The Assessment

There's no lack of effort from the onboard actors, nor is there any lapse in commitment from the creators, who have shown enough ambition and drive to go into detail with their futuristic world and its 'dystopian' functioning.

There are noticeable commentaries on parenthood, environment preservation, and the importance of human empathy & connection; the writing is indeed stuffed with pertinent discourses.

However, the subpar direction and a relatively unexciting screenplay (as well as the dull edit) very much negate the intended after-effects of those thoughtful notions. There was absolutely no issue with the resources, the problem rather lies in their applicability and lack of enticement.

I was skeptical about watching this movie. I've been on a movie-marathon this summer & this is one of the movies you wouldn't want to miss!

Elizabeth Olsen surprises me every time. I believe she's one of the few actresses who can actually give an astounding performance in almost any genre.

Alicia Vikander, we've missed you. As I was watching 'The assessment', I couldn't help but remember 'Ex machina' where Alicia also starred in and had a similar genre.

I wanted more from this movie. I wanted more tragedy. More twists. More turmoil. This movie did indeed end shockingly. Hoping for a sequel!

It often feels like we're constantly being assessed, evaluated on everything from our creditworthiness to our work performance to our scholastic achievements. But imagine what it might be like if we were scrutinized on highly personal matters, with intrusive investigations into our most highly intimate concerns. Such is life in director Fleur Fortune's debut feature in a dystopian version of Earth of the future. With the planet devastated by environmental decline, human society has been drastically reorganized into the old world and the new world. The former is a pathetic wasteland where individuals struggle to live out short lives under horrific conditions. The latter, meanwhile, is a sanctuary for the fortunate, with clean air, clean water and a comfortable way of life, but there's a trade-off: Residents must abide by litany of stringent laws, rules and regulations in which they're under constant assessment, including in matters of their so-called private lives, where the risk of being reassigned to the old world looms for even the smallest of violations. This intensive surveillance involves essentially everything, including such basic considerations as the ability to have children, a strictly regulated undertaking for which would-be parents are rigorously evaluated by government-appointed assessors on their qualifications to assume this role. So it is for Mia (Elizabeth Olsen) and Aaryan (Himesh Patel), a couple looking to become one of the privileged, who are placed under the microscope by their evaluator, Virginia (Alicia Vikander). The assessor takes up residence with the couple for a week to scrutinize their suitability, engaging in rounds of intensive questioning, role playing exercises and other unannounced tests to see if they meet the requisite standards. But are they up to it? The process pushes the limits of the couple's coping abilities, exposes long-hidden secrets and pushes the envelope of their tolerance levels for their circumstances, all in the name (supposedly) of determining whether they would make acceptable parents. And, as the evaluation unfolds, it raises questions about whether the assessment is truly everything it appears to be. This inventive social sci-fi offering raises an array of probing, thoughtful questions, both for the characters, as well as audience members, particularly where matters of personal privacy and societal judgmentalism are concerned. The narrative is purposely designed to keep viewers guessing, placing them squarely in the shoes of the protagonists and nudging them to ask themselves what would they do under conditions like these. It's an approach that generally keeps us hooked as the story plays out, despite some occasional lapses in pacing and a few sequences in which the action feels a little over the top (especially in the role playing segments). But the payoff is ultimately worth it, one that makes us question whether the constant evaluations to which we're subjected in today's society are everything they're allegedly cracked up to be. This German production with dialogue in English is an intriguing examination of what we allow ourselves to be put through to see if we measure up to expectations that ultimately aren't necessarily our own, particularly in matters that fundamentally aren't anyone else's business. Think about that the next time you feel you're being unduly judged, a consideration that's taken on new weight in today's day and age - and that this cautionary tale might be giving us a preview of what could possibly lie ahead.

Alicia Vikander was already part of a dystopian Sci-Fi drama once (Ex Machina). Now she gets a totally different part in a film that feels like another "Black Mirror" episode and a good one also, nevertheless. From a first gaze of the movie's poster, I wasn't so sure, but when it had ended...so good.

The future, if to be franc and honest, is already here. Dystopian content is almost not any news and more and more films about dark future are rolling in our doorstep. This one is another that speaks about class differences, with a different direction and point of view.

Both Mia and Arian are well educated couple, that contributes to the well-being of the society. Both want to have a child, but the reality which they are living in does not allow reproduction. The government forbids children without supervision which validates that both candidates are suitable to raise children.

The supervision if from an assessor, which lives full week with the couple and determines at its end whether they are capable or not. Meanwhile, the rest of civilization are living in a wasteland and are being treated differently. This part is just mentioned in words and being seen for a very short period of time from the movie, towards the end of it.

The execution of the film was brilliant, and the performances were just outstanding. The plot had several holes and subjects that weren't properly delt, but the final outcome was a movie about parenting experience, fears, anxieties and the complications with being parents in some different magnitude.

This movie was also about the race we are falling behind in - real world against Artificial intelligence. It got its fair share of different type of anxieties, towards a future that is really unclear, but well predicted by a lot of artists in the movies industry.

Elizabeth Olsen's performance was magnetizing. She ruled this movie with so much depth. Himesh Patel was great also, but both female characters were the main issue here. Finally, the biggest performance of all - Alicia Vikander. Wow. I can't stress enough how good she was and was worth watching just for her side of the plot and her performances' weight in the movie.

The movie ended kind of sloppy for me, at least, but it was worth each and every minute of my time and I cannot understand why it got such a low grade. Maybe for being a little bit misunderstood. Maybe the ones who didn't understand it need a re-watch.

The Assessment is a Sci-fi drama Starring Elizabeth Olsen and Himesh Patel as Mia and Aaryan, a couple who want a child in the future are given a 7 day test by an assessor,(Alicia Viklander) who make the test possible and if no slip ups occur a baby will be gifted, but the expected-to-be parents see that this is harder than they expected.

Given strength by strong acting and unique premise, The Assessment is something I didn't really expect plot-wise but I think it was made brilliantly. The film is set in a format of Days 1-7 and each one is as different and engaging as the other. Honestly I was expecting this to reuse sci-fi tropes from the past, but I got to say that this is so original and unexpected I think it was done super well! The way everything connects and what the couple have to do is portrayed so well to the point that this might be what the most likely cause of creating children will be in a effected world of climate change.

Performances do not disappoint, Elizabeth Olsen and Himesh Patel were so good they probably could've been on their own with a entirely different plotline and it would have been just as captivating. But Alicia Viklander is also very good and to be honest, she's very good at the whole sci-fi genre and to see her here was a delight. Just everyone involved did their best and I really appreciate that with a film that doesn't really rely on CGI to be as creative as it is.

However, the film is graphic in some places in terms of sex and disturbing interactions from Alica Viklander's character acting like a child in a older woman's body gave me Poor Things vibes. But that doesn't matter really and it's essential to the plot but this is definitely for an older audience and I can definitely imagine this being an easy R or 15/18 in the UK if anyone is interested.

Overall, while some characters don't have much resolved plotlines the ones that do are created and performed so well it's hard to find anything bad about The Assessment. Definitely a one you must go and see when it comes out in mid 2025 I would highly recommend this amazing and creative piece of art when it hits cinemas.

Grade: A+

London Film Festival October 19th.