Her Review

        February is almost wrapping up. It feels fast when you have a month that has less days than the other eleven months. This is the shortest I’ve reviewed, so it feels that my output hasn’t been productive. I’m taking a break from the usual football movies and instead focusing on romantic films. No doubt that the connection between these two films I’ve talked about has a lot of overlap. Mostly behind the scenes inspiration, but the idea of having companionship in the oddest of situations. I think that’s why it’s called a situation-ship. Anyways, Spike Jonze’s Her is one of my favorite’s of the past decade. 

1. Theodore

        So yeah, this is the second time that I have watched this one. I haven’t seen it when it was released 13 years ago, but I distinctly remembered just how odd the premise was for a guy to fall in love with an AI. Seems like a punchline for today, but back then I can imagine it was a real stretch to sell this movie and to take it 100 percent seriously without any irony or self-awareness. Especially with a director like Spike Jonze who makes films that aren’t what the general audiences expect but have some level of heart where I think he’s a big indie guy with a major studio backing him. 

        Just before I talk about the film, I should at least explain a bit more about Jonze. I’m pretty sure everybody’s first exposure of him is that he made some appearances to MTV’s Jackass. He co-created the series and starred in it. One of the comedic bits is when he’s in old makeup prosthetics along with Johnny Knoxville and just messing with the regular people. It’s interesting reading on him where he got his start recording BMX and skateboarders. To which he transitioned to making music videos for a variety of artists. 

        Later he would transition to the big screen with some hits like Being John Malkovich and Adaptation to name a brief few. He hasn’t made any more films, but I refer to him as a comet director where he would show up and release something then just disappears where he either releases a standup film or a documentary. I feel that he does a good job as an actor where he only pops up for a little bit, but he’s a serviceable guy with what he’s got. 

        Alright so let’s get down to it. We follow Theodore who is a writer who writes love letters to couples. Taking place in the not-too-distant future where technology advanced to a degree where everything is convenient for humans. You know it’s the future just how the people are dressed. And how the tech has that retro/neo look to them. Theodore is in a middle of a divorce and feels out of place with this shift in his life. He gets word of an AI operating system that can be tailored made to the user. 

        What follows is an unorthodox love story between a man and his AI companion. Joaquin Phoenix plays Theodore well where he’s an unassuming guy who just happens to have a lot on his plate emotionally. It’s a thing where we see him being very creative and eloquent when dictating love letters to couples. Albeit he can’t connect with anyone on an emotional level. Not for lack of trying, but one where he wants his ex-Catherine to be someone who she isn’t. One bit I like is that he remembers the memory of them together, but ultimately it transitions to his lonely self.

        The main highlight is seeing Theodore with his AI companion named Samantha. As I mentioned before, it must’ve been a tough task to just sell a major studio on this simple concept. I could see this movie working as a Fox Searchlight film, but from a major studio it’s a gambit right there. Part of the believability is that Samantha feels and sounds real. And I'm glad that we don't have a hologram of her, or a digital tangible reference of what she's supposed to look like. She is a program and we only hear her through Theodore's phone.

        As I was saying that the relationship is easily sellable. None of it feels like a say and respond kind of thing. Genuinely it feels like Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson are physically together which makes the chemistry gel so much. I can imagine that they shot the two of them together then have it be Phoenix on the phone with Johansson speaking to him via the ear bud. I could be wrong, but the relationship just works for this high concept film. 

        Part of it also is very introspective since this is Theodore’s story where he’s conflicted with finalizing his divorce and just wrestling with the idea of having a normal relationship with a thing that isn’t human. Like, we want him to be happy and we see him having moments with his friend Amy. At first it’s shown that they are mostly close friends, but Amy gives him so much attention when he’s having an internal crisis. 

        I think the best scene involving Theodore is when he’s having a blind date with a woman. Played by Olivia Wilde, the woman and Theodore immediately hit it off initially. Until she asks when to take things further, we see the crux of Theodore’s issues. His inability to be committed inevitably has the blind date go awry as the woman tears him down on his issues. It’s the human connection that is the center of the whole thing when you get down to it. And it’s ironic where Theodore makes a killing with his love letters but can’t take the initiative of following through what he’s dictating. 

2. Love and AI

        I feel I should elaborate more on the AI aspect since this is a sci-fi film. Johansson does a great job as Samantha the AI companion. The initial meeting between her and Theodore plays kind of awkward when he tries to rationalize his whole conversation. From there, it’s the highlight where Theodore instantly bonds with Samantha. Just them talking about their lives is interesting when Samantha doesn’t have a body and all of it is just information that is being fed to her digitally. 

        The moment when the two of them are at the boardwalk and just walking around people watching is really intriguing since Theodore easily bonds with her. To the point where their connection is on point with how any healthy relationship usually goes. And it’s not just sunshine and rainbows all the time, and I like that the film goes out of its way and shows the types of problems the two characters inevitably have. Theodore getting upset at Samantha for her “human” quirks and for her questioning her initial programming to be something more. 

        This film has some philosophical stuff. Of course, I’m not going to delve too deep into it since that’s not what this whole initiative is all about. What I will say is that the film is introspective in a sense where Samantha helps Theodore overcome his faults. It’s one of those rare films where technology isn’t a bad thing and not so much of a band-aid either. Instead, just them talking to each other helps Theodore be a more complete person since she has do something where he’s too hesitant to do. 

3. Legacy

        It’s funny to think that Scarlett Johansson appeared in two films where the directors’ works are about a distant marriage and an aftermath of a divorce. Ten years is what separates these two films and it’s just crazy to think that nobody at the time had the instant clue that it was a reactive response from Spike Jonze after Sofia Coppola’s split from him. More so that in film it’s rare to have two films tangentially connected. For one thing, both films are opposite just with how they are shot and the overall approach. You have Coppola’s that is grounded with realism whereas Jonze’s has a futuristic approach.

