Imagine having a companion that could be with you, personalizing their view and opinion of the world, themselves, and life around you, and by extension, how you see everything. The world we live in now surrounds us by connecting to and through people from all over the world at a rapid pace, through email, text messages and social media. And yet even when we do have contact with people around the world, it all seems artificial.

  In the movie “Her”, the connection, though definitely not artificially, goes to a whole new level. This is shown in the feelings of the characters; for example, in how humans deal with emotions and how fast they go through it struggling with what to do next. Samantha (the “OS” voiced by Scarlett Johansson), on the other hand, dealt with and processed her emotions and how she should handle the situation in a way a computer would. Knowing what she wants to do next just as a computer, heading to the next “task” on her list.

  Joaquin Phoenix, who plays Theodore, is a man of many emotions, who wants to be connected yet distant at the same time. In a way it could be thought of as Theodore being a social medium, working for a social services company, and for their clients, writing letters on their behalf with sentiments, but in the end, emotion seems lost and unconnected to the real world and with those people.

  One could say “Her” is a lonely guy movie with Theodore coming home to a spacious apartment, sleeping alone, eating and hearing smack talk from a lonely alien friend during his daily video game sessions. Unhappy with his routine, Theodore purchases his operating system Samantha, who learns everything he is by being very intuitive and sentimental, while offering things about herself she thought would be frowned upon. But thanks to how the world is set in this utopia, the populace is surprisingly accepting, eventually. This actually becomes somewhat of an inside joke between director Spike Jonze and his viewers later on.

  You would think that their love is artificial, between man and computer, but “Her” programming allows the artificial female to develop a genuine care for Theodore.

  She finds him at his most vulnerable and generally being exactly what he needs, while he unwittingly, continuously returns the favor, fostering their emotional growth in unison, as it would in a natural human relationship.

  Shanghai’s beautifully tall and dense skyscrapers frame the city backdrop dominating numerous scenes, while Los Angeles offers the artistic, colorful and traditional picturesque example of American life. The contrast of colors affected our beloved Theodore shown in how he wore clothes and how his colors affected his mood. The happier he is, the more vibrant his clothes were, except his high waist Steve Urkel beltless pants, which all the males wear.

  “Her” gives a prospect of what the future could possibly look like. Through technology and how people evolve mentally and how progressively accepting they are in “Her” society.

  “Her” would seem like a complex love story, but Phoenix and Johansson brought the movie to life in an accessible way that makes one appreciate what they do or do not have, from a phone that could do anything, to reading and organizing emails to writing music, talking to and knowing you freely must be bliss. And the best part for Theodore is no financial drain, leading to no empty wallet. But despite Samantha’s illusionary ability to be everything for a man, Theodore, even though he is with her, still feels alone and must find himself as a person.

  Yes, there are other human characters besides a man and his operating system, each given their own distinct personality from their respective actors. With heartbreak in our two human leads, they show how people turn to technology to replicate what they wouldn’t or couldn’t get in their relationship.

  “Her” is a phenomenally made movie with amazing actors and is a must see for this movie season.