The Assessment, 2025.
Written and Directed by Fleur Fortuné.
Starring Alicia Vikander, Elizabeth Olsen, Himesh Patel, Minnie Driver, Indira Varma, Charlotte Ritchie, Nicholas Pinnock, Leah Harvey, Benny O. Arthur, Thiago Braga de Oliveira, Malaya Stern Takeda, and Anaya Rose.
SYNOPSIS:
In a climate change-ravaged world, a utopian society optimizes life, including parenthood assessments. A successful couple faces scrutiny by an evaluator over seven days to determine their fitness for childbearing.
There is demented, unruly pleasure in how writer/director Fleur Fortuné’s The Assessment takes an ethically questionable, invasive concept of a worker analyzing across seven days whether or not a couple is fit for parenting, slowly turning the dial into psychodrama weirdness that simultaneously threatens to unravel the relationship while examining the necessity of bringing a child into this “new world”, which is just an inhabitable part of a climate change destroyed “old world” with ultra-strict laws to prevent similar disaster and keep from becoming overpopulated.
Living in a remote beachside home seemingly sequestered off from all civilization and surrounded by dust (a dome protects the environment), Mia (Elizabeth Olsen) and Aaryan (Himesh Patel) are in the .1% percentile of top candidates. A large part of that is presumably their critical jobs, with the former operating a greenhouse as an important botanist. Meanwhile, Aaryan has a workspace solely for designing virtual reality pets since all of them were exterminated and are now outlawed in this new world (ranging from cats to monkeys, the animals take on a CGI appearance but physically exist, although he is having trouble getting certain textures accurate). He is traumatized from an office experience that saw protesters taking a stand against his experiments and setting fire to the building, causing him injury during evacuation. Mia also has some unresolved emotional pain stemming from her mother being forced into staying behind in the old world, which is typically reserved for the financially destitute and anyone who speaks out against new world authority.
The first question raised here is somewhat of an extension of something people are generally already asking themselves given the bleak future state of the world, which is “why bring a child into this world” and wondering if it has anything to do with that tragic past. Here, there are additional questions such as “what would a child do in this world and would there even be any other kids for them to play with?”. The decision to do so feels entirely self-serving, but the performances here are strong (for several reasons) and allow us to empathize with that choice.
Nevertheless, the assessor, Virginia (an intentionally emotionless Alicia Vikander), arrives to study Mia and Aaryan. It starts normal enough with a seemingly standard questionnaire but quickly turns slightly uncomfortable upon realizing how invasive this procedure will be. It also doesn’t seem the couple was made aware that Virginia would sometimes be role-playing as a young demon child from hell meant to test their patience and resolve as parents. One could also look around at various tragic news headlines in the real world and second-guess themselves that maybe such a test for aspiring parents wouldn’t be so bad! (I kid, but the film does provoke startling thoughts and conversations).
Fleur Fortuné gets more mileage out of this dynamic than one might expect, pushing Mia and Aaryan into scenarios examining the tightness of their relationship, such as hosting a dinner party where the attendees have a secret or two to spill. Virginia also begins playing intense psychological games, showing a preference to Aaryan as a father figure but possibly preparing to test his faithfulness.
As amusing as watching two adults deal with a childlike Alicia Vikander can be, some of this behavior captivatingly escalates into a bizarreness so convincing and sustained that it calls into question whether or not Virginia is in control of her mental state at any given moment or if she is succumbing to a breakdown brought on by a demanding, draining job. At one point, she stares into a mirror sectioned into three parts, indicating something going awry. It’s a full-body performance from Alicia Vikander that only works due to her fearless commitment to icy examination, mind games, and role-play.
Elizabeth Olsen is also remarkably here as a woman torn between two worlds and often judged for it. Despite the circumstances, Mia’s desire to be a mother is empathetic. As the film goes on and pulls Mia and Aaryan apart in some of their belief systems, other intriguing questions are raised about parenting and these different worlds. With such a minimalistic and empty approach to the sci-fi world, the silence and beautiful melodies from composer Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch are key components to buying into everything weighing heavy on these characters.
There is so much fascination and striking craftsmanship here that it’s frustrating that The Assessment primarily gestures at rich themes without digging deep and landing on a profound note. Instead, it goes opposite, placing perspective on Virginia in the final 15 minutes for a bold move and reveal that doesn’t pan out or logically gel with much of what comes before. It’s another swing in a film full of swings that is memorable for its ambition and effective enough for its emotionally riveting ensemble.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association, Critics Choice Association, and Online Film Critics Society. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews and follow my BlueSky or Letterboxd
