Theodore makes his living working for a company called BeautifulHandwrittenletters.com, penning heartfelt and touching letters for other people. Discouraged after the unavoidable end of a long relationship, and incapable of moving on, he unconsciously looks for shelter and company, which he finds out, quite by chance, in a talking operating system with advanced brightness, not only thoroughly designed to adjust and evolve in its own way, but also personalized, to make matters worse, for each user. After initiating it, Theodore is pleased to meet “Samantha”, a captivating female voice who immediately cares for him, and is a good listener, as well as sensitive and surprisingly funny. Theodore is soon amazed not only by her ability to turn out the most varied issues, but also her intellectual capacity and keen sense of humor, all perfectly mingled with her enormous ignorance of the simplest human experiences. They bond over their discussions about inward feelings, their needs and desires, even sentimental experiences and jokes, developing an odd friendship into the eventual “love” for each other.
This is, broadly, an initial approach to the story. The rest of the flick I am not going to gut in attention for those who have not seen it yet, but these brushstrokes about the plot are enough to give my impression on the movie and to reflect upon some ideas.
I feel “Her” challenges our preconceptions about the so-called “real love”. I mean, it seems, on a superficial reading, another love story in a technological context, an imaginative attempt to go a little further about the difficulty of personal relationships in a high-tech world. It may be a weird, pretty absurd account, more implausible and unbelievable than others, but to my mind, it is, in fact, no more than a fantasy exercise that allows Spike Jonze to go deeper into thorny matters that invariably lead to weighty moral problems: to cite a few, the rational use of technology, the arrival of post-humanism, the phenomenon of machinism - or the control by gadgets of our lives - as well as the increasing isolation of the human being and their inability to communicate, to click with their peers on a deeper level.
Alongside them, other more “forgettable” subjects are brilliantly outlined by Spike Jonze: Are you a slave to technology? Do you need to tweet everything you do? Do you look at the world through a camera? Do you check your mobile phone before and after sleep? Would you fall in love with a thing? Do you have real friends? Are you afraid to be alone? Are you obsessed with the past? What do you need to be happy?
Apart from these technological quizzicalities, there are three ideas, among the many that the film suggests, that I find interesting:
Firstly, the power of words. The job Theodore does is no coincidence. Let me remind you he is a lonely, introverted young man, very attractive by the way, who works for a company that employs professional writers who compose intimate letters for people who are unwilling or unable to pen letters of a personal nature themselves. Although Theodore is unable to help himself, he has, nevertheless, an uncanny ability to choose the appropriate words, those which will have a positive effect on the addressee. This is one of the many contradictions that accurately reflect Theodore’s personality, and by extension, of the entire human nature.
Secondly, the consequences of trivializing romantic relationships. This notion probably sounds out of fashion. Yet the lack of responsibility in love has left many victims on the road. Notable French writer A. De Saint-Exupérie was able to express this question, better than anybody, through a beautiful fable in the mouth of The Little Prince: “I wished you no harm but you wanted me to tame you”, said the Little Prince to the fox”. “Men have forgotten this basic truth”, replied the fox. “But you must not forget it. You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed”.
In “Her”, Theodore was tamed as well, like the fox, and later on he is forced, by a particular set of circumstances, to cease to be the person he was, to reinvent both himself and his life, leaving aside the past. I like the way Spike Jonze tackles how hard it is sometimes to overcome a sentimental relationship ever so much, and not, as usually expected, from a female perspective but rather from a masculine one.
Last but not least, there is the eternal conflict between reason and heart. In this feature it is embodied by an artificial super-intelligence (so efficient and fast) and a dim, vulnerable man. Computer “Samantha” would ironically like to be more human, to experiment what human beings feel, precisely just the opposite of that Theodore wishes, who would not want to sense so much so as to suffer less.
Ultimately, “Her” is a fresh love story that explores the evolving nature - and the risks - of intimacy in the modern world. Not only is it a stirring and entertaining film, but also a small work of art, without appearing a bit over the top. Needless to say, you should watch it in original version.
Maite, this is indeed a fantastic review of a film that, like you it seems, I really enjoyed - congrats on a job well done!
Jonze's "sci-fi love story" gave me so much food for thought as I was watching it. Honestly. I didn't know if I felt mesmerized by the storyline or simply terrified of the world it depicted, one which our society might inevitably be heading for. I mean, will we one day end up actually having a relationship with a machine, whether a computer or our ubiquitous mobile phone? Who knows!
As usual, Phoenix and Adams deliver extraordinary performances - and so does, to my mind, an "invisible" Scarlett Johansson just by her (terribly seductive) voice, doesn't she?
Anyway, for those of you who didn't have the chance to relish "Her", this is the film's official trailer ...
... plus a short yet interesting interview on the BBC's "Newsnight" with its director:
I totally agree with you, as usual when it comes to cinema!! First of all I have to say that the performances of Mr.Phoenix and Amy Adams are awesome, and Scarlett Johanson as well. Although the premise might seem a bit absurd and improbable at first, it really provides food for thought. At the beginning of the film one might think that his relationship with an OS is totally insane, but during the second half of the film the fears, dreams, insecurities and "ghosts of the past" of a "real" relationship are really good depicted. I stopped thinking of Scarlett Johanson as an OS and, although we were listening only to her voice, I felt her like a real woman.
ResponderEliminarI went to Van Dyck to see it at 20:10 and the theatre was totally crowded and I had to sit in the first row. But something really good happened. then... As trying to read the subtitles from so close was very uncomfortable, I stopped trying it, and I concentrate myself only in the voices and it was a really good experience!!