Why I Saw It: Because there was no way I was seeing Transcendence, Draft Day, or Rio 2.
Cast: Scarlett Johansson and some guys. Mostly though, Johansson. This is a quiet move and the dialogue is at a minimum. Given that, she does excellent work. She plays some sort of alien who is pretending to be human and trying to get used to it, so there's a real discomfort to her performance in the beginning as well as a curiosity.
Plot: There's very little hand-holding in this. We follow Scarlett as she seduces men and then, well, not sure, but we tend to not see them again. There's possibly another alien that is either working with or against her. I'm not sure...It's a mood piece. The plot doesn't matter too much. It's best to let it sort of wash over you.
Elephant in the Room: This is the one where Scarlett Johansson gets naked, right? Ok, yes, it is. I won't say that played no part in getting me into the theater. Be warned, this is not Havoc or Killing Me Softly. There's more going on here and some of it is unsettling, most of it confusing.
Movie Theater LVP (Least Valuable Patron) Award: I just want to give a shout out to the rotund middle-aged man who sort of hovered over me for 2-3 minutes standing in the aisle before finally sitting down in the row behind me, occasionally leaning forward to watch the movie so that his head was awkwardly next to mine. Thanks, sir, for making seeing a movie like this by myself even more awkward.
To Sum Things Up:
Another assessment I heard of this is one of my favorite distinctions: I liked it as a film but not as a movie. My understanding of Jonathan Glazer (the director) films is that his an auteur and not focused on making something commercial or easy. Based on this movie, I'd have to agree. This is a good looking movie (perhaps it would be better to say the cinematography is intentional). You can see the invisible hand of the director all over this. The soundtrack is very effective. Johansson's performance is one of her best. Perhaps with more time to reflect on it, my opinion may change but for now, it's in the category of "I'm glad I saw it, but I don't intend to see it again".
Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend
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