Number 2 on my countdown through the list of films nominated for various awards at the 86th Academy Awards (Oscars)
Released: 18th of December 2013
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams
Rating: 6.5/10
The concept of this film is a brilliant
one. Set in a future that seems not too distant from now, the human race is
inevitably dominated by technology. However, not in the all out humans versus
technology war presented in other films like Terminator and iRobot.
Interestingly, this film offers the audience both sides of the argument: is the
prominence of technology in society a good or bad thing? Let’s start with the
former: Her shows the vast knowledge of technology, but not just in terms of
information, the ‘operating systems’ in this film are not only designed to
interact like humans, but also take on personal qualities where they respond
with emotion, varying tones and remember you. It’s not as simplistic as what we
currently have, where Siri for example, has a selection of formatted responses
to questions and if yours is therefore unusual, you often go unanswered. In
this film Theodore’s ‘girlfriend’ Samantha and their unconventional
relationship actually helps him grow as a man and as a person and I found it a
very profound thought that technology could teach us about emotions, expanding
our hearts as well as our minds.
Now obviously a society that revolves
around technology has its downfalls. In this film, there’s not a lot of human
interaction and when there is it seems awkward and perhaps unwanted in some
cases. People have forgotten how to interact with each other and simply don’t
want to as they have a virtual person who goes with them everywhere and is
matched to suit them exactly. A lot of the most memorable scenes for me, were
that of the protagonist Theodore, in various public domains chatting to
Samantha through an earpiece. Around him, all the other people are doing the
same and while clearly the human race and its governing remain intact, society
has dissolved to an extent. People no longer really require other people and if
the film were to carry on, I have no doubt that it would perhaps turn slightly
dystopian/disaster-esque because of this lack of communication and real
humanism – something that most value and crave in present times.
It was very strange to me how much this
film got me thinking and questioning life now and actually the future presented
in Her. I was never drawn fully into the world, I couldn’t accept it as a
reality even in my imagination because it was so detached and so flawed.
However, that being said, I was engrossed by Theo and Samantha’s relationship.
I found myself getting annoyed at him when he’d make rash comments about her
not being able to understand his human problems which to me translates as the
story being a successful one. By halfway through, although I still found their
relationship strange and foreign, I had definitely felt sorry for an operating
software! Genius.
Joaquin Phoenix is a marvel of course, but
actually I felt like Scarlett Johansson was the best character in this. As
Samantha she needed to be able to convey a lot through just her voice and the
range of emotions she was able to explore and convey to the audience was
astounding. Luckily, she’s also a lot less annoying as an actress when she’s
not there in person. She may perhaps want to pursue a career in voiceovers
and/or voicing animated characters.
Leonardo DiCaprio still has my vote for Best Actor.
