‘Downsizing’ is a phrase that has both good and bad
connotations. It could mean to decrease the workforce with forced redundancies
or a lowering of monies owed. Whatever the meanings, the term has gained
popularity in this era of rationalising everything. The sci-fi/comedy
film ‘Downsizing’ explores how humanity can be saved via this action. Its
premise may not be outlandish as first thought with the phrase sure to continue
to be seen in dictionaries for decades.
Desperate to find a solution to the world’s over-population
crisis, scientists from Norway came up with a smart idea. Discovering a
way to shrink humans to miniature size, they adopt this plan and build new
small worlds for the tiny population. One of the inhabitants is Paul
(Matt Damon) who, along with his wife Audrey (Kristen Wiig), eagerly joins the
queue for a new life. The downsized community, including Dusan (Christoph
Waltz) and Ngoc (Hong Chau), bring about a myriad of surprises as everyone
adapts to a new way of living.
‘Downsizing’ is a quirky story with a mix of styles.
Veering from drama, comedy, eco-thriller and sci-fi, it’s a peculiar
concoction. It doesn’t always work with the performers feeling as lost as the
plot. As the central character, we follow Paul as he deals with finding
his life’s purpose in a new environment. In being the ‘big man’ in the normal-sized
world, he’s now a small entity forced to start afresh. His journey in
forging different paths is well conveyed by Damon who injects the right amount
of sympathy to his confused role.
Whilst its execution isn’t great, ‘Downsizing’ has an
abundance of good concepts in the screenplay. There’s something to be said
in trying to find a solution to the world’s over-population with the script’s
narrative offering intriguing ideas. It is how they are expressed that
makes ‘Downsizing’ comes confused although the CGI and creativity gone in
establishing the tiny world is well done. The cast rise above the wobbly
script by adding vitality in what could have been one-dimensional characters.
‘Downsizing’ doesn’t always work but when it does it grabs
attention. It is doubtful whether science will resolve the over-population
issue like this in my lifetime but it is fun seeing a film speculating on possibilities.
‘Downsizing’ doesn’t need to be cut down to size by audiences as it grapples
with how to make it big in a tiny universe.
Movie Review Rating out of 10: 6
Movie Review by Patrick Moore
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