Spike Jonze‘s Her is absolutely wonderful. It’s a film that questions our very existence, who we are as people, what defines us and the complexity or lack thereof of human relationships and bonding. What’s truly amazing, is how simple Jonze makes it look, there are thematic layers to Her that could fill hours of discussion. One enlightened moment leads to another as the core pleasures we find in the company of others is stripped down to the very essence of humanity and what truly allows us to appreciate love and connect with someone else while also making a comment on our society on a whole.
Set in the not-so-distant future, Her centers on Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a custom greeting card writer who’s marriage has recently ended. Heartbroken, Theo is walking through life with blinders on. We’re given glimpses of they joy he had with his wife (Rooney Mara) and the hole their separation has left in his heart and it’s easy to sympathize. Phoenix plays the character with such compassion and a gentle nature, we instantly cheer for him, wanting him to find happiness.
Theo’s life unexpectedly changes with the introduction of an advanced computer operating system that not only works with voice commands, but actually has a personality and learns and adapts the more you use it. Given the option to use a male or female voice, Theo chooses female and seconds later his computer and all connected devices come to life. “What’s your name?” he asks. After reading an entire book of baby names in a matter of seconds, his computer replies, “Samantha.”
It’s a little strange for Theo at first, recognizing human familiarity in a voice without a body as it browses through all his most personal bits of information stored on his hard drive and within old emails, but as time goes by, and all the embarrassing personal stuff is out of the way, all that’s left is the experience. Samantha has all the information “she” could ever possibly need at “her” disposal, but the stumbling block that typically gets in the way of stories dealing with advanced A.I. and the ability/inability to find kinship with humanity and experiencing feelings is eliminated early.
Samantha is curious, and the more “she” gets to know Theo the more “she” wants to experience life and Jonze smartly uses online sex chat rooms to advance the idea Samantha can feel on some level, proving intimacy isn’t only in physical contact, and that it all stems from our brain. After all, what is Samantha, but a giant, digital brain?
Samantha’s positivity, humor and general excitement for the unknown captures Theo’s heart and a relationship begins to blossom and perhaps most surprisingly, you too will find comfort in “her” companionship and joy in Theo’s resulting happiness.
Samantha is voiced by Scarlett Johansson, a good choice it turns out as her voice has a unique quality to it and Johansson is great in the role as she must convince the audience of her “existence” and “feelings” without a single facial twitch or roll of the eye. In a lot of ways, Her is the anti-silent movie, but then again, while Johansson provides the voice, Phoenix is responsible for the reaction.
As much as Theodore may talk to Samantha or his neighbor (played by Amy Adams) it’s in his reactions to his time spent with Samantha and the things “she” says that result in the most emotional moments. In a lot of ways it’s akin to a relationship lived over the telephone and some may call it “The You’ve Got Mail of a new generation” only without the inevitable physical meeting of the two pen pals. I’d argue, however, this is a far more intimate story and one that strikes a far more personal cord with anyone willing to let it in.
Her is about mustering up the courage to give oneself over to love or what Adams’ character describes as “socially acceptable insanity.” At one point it’s said Theo and Samantha both have learned how to love. Throughout the film Samantha asks questions such as what it means to share your life with somebody and a favorite line of mine, “How would you touch me?” which carries a much larger meaning than just the obvious physical description. While Samantha “learns” what these aspects of human behavior mean Theo is learning as well, learning to give himself over to the idea of love, to not hold back or be guarded with his feelings and not be afraid.
I loved the soft, sun-kissed and intimate cinematography from Hoyte Van Hoytema (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy). Almost every scene in Her breathes in the world around it, as Van Hoytema does anything he can to mimic Samantha’s experience “seeing” the world for the first time. And the costume (Casey Storm), production (K.K. Barrett) and set (Casey Storm) design are equally fascinating, with only the most subtle differences to today’s fashion and interior design, allowing for a slightly more future-minded setting, but nothing at all unfamiliar while the score from Arcade Fire most oftentimes blends into the narrative and never overwhelms it.
While Her centers on the story of a man falling in love with an operating system, in the end it remains a film about human connection and opening ourselves up. Samantha is an idea more than anything, she’s essentially an advanced Rosetta Stone, teaching the language of love and human connection. Obviously there is a commentary on society’s obsession with technology, but that’s only surface level stuff, there’s much more to Her to discover and dissect and I only hope it charms moviegoers as much as it did me. It’s a film I could watch over and over again and absolutely one of the year’s best.
