Watching Her

Today/yesterday I watched the recommended film, Her. Its a sci-fi set in a not too distant future where technology can fully replicate human intelligence not only on a academic level but also in terms of emotional intellect. I can see how the film appeals to Maria due to its very humanist topic, all be it set in a speculative future. This links to the human and emotional connections she tries to build between her work and the viewer.

The film is as she suggested melancholic in tone and this is visually reflected many up close shots of the main character Theodor in bed, only faintly lit by the LA skyline. There is also a very specific quality of light throughout creating very vivid yet saturated colours that can appear muted. The pallet could also be described as conveying hope however its furthered by the fact that its always sunny in the LA setting. The colour red plays a powerful role as its often worn by Theodor in the form of a shirt and can be observed in the LA landscape. I think this is because red is seen as a timeless yet futuristic colour and can represent passion or anger, the former did feature. The more obvious choice for the lead would have been blue to reflect his mood however this was specifically omitted from the film due to its link to other future set films. The aesthetic could be described as future retro as with a lot of similar contemporary sci-fi films and series e.g. black mirror. This creates a strange paradox between the advanced technology and the 70s inspired clothing and furniture etc. Theres lots of aesthetic I could research here e.g. Bauhaus and De Stijl.

The main character is brooding and detached creating a strange atmosphere for the viewer who is given and insight into his depression by the pace of certain sequences - he is tired of life. There is an element of sympathy towards Theodor. The film documents the meeting of two different worlds as normal relationship rules and human intuition are applied on his part but Samantha (the robot) is on a different page. The idea of compare or contrast between two things that are in many ways similar is one I could work with.

The moral of the story is a general warning about how we use technology and how it could eventually control us. There is a lot of potential for research into this area although I think I should start by searching scenes from the film and looking for subtle visual metaphors.