The Future
directed by Miranda July
starring Miranda July, Hamish Linklater, David Warshofsky
Roadside Attractions
Joshua (Hamish Linklater) and Sophie (Miranda July) are a modern dead end couple. Equipped with iMacs and iPhones and iSuckJobs, they are aging and don’t know why. Children would be too much of a commitment, so they go for an injured stray cat with renal failure and a damaged paw. The vet won’t let them have PawPaw until his bandages come off, so they quit their jobs – Jason sells trees to stem global warming while Sophie starts a video blog featuring her inept dancing and starts an affair with a banner printer Marshall (David Warshofsky). Or maybe she doesn’t – the couple can stop time, Jason meets himself 50 years in the future, and maybe, just maybe, Sophie’s affair is a dream sequence. But then PawPaw dies, and so does a little bit of Jason and Sophie.
OK, I ought to like this sort of surreal mind trip, but this quirkfest just never connects. While Sophie is sexy in an anorexic dancer sort of way and Jason’s perma-muss hairdo drips of hipster, the only person here to cheer for is the cat. Marshal is especially vicious – he’s sexually aggressive in an older swinger fashion and preys on Sophie’s wispy vulnerability. Jason’s tree selling is a failure; only Sophie buys some. Normally talking animals creep me out, but PawPaw is the exception. His perception of time doesn’t match ours but seems in sync with Jason and Sophie, and he might have given them a warmer humanity instead of their sad introspection. You want them to sign up for community college or the marines or something, not just hang around talking to the moon.
The Future: http://thefuturethefuture.com
