After Yang (2022)

[Wayne_j]

Title: After Yang (2022)

Tagline: The future has never looked so human.

Genre: Drama, Science Fiction

Director: Kogonada

Cast: Colin Farrell, Jodie Turner-Smith, Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja, Justin H. Min, Ritchie Coster, Sarita Choudhury, Clifton Collins Jr., Haley Lu Richardson, Orlagh Cassidy, Ava DeMary, Lee Wong, Brett Dier, Eve Lindley, Adeline Kerns, Ansley Kerns, Nana Mensah, An Li Bogan, Deborah Hedwall, Katie Honaker, Alberto Del Saz, Jesse Kovarsky, Marcella Lewis, Maria Majoli, Toni Melaas, Mina Nishimura, Lily Ockwell, JC Shuster, Megan Williams, Taylor Ortega, Jae Kim

Release: 2022-03-04

Runtime: 96

Plot: When his young daughter's beloved companion — an android named Yang — malfunctions, Jake searches for a way to repair him. In the process, Jake discovers the life that has been passing in front of him, reconnecting with his wife and daughter across a distance he didn't know was there.

 

[Wayne_j]

I saw this yesterday at my local arthouse theater. It was a solid light Science Fiction film where other than the androids and apparently self driving cars life is very similar to life today. It is another A24 film with strange aspect ratio, this one uses 1.85:1, 2.4:1, and 1.37:1.

A very different performance from Colin Farrell when compared to his recent performance as The Penguin in The Batman.

 

[JoeStemme]

AFTER YANG (2022) Showtime. In theaters. Like with his previous feature, COLUMBUS, Director Kogonada has fashioned an evocative tale about communication. Taking the form of a sci-fi film, AFTER YANG concerns a married couple, Jake (Colin Farrell) and Kyra (Jodi Turner-Smith), who have adopted a Chinese girl Mika (Malea Emma Tjandrawidjaja). In this unspecified future, a family can employ a surrogate android sibling, here named Yang (Justin Min). Yang acts not only as an older brother, but as a tutor who gives Mika a richer understanding of her Chinese heritage. When Yang malfunctions, the parents scramble to repair him, during which time they are able to 'plug in' to his memory chip.

Kogonada (who also adapted the script from an Alexander Weinstein short story) isn't that interested in the hardware that makes up Yang, but, his inner “thoughts” - his very notion of existence (the science fiction elements are handled quite well). What's fascinating here is that this is truly a two-way interaction - the family is as tied emotionally to Yang as the robot is in its role as an adopted family member. Haley Lu Richardson plays Ada, another character who's questioning her own existential being.

AFTER YANG may seem like heavy going, but, Kogonada and the wonderful cast present the tale in a most simple, unaffected manner. Lessons aren't delivered, but experienced. Some of the most sublime moments are as simple as drinking a glass of water. The viewer takes from the movie what they bring to it. Kogonada leaves it up the audience to decide what Yang's very being represents -- and how humans will accept that autonomy.

 

[Josh Dial]

Very late to the review here.

I watched this last night on blu-ray.

What a stellar movie. Very gentle and very peaceful. Almost hypnotic at times. Beautiful. I loved the way everyone delivered their lines in a calm, soothing manner.

A great piece of "light" science fiction, delving into race, culture, humanity, family, belonging, grief, and love.

The world building is there but never in your face (indeed this might be a slight criticism if I had one). There are two blink and miss it moments that fill in the blanks about why the world is how it is.

I really like Colin Farrel, and (like everyone else) I especially liked his turn in The Banshees of Inisherin. I think I might have liked this performance even more!

Great score and soundstage. The Blu-ray has a DTS-MA 5.1 track. On a whim I upmixed it with my receiver's DTS: Neural X setting. The result was...actually good. I was quite impressed with the way it shunted the car audio telephone calls to the height speakers, and the "echoing" voices/memories bounced around the rears and heights quite nicely.

Again, very gentle. I really, really liked this.

10/10

 

[Tino]

Again, very gentle. I really, really liked this.

10/10

I think You mean you loved this!