Her

Black Mirror presents a chattily heartfelt, melancholic and, due to its topic, also pretty chilly feature length special When Teddy met Siri which fits nicely between episodes The Entire History of You and Be Right Back in terms of topic and approach. In any case it must be sci-fi, mainly because a guy that looks like Groucho Marx is courted by (true, in different forms) Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Olivia Wilde and Kristen Wiig. And then also because of the worry design of men’s pants of the future; whoa… For my own sake I hope that this aspect of Spike’s vision doesn’t come true. (01/08/2014)

It was with this movie that I started catching up with last year’s movies before Oscar night. Her attracted me with the premise and mainly with the actor. Joaquin Phoenix is an incredible actor. But what can you do when he often chooses pretty strange characters that are hard to figure out? And he delivers a pretty precise performance every single time. To such extent that you actually don’t know what to think about him as a person because with every film you get a different opinion of him. Once he drives you mad, another time you don’t understand why he acts the way he does and the next time you really understand him. But that’s actually not easy because I think that Joaquin tries to act in a way that will make nobody have understanding for him. All his characters are so specific that it’s really hard to find yourself in them in any way. Her represents a pretty strange view of the world that could come about if we are fully consumed by computer systems. Not in a bad way like in I, Robot. This is more a matter of psychology. Joaquin did a terrific job, but Spike Jonze made the movie the same way he makes all his movies – his way. I had a hard time looking for understanding in the movie but it hasn’t ceased to amaze me since I saw it. (02/05/2014)

"Play melancholic song." A design showcase for the 21st century bourgeoisie that really doesn't go one step beyond a mere experiment with the romance movie genre with its theme of transhumanity, which is built on nothing more than the fact that she is an artificial intelligence. The visuals, reminiscent of an attempt to place images from an Ikea catalogue into a narrative context, raise wild theories about whether we are actually in some kind of horrifying Heinlein-esque dystopia where all the characters are actually silent accomplices leading their empty lives in gentrified cities where all the people are young, beautiful, rich, and have creative jobs. That and Joaquin Phoenix in the lead with the creepy gamepiece in his forehead (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOimTfNR110) pull the whole otherwise pretty awful spectacle of designer consumerism up to a certain level. "Play melancholic film. Play different melancholic film." (08/24/2020)

I like my Windows, but Samantha wins hands down. Quite an original idea loses points for its protractedness (they could have cut something), but otherwise it pleases with its romantic and scientific spirit. Phoenix’s acting is just great, Scarlett Johansson has an captivating voice (you start to notice that once you stop gawping at her perfect body). I liked the layered message (on two levels) which forces the viewer even after the movie is over to think (about your OS). (02/06/2014)

As a romantic film for romantics who are bored of cinematic romance and who turn off the TV before a couple in love have their last passionate kiss in the rain, Her is an absolutely brilliant choice. The original story set in the future works with so many unfamiliar and novel elements that it actually puts pressure on itself in order to successfully withstand all that new and strange stuff without ironically falling into the mundane. And despite the slightly cringe and sleepy last act, I can solemnly declare that the peculiar creator Spike Jonze has once again mastered his difficult task. This is by no means a deep odyssey across the sexual cells of humanity, and the romantic atmosphere simply couldn't work that well with the unmistakable female element replaced by a computer (as sexy as the voice sounded), but to be fair, the direction is flawless, originality clearly triumphs, and the script is built cleverly enough to keep our attention until the somewhat lacklustre finale. And God forbid that this vision should ever come true. :) 80% (01/31/2014)