones and the next generation of operating system gives him the option of having an artificially intelligent companion to help him with his day to day activities. His new OS, Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johanssen) slowly develops into his best friend, and from there...
It's not just Phoenix on screen: a frazzle-haired Amy Adams and a wide eyed Chris Pratt show up as Theodore's physical friends, but mainly the scenes (I can't really say "action") sticks to Theodore and his daily life, with insane computer games (hilarious) and a few trips on an incredible public transport system and of course the high waisted trousers.
The film is witty, funny, full of foul language and is all about sex, and it is incredibly sweet and tender and wonderful to boot. It's about love and finding companionship and growing apart and dealing with loss, and despite the premise, it all feels genuine and engaging and is very, very cool.
Can I gush more? Yes, but I won't.
Suffice to say that Her is an incredible film and totally worth seeing.
Verdict: Her is all about him, and has so much to say and says it so well, with humour, depth, insight, and no violence whatsover. Amazing film, and deserving 9.5 OS's out of 10.
No comments:
Post a Comment