After Yang (2022)
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After Yang Movie Review
After Yang is a 2022 science fiction drama film directed by Kogonada and starring Colin Farrell. It is a movie that is overly tranquil, but undeniably intriguing in its strong atmosphere.
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“There is no something without nothing“
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When his young daughter’s beloved companion, an android named Yang, malfunctions, Jake searches for a way to repair it. In the process, Jake discovers the life that has been passing before him as he reconnects with his wife and daughter. Although on the surface it is operating as a regular arthouse independent drama in slow pacing and meditative approach, this is still very clearly a science fiction story that is firmly embedded in numerous important ideas and tropes regarding artificial intelligence and humanity.
The movie positions that we are living at this very awkward period when A.I. still isn’t quite there in terms of sophistication, but we are still starting to lose are humanity in the constant process of seeking technological advancement. The film is heavily concerned with the importance of human connection and healthy familial relationships, which are endangered when artificial intelligence is introduced to the environment.
But it still doesn’t criticize technology as its treatment of the Yang character is very sensitive. We get to care about this android and the protagonist’s very close connection to him is quite sweet. I just wished that the overall characterization was stronger as it was only serviceable at the end of the day due to its slow pace and overly sparse dialogue.
The daughter is well developed and the relationship between her and her father is quite well realized. The standout is clearly Jake as he is the heart and soul of the movie. It is crazy that Colin Farrell had not just his amazing ‘Banshees of Inisherin’ performance this year, but he also had his After Yang turn that was also remarkable and quite impressive in its subtlety and nuance.
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The only issue with this indie is the fact that it’s so slow. It is so leisurely paced, in fact, that it was downright tedious at times. Its score is absolutely beautiful and quite ambient, but too often the film consisted of just music accompanied with some intriguing imagery and no plot or dialogue to be found anywhere. But I still loved the cinematography and those VFX that the film sparingly used while the directing is also quite confident throughout.
After Yang is a leisurely paced film that also features overly sparse dialogue, but this is still a meaningful, meditative and highly atmospheric indie SF drama about the importance of human relationships amid constant technological advancements. It is a wonderfully subdued, but still moving film about the dangers and the benefits of artificial intelligence that also benefits from another stellar performance of Colin Farrell in a year that he clearly owned.
My Rating – 4
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