Movie Review: Her (English)
What's better this Valentine season than falling in love with an operating system! And that's in short is Her, Spike Jonze's latest mind-bending futuristic (and unsettling) take on our new found love with technology. Incredulous and fairy-talesque as it may sound, what's envisioned in Her isn't far off at all considering the increasing amount of time we spend in the digital world around us, preferring the virtual over the real means to connect with the people we love.
Set in near future Los Angeles, Her tells the story of Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a lonely near-divorced man whose main job is to write personal letters for people who are too busy to write it themselves. Still reeling from the separation from his soon-to-be ex-wife Catherine (Rooney Mara), he spends his time all alone by himself, playing video games, or occasionally visiting his longtime friend Amy (Amy Adams).
But all of that changes when he purchases a brand new superiorly-intelligent talking operating system that's programmed to evolve and adapt every single day. (More like an advanced version of Apple Siri may be?). After having chosen a female identity for the OS during the setup process, he is greeted by a sultry voice who names herself Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson), and soon enough Theodore not only marvels at her learning capabilities, the intelligent personal assistant also becomes his lover.
In fact Theo gets so lovestruck that he fights pangs of jealousy when she begins to interact with another operating system and gets agitated when she goes briefly offline for an upgrade. (And again if you think all this is codswallop, let me bring your kind attention to a new disorder called cellphone separation anxiety, also known as nomophobia.) Unfortunately like most stories, all good things must come to an end. Theo is heartbroken once again but he is left deeply changed, and for the better.
Shot in the present towering landscapes of Shanghai to give the ultramodern futuristic feel, Her brims with wit and originality. At one point when Theo asks Amy if it feels strange to be dating an operating system, she quips "Love is a form of socially acceptable insanity", and it's moments like these that gives us a sense of time and place where it's perfectly all right to lovesomeone something one holds dear. But what makes the movie truly fascinating is how ubiquitous this love is. If Theo's is one, so is Amy's and 641 others who are romantically involved with their Samanthas.
The performances are truly top-notch. Joaquin Phoenix is charming as the loner turned spurned lover and his chemistry with Scarlett Johannson is sizzling despite her physical absence. Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, and Olivia Wilde too turn in winning histrionics. Armed with a superb music score by the Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, Her is the best romantic fable in years. You will fall in love with Her.
But all of that changes when he purchases a brand new superiorly-intelligent talking operating system that's programmed to evolve and adapt every single day. (More like an advanced version of Apple Siri may be?). After having chosen a female identity for the OS during the setup process, he is greeted by a sultry voice who names herself Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson), and soon enough Theodore not only marvels at her learning capabilities, the intelligent personal assistant also becomes his lover.
In fact Theo gets so lovestruck that he fights pangs of jealousy when she begins to interact with another operating system and gets agitated when she goes briefly offline for an upgrade. (And again if you think all this is codswallop, let me bring your kind attention to a new disorder called cellphone separation anxiety, also known as nomophobia.) Unfortunately like most stories, all good things must come to an end. Theo is heartbroken once again but he is left deeply changed, and for the better.
Shot in the present towering landscapes of Shanghai to give the ultramodern futuristic feel, Her brims with wit and originality. At one point when Theo asks Amy if it feels strange to be dating an operating system, she quips "Love is a form of socially acceptable insanity", and it's moments like these that gives us a sense of time and place where it's perfectly all right to love
The performances are truly top-notch. Joaquin Phoenix is charming as the loner turned spurned lover and his chemistry with Scarlett Johannson is sizzling despite her physical absence. Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, and Olivia Wilde too turn in winning histrionics. Armed with a superb music score by the Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, Her is the best romantic fable in years. You will fall in love with Her.
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