Tag Archives: 83

Her  (2013)    83/100

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Rating :   83/100                       Treasure Chest                     126 Min        15

With the Oscars ceremony taking place in a few hours time, this was the last of the best film nominees I had left to see, and what was a very, very strong category for me has just become even more so. It’s from writer/director Spike Jonze and takes place in an immediate future that, from the technology on display, feels like it is taking place just around the corner from where we are now. Here we meet Theodore, played wonderfully by Joaquin Phoenix (who was perfect for the part), who is about to be treated to the latest innovative piece of computer software to hit the globe in the guise of an artificially intelligent operating system for his computer.

After only briefly hesitating over whether to choose a male or a female program, he is soon greeted by the sultry tones of Scarlett Johansson emanating from his computer and, understandably, he soon falls in love with ‘her’. The story thusly plays on the idea of love and the parameters of normal relationships as Theodore finds he doesn’t really need anything physical but rather someone who is completely attentive to his needs and engages him mentally, and yet he also has the option of turning her off whenever he wants to. Or at least, in the beginning he does, as the story along with the AI continues to evolve, throwing more and more food for thought at the audience.

A couple of parts of the film don’t hold up as well as the rest, the most egregious of them being when Theodore is on a date with Olivia Wilde who’s starting to feel him up but then asks a fairly reasonable question about him taking her seriously and he bottles it. If Olivia Wilde has her hands down your pants and asks if you are going to be nice to her, you simply say YES!. Or nod your head, or groan affirmatively, this is not a scenario where there is any doubt or need to think about it. Shortly before this he implies that he could be her dragon, which she likes the sound of. Must. Interview. Her.

This is an artfully delicate and incisive film with well balanced and intelligent use of its sci-fi premise, and it may just provide an upset at the Oscars …

We Are Northern Lights  (2013)    83/100

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Rating :   83/100                       Treasure Chest                     98 Min        12A

This film was commissioned on a fantastic premise: an open call was given to anyone with access to a camera across Scotland to record footage showcasing places that have meaning to them, people that have inspired them, or just generally anything about the nation that they felt might warrant inclusion in this compendium of short clips. The resulting finished product is a gallant mix of comedy, social and political commentary, and a sightseeing tour of some of Scotland’s natural and man-made beauty. Glasgow, Edinburgh and the Highlands feature most prominently, although many of the other cities get a look-in along the way, though I don’t remember seeing any beautiful landscape shots of the city of Dundee … Plenty to talk about and remember, and worth watching whether you yourself are Scottish, or are simply curious about our somewhat distinctive sense of self, and, most notably, our sense of humour.

This is to my knowledge the first documentary of its kind, so it is fitting that it should take place in Scotland where documentary filmmaking has such strong roots (according to legend, the term was itself coined by Scots filmmaker and critic John Grierson). In fact, although this film premiered at a sold out screening in the Glasgow film festival, the Edinburgh film festival was begun in 1947 as a showcase for documentary film, and currently holds the title of the longest continually running film festival in the world (both Cannes and Venice are slightly older, 1946 and 1932 respectively, but have both had breaks over the years).

The project is such a good idea, and has been so well received that it would be fantastic to see it spread to other countries, and indeed for it to become an annual event in Scotland, producing a databank of digital footage that the public could have free access to for research, or entertainment, in years to come. With the widespread ownership of digital cameras and smartphones, such an archive could only grow in popularity and cultural value. Another documentary released at the same time as this, ‘Side by Side’, hits on the same enterprising possibilities now available to anyone who wants to become involved with filmmaking. The official website for this project, complete with access to all the submitted material and a list of all the screenings around the nation, can be found here.