        While both films have that loneliness and companion thing about them. What makes them interesting is that the content reflects the lives of the creators who try to put it onto celluloid how and why their marriage fell apart. I doubt that we’ll have anything remotely close, but the topics that are featured in this film are slowly starting to make the rounds in the news realm. Just the idea of a guy or girl dating an AI is baffling, to the point of holding a wedding ceremony is downright crazy. Perhaps the movie was too ahead of the time, but it feels like a touchstone to an idea that just sounds too stupid to believe.

4. Overall

        Her is one of the best love films ever made, and one of the best films of the 2010s.

Lost in Translation Review

        Well it’s February again, we’re already one month down and so many movies to discuss. It’s a tradition where I talk about two romantic films to juxtapose a type of romance and love film. The difference being that the romantic one ends with the couple being together, and the love film ending with the couple not being together. In the name of love or some semblance of the sort. To me it’s like a compare/contrast thing and how two movies deal with a breakup and a virgin finally getting a love life. It’s the simplest basis of a story where a movie can do something interesting or creative plot wise. With this one and the next, the connective tissues between them is the creative leads. 

1. Bob and Charlotte 

        I think this is the start in Bill Murray’s filmography where he does something that was unorthodox. For a while, he was mostly a comedy guy in the late 70s and 80s. He made a name for himself with SNL which then prompted him to stardom with his multiple comedy hits. It’s tough to pin down his best one, but the one that most people are familiar with is Ghostbusters. Just to go further but I think this type of film where you have a comedy actor doing something dramatic is interesting. Murray’s not the first, but to me it’s something different where we have a guy not trying to be funny but be dramatic. 

        To begin with, we follow Bob who’s an American actor that’s getting work in Japan. While coming back from a shoot, he spots a young woman among the Japanese. Unbeknownst to him that Charlotte is dealing with an internal crisis of not knowing what to do with her life. Albeit, she’s married but wants something more. One would think that the movie would be seeing Bob try to score on Charlotte in a completely unknown land. Of course not, but I feel that the whole movie succeeds when we follow the unorthodox duo. 

        It’s the slow method of making her laugh since Bob sees her with her husband but not really contributing to a conversation. It’s just crazy to see Anna Ferris in a great film, and I’m not disparaging her in the least bit, but she could fire her agent if she wants. Anyways, from the get go we see that their friendship starts to fully blossom as we see the predicament that both characters go through. Bob is stuck acting for an alcoholic commercial while Charlotte is unable to find some sense of herself. 

        The chemistry between Murray and Scarlett Johansson is the best since it’s such an odd pairing that it doesn’t detract from anything. They just happen to vibe with each other when they’re at the bar and when the duo are exploring Tokyo. All of it is great since it feels realistic when they hang out with Charlotte’s friends as they sing karaoke and getting kicked out a bar just prior. It’s not full debauchery, but one where they get to live their life instead of being constrained with what they do. 

        If you watch all of it, there’s a sense that there’s really no plot when it comes to following Bob and Charlotte. You don’t have the typical moments where they kiss by accident or have a moment where they’re arguing which prompts them to not talk to each other. Even the trope of dumping their loves and embrace each other as the new lovebirds. There’s none of that whatsoever, we do however see that their lives could be better seeing how they’re far away from their actual spouses. I love how the whole point of the film is that they have to better themselves rather than pivot to somebody else. 

        While everything in the movie is great, I should at least mention the last moment in the movie before they say goodbye. It’s one of the film’s single highlight and probably the most talked about in some cinema circles. They hug while Bob whispers something to Charlotte but no amount of words are audible. Not even the subtitles feature anything, I tried. I think the point of the whisper was to echo back from what Bob told Charlotte when she quizzes him on his life. It could be that or something cynical. The whole point is entirely vague since having it be revealed would’ve dampened the movie since it could keep anyone guessing what he said. 

        To me, it makes me think that the film is predominantly about Charlotte’s life. And having Bob to do stuff with her and just to experience some semblance of life and the unorthodox in a place where they’re the seemingly only Anglos among the Japanese. While not entirely framed as such, I feel that it’s like an attempt to have someone enter into someone’s life and teach them somethings about life and experience a sense of normalcy in a mundane life. 

2. Sofia Coppola 

        I talked about her acting way back when I reviewed her Dad’s third Godfather film. Albeit, she’s been crucified enough with the criticism that as a director she’s not bad. Mind you, this is the first time that I ever sat down and watch a movie by her. While not totally artistic or tight like her father, what Sofia is make this idea of cultural displacement interesting with two seemingly ordinary people. And why not of all places Tokyo where everything is like in the U.S. but there’s a huge gap in language. 

        What I really like when talking about her shooting the film is how it just looks. She must’ve gotten some royalty to shoot anywhere in the city without having to close a street down. Like it’s got a real guerilla aspect where we have those moments when the duo are together and when we see them crossing a street while avoiding some cars that have stopped. It has that grit when we follow Charlotte as she visits a temple and exploring the various locales of Tokyo. Not of it feels fake but it feels that Johansson was teleported to see something that she has no idea what’s going on. 

        Lastly, I should at least tease the reason why I picked this film and next week’s film to talk about. It turns out that Coppola had been married to another director, but the marriage was rocky which prompted Sofia to write out the gist of the story. One could say that Sofia made this film to cope with her separation from director Spike Jonze. While he would ultimately make his own film alongside Johansson 10 years later. Both this movie and Jonze’s are like essential to understand how to see their perspective into their separation. 

3. Overall

        Lost in Translation is one of the best romantic films of the 2000s and one of the best films of the decade.