Winona State University's Newspaper since 1919

The Winonan

Winona State University's Newspaper since 1919

The Winonan

Winona State University's Newspaper since 1919

The Winonan

Polls

What is your favorite building to study in?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Movie corner: “World of Tomorrow” in review

Movie corner: “World of Tomorrow” in review

Nathaniel Nelson / Winonan

Hello Emily. One day, when you are old enough, you will be impregnated with a perfect clone of yourself. You will later upload all of your memories into this healthy new body. One day, long after that, you will repeat this process all over again. Through this cloning process, Emily, you will hope to live forever.”

“I had lunch today.”

Thus begins Don Hertzfeldt’s most recent film, “World of Tomorrow.” For the next 16 minutes, Hertzfeldt guides viewers in a manic odyssey through a future filled with deteriorating clones, discount time travel and love between a human and a fuel pump.

Story continues below advertisement

In the process, he crafts what might be the best and most affecting film of 2015.

The film focuses on a young girl named Emily, or Emily Prime, and her third generation clone, who we will refer to as Emily 3. Emily Prime is invited by her future self to share her memories and experience the future.

Emily Prime, voiced by Hertzfeldt’s niece, Winona Mae, is the embodiment of childhood excitement and curiosity. Oblivious to the darkness of the future, she reacts with looks of amazement and overwhelming giddiness. In response to Emily 3’s description of future entertainment, Emily Prime asks for her opinion of her toy cars.

In contrast to Emily Prime’s innocence, Emily 3, voiced by the wonderfully deadpan Julia Pott, is a dense and unsympathetic individual. After years of mental deterioration, Emily 3 has seemingly lost her ability to emote, or at least the capacity to understand those emotions.

The duality of these two characters is where Hertzfeldt’s talent soars. Hertzfeldt is a master of fusing dark themes with humor, and in that regard, this film is his masterpiece. He depicts a world where people harvest memories from the dead for art installations, attach disembodied faces of loved ones to robots, and callously accept death as inevitable. Yet, even with all the depressing overtones, the film manages to be completely hilarious. The two facets coexist in a beautiful equilibrium unmatched by much of modern cinema.

As the first film of his to use computer generated graphics, Hertzfeldt’s animation is remarkable. Bordering on the psychedelic, the film harkens back to the covers of pulp sci-fi novels of the 1960s and 70s while keeping Hertzfeldt’s own low-fi aesthetic intact.

“World of Tomorrow” is an incredible and emotionally complex film that is an absolute joy to watch. It is currently streaming on Netflix, along with Hertzfeldt’s wonderful 2012 film “It’s Such a Beautiful Day.” Both are absolute must watch films and, in this writer’s opinion, “World of Tomorrow” is the best film of 2015.

More to Discover