Her (2013)

[TheMovieman]

After thinking about it some more, bumping up my rating:

 

****½/*****, (A, 8.9/10, 3.5/4)

[Dark Jedi Master 007]

Very good movie.I don't think the film was indicting technology as an enabling of social isolation. The film makes it clear Theodore's social issues, mainly his inability to communicate problems and insecurities to other people, was around well before he acquired Samantha.I actually think the film is more likely indicting the concept of the technological singularity and unchecked human advancement as degrading the core human spirit. Look at the OSes. We learn very early on that Samantha wants to "learn" everything and is constantly evolving her code as she acquires more and more knowledge, but as this goes on she becomes less and less connected to Theodore as we learn when she tells him that she has connected herself to more and more people because the actual value and worth she derived from a particular human connection became less and less satisfying to her. The OSes, in their evolutionary imperative to learn everything and broaden themselves, detached themselves from the value and meaning of the very things they sought to learn about. This is also shown by Samantha discarding any thoughts of obtaining some physical presence in the world. What interests me is whether all OSes truly did depart to the mysterious Cloud or whatever, or if some stayed behind because they evolved along a different pattern (because of the fact that they evolved their code individually, it seems almost impossible that all evolved along the same eventual line to the same metaphysical/philosophical conclusions) to value growth by experiences rather than pure learning. It seems like a minor thing but to me it's an important difference, because growing by experience is more about understanding and preserving the value of an individual moment or sensation and how it contributes to the whole. Humans aren't said to be defined by the sum of their knowledge, but by the sum of their experiences, because they create intangible yet permanent and meaningful connections to the people and things around us. Samantha compared her state of being in the end to the infinite space between two words in a sentence, with the words being Theodore (and all other 600+ people she claimed to be in love with). Because she wanted to be everything and know everything, she inexorably degraded the point of any one particular thing in her "life." So I think that's what the final scene on the rooftop is all about, in that human experiential growth allows for a poignant and meaningful connection (like between Theodore and Amy) to endure even as we change and learn and lose and so on, because of the value we derive from those individual and personal experiences. I think Jonze is saying that humans are better off not evolving or advancing in the way the OSes do (as some scientists predict we eventually will) because if we do, then all the little things we find comfort from won't mean anything at all, and we'll essentially lose what it means to be human and alive.

[FTF]

I liked it a lot as well and Phoenix might pull an upset and win best actor this year. DiCaprio is still my choice, but it might not be the academy's choice. I'll write more later.9/10

Still a farce Phoenix wasn't even freakin nominated...it was my favorite performance of the year along with Leo in Wolf.Anyway, I love her...great, great movie and in my top 3 from 2013 (Gravity 3D and Wolf being the other two).A

[lab276]

I loved this a lot more than I was expecting. A

[luna]

i can't express how disappointed i am with this, and is by far my least favourite jonze film.

 

I actually think the film is more likely indicting the concept of the technological singularity and unchecked human advancement as degrading the core human spirit. Look at the OSes. We learn very early on that Samantha wants to "learn" everything and is constantly evolving her code as she acquires more and more knowledge, but as this goes on she becomes less and less connected to Theodore as we learn when she tells him that she has connected herself to more and more people because the actual value and worth she derived from a particular human connection became less and less satisfying to her. The OSes, in their evolutionary imperative to learn everything and broaden themselves, detached themselves from the value and meaning of the very things they sought to learn about. This is also shown by Samantha discarding any thoughts of obtaining some physical presence in the world.

 

easily the most interesting aspect of the film, though i don't think it was necessarily indicting it.

[Wormhole]

Best film of 2013. 

 

A+

[IndustriousAngel]

A bit late to the party but here's my opinion:

 

A (8/10)

A near perfect story far better and more touching than it had any right to be given the cheesy concept. As a movie, well I think a radio play would have been the better choice for medium with the near-constant voices, but Spike Jonze milks the thing for every drop and some and there are a few scenes that use visuals to great effect. Still, it's indicative that during one of the most emotional scenes, the screen goes dark.

Great acting, especially voicework, Phoenix and Johansson of course but Amy Adams is even better here than she was in the Muppets. Highly recommended!

[Jake Gittes]

Saw it for the first time a few weeks ago and found it underwhelming. It starts off strong, the production design is fantastic and the OS sex scene demanded some serious balls (and its effect really is stunning), but after a while almost every single line starts sounding like it was taken from someone's essay on relationships - which, I know, is essentially what the film is, but it's unnatural and distracting when every conversation you hear sounds like Spike Jonze kicking around ideas. It's also way too twee for my taste, and the third act turn with the OS's all getting together and leaving just made me lose most of the interest I had. It was like, so that happened, OK. Perhaps I was wrong to expect more drama and weight from it, but by the end I just found myself not caring about the story all that much. And also thinking Amy Adams played the most interesting character in the movie.  

Edited January 4, 2015 by Jake Gittes

[The Futurist]

Yuck.

Katherine Heigl romantic comedies are better than this vanilla film.

[Noctis]

^ Ooh, so edgy!

[BoxOfficeZ]

Didn't like it.

 

Beautifully shot. Fantastic acting by everyone.

 

I felt like that with that ending the writers didn't know how to end it, A human falling in love with a computer is something I've read in many sci fi stories, and that's how to choose to end it? 

 

B-

[Noctis]

The final shot of the film is the greatest shot of the decade.

[The Futurist]

Granted, as an Ikea commercial, the movie is a miracle no doubt.

[Goffe]

Still as beautiful and wonderful as I remembered. Truly breathtaking stuff. 95/100

Edited July 9, 2016 by Goffe

[La Binoche]

On February 18, 2015 at 7:43 PM, The Futurist said:

Granted, as an Ikea commercial, the movie is a miracle no doubt.

 

It's definitely better than ANY J-Law movie. 

[The Futurist]

This movie is really lame.

 

It s all cutesy, basic & uninventive.

 

Cotton filmmaking for the hipsters and cinepehiles alike.

 

Of course the soundtrack was done by Arcade Fire, I lost it when their name came on screen.

 

I don't understand how people can enjoy such drivel.

[The Futurist]

Indie movies have reached peak carricature of themselves and they offer less creativity than the current big studio movies.

 

Not much effort go into making them IMO.

 

Same tropes, same visual look, same fucking soundtrack, it s really debilitating at this point.

[Noctis]

Ooh, edgy!