#TIFF24: “THE ASSESSMENT” REVIEW

By Nicholas Porteous

Mia (Elizabeth Olsen) and her partner Aaryan (Himesh Patel) want a child. The only problem—they’re living in a dystopian future, the planet is a wreck, and the government has decided any would-be parents must be assessed up front. The criteria for a pass into parenthood is unclear, and the test is designed that way, but the decision is made by assessors, who spend several days observing, testing and judging their subjects. Enter Virginia (Alicia Vikander), a steely-eyed, humourless agent who—when she isn’t probing our leads with questions—takes on the physicality and persona of an extremely difficult child. Throwing food, picking fights, peeing in things that aren’t toilets—it’s all part of The Assessment, which squanders an interesting premise on a questionable group of characters.

It’s difficult to buy into the stakes of the film—whether or not our couple will be granted the right to conceive—because The Assessment doesn’t show any evidence these people actually love—or even like—each other, beyond lip service. There’s no chemistry here, and in fact they spend most of their time becoming less and less invested in each other—not much of a leap from where they begin. The Assessment also features a very troubling depiction of sexual assault, and seems to be implicitly blaming the victim for a crime that’s not their fault in any way. Olsen manages to find an interesting balance between the absurd world she lives in, and the gravity of her desire to bring another human into it. Further evidence she can make anything work. Meanwhile, Patel spends a good deal of his screen time in a big empty virtual room, reciting random numbers and commands that we aren’t supposed to understand in an effort to make digital fur texture feel just right. Vikander makes big swings in every scene, whether she’s pretending to be a kid or a rigid bureaucrat with no bedside manner, but I found her performance too mannered, and it’s impossible to empathize after a scene in the latter half of the Film. My assessment: you already know.

The Assessment screens at TIFF ‘24:

Friday September 13th at 2:00 PM at Scotiabank

Saturday September 14th at 2:45 PM at Scotiabank

#FIRSTLOOK: DAN LEVY MAKES DIRECTORIAL DEBUT IN “GOOD GRIEF”

Four-time Emmy-winner Dan Levy makes his directorial film debut with Good Grief, which he also wrote and will star in alongside Ruth Negga (Passing, Loving), Himesh Patel (Station Eleven, Yesterday), Luke Evans (Echo 3, Beauty and the Beast), Celia Imrie (Better Things, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel), Arnaud Valois (BPM (Beats Per Minute), Spring Blossom), David Bradley (Harry Potter, Game of Thrones) and Jamael Westman (Hamilton, The Essex Serpent) for Netflix.

Director/Writer: Dan Levy (Schitt’s Creek)

Producers: Not A Real Production Company’s Dan Levy, Megan Zehmer; Sister’s Stacey Snider, Kate Fenske, Debra Hayward

Logline:

Marc Dreyfus chose to distract himself from the loss of his mom with a comfortable marriage. But when his husband also dies, unexpectedly, Marc is forced to finally confront the grief he’s tried so hard to avoid, sending him and his two closest friends on a Parisian weekend of self discovery.

Dan Levy said, “Good Grief is a cautionary tale about friendship and loss and all the mess that comes with it when the truth is something you’ve evaded for most of your life. It’s funny, it’s bittersweet, it’s a project that has helped me work through my own grief. And I hope it does the same for other people as well.”

Good Grief marks the first project under Levy’s Not A Real Production Company and Netflix’s creative partnership.

(Photo credit: José Mandojana)

#GIVEAWAY: ENTER TO WIN A COPY OF “YESTERDAY” ON BLU-RAY

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment x Mr. Will want to give Readers a chance to win a copy of YESTERDAY on Blu-ray!

See the Trailer:

 

Features:

BONUS FEATURES ON 4K ULTRA HD, BLU-RAY™, DVD AND DIGITAL:
Alternate Opening*
Alternate Ending

Deleted Scenes:
Corden & Roxanne – Includes deleted performance by Himesh Patel of “Something”
Late for School
Nutters Italian Ice Cream
Sortisimus
Moscow Audience
Alexa
A Gonk
W Hotel
Jack Calls Ellie
Hilary in the Mirror
Nick and Carol
Hazel’s Selfie
Gag Reel*

Live at Abbey Road Studios – Watch Himesh Patel perform “Yesterday”, “I Want To Hold Your Hand”, and “Let it Be” at Abbey Road Studios.

Ed Sheeran: From Stadium to Screen* – Acting in his first major role, Ed Sheeran reflects on his experiences making the movie.

Agent of Comedy: Kate McKinnon*- Kate McKinnon shares how eager she was to play the role of “Debra Hammer” while the cast and crew reflect on the fun and energy that the queen of improvisational comedy brought to the set.

A Talented Duo* –Richard Curtis and Danny Boyle, two of the most successful British filmmakers, team up for the first time.

Playing for Real*- The re-interpreting of the Beatles songs was a huge undertaking for newcomer Himesh Patel. Learn how he spent months learning to play the songs perfectly as the production decided to take the more challenging route of recording the musical numbers live on set.

Soul Mates* – Beyond the music and the laughs, the film is, of course, a love story. This piece looks at the relationship between Jack & Ellie and the actors playing them.

A Conversation with Richard & Ed*- Long-term friends Richard Curtis and Ed Sheeran have a funny and informal chat about the making of YESTERDAY.

 

 

Artwork:

 

To enter to win, click “like” on this Post at MR. WILL ON FACEBOOK. Re-Tweet this Contest Tweet from @mrwillw for an extra chance! Open to Canadian Readers only.

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment release YESTERDAY Tuesday, September 26, 2019.

 

(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures Home Entertainment)

#FIRSTLOOK: NEW EXTENDED LOOK AT “YESTERDAY”

We proudly present to you another new look at Danny Boyle‘s YESTERDAY!

Synopsis:

In Yesterday, Himesh Patel is Jack Malik, a struggling singer-songwriter whose dreams of fame are rapidly fading, despite the support and devotion of his childhood best friend, Ellie (Lily James). When Jack wakes up after a freak accident to discover that The Beatles have never existed … and he finds himself with a very complicated problem, indeed.

 

See the new Trailer:

 

Universal Pictures Canada release YESTERDAY Friday, June 28, 2019.

 

(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures)

#FIRSTLOOK: NEW TRAILER FOR “YESTERDAY”

Everybody loves The Beatles! Check-out this new Trailer for YESTERDAY featuring Music by the iconic band and a breakout performance by Himesh Patel. Ed Sheeran, Kate McKinnon and Lily James also star.

Synopsis:
Jack Malik (Himesh Patel, BBC’s Eastenders) is a struggling singer-songwriter in a tiny English seaside town whose dreams of fame are rapidly fading, despite the fierce devotion and support of his childhood best friend, Ellie (Lily James, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again). Then, after a freak bus accident during a mysterious global blackout, Jack wakes up to discover that The Beatles have never existed … and he finds himself with a very complicated problem, indeed.

Performing songs by the greatest band in history to a world that has never heard them, and with a little help from his steel-hearted American agent, Debra (Emmy winner Kate McKinnon), Jack’s fame explodes. But as his star rises, he risks losing Ellie — the one person who always believed in him. With the door between his old life and his new closing, Jack will need to get back to where he once belonged and prove that all you need is love.

See the Trailer:

Universal Pictures Canada release YESTERDAY Friday, June 28, 2019.(Photo/video credit: Universal Pictures)