The film Her was written, directed and produced by Spike Jonze and released in 2013. The initial idea for the film was supposedly conceived in the early 2000’s when Jonze came across a website that provided instant messaging with an artificial intelligence program. With technology evolving at an exponential rate, Her is an important landmark in film. Set in a near future metropolis, the film forces the viewer to observe and question the way technology is changing the way we operate and interact with one another. It is so easy to be overwhelmed and swept up by the relentless current of fast-paced modern life. We are always moving, always planning, always on a set path to a destination. From a distance it may appear that we are all the same, like cells ebbing and flowing together as one organism. The beauty of this film is that it examines the trivial details of one individual’s experience, and specifically his relationship with the technology we all rely upon to maintain order in our busy lives.
The protagonist of the film, Theodore Twombly (portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix), is a representative of the modern man. He is a lonely middle-aged city dweller. He is up on the latest fashion trends (note his hip hugging slacks and dulled color palette), lives in a luxurious high-rise apartment, and has found success as a profound surrogate letter writer. Based solely on appearances, Theodore has everything a modern man would require, but there is something missing. In a world that is more connected through technology than ever before, it seems that connection is the one thing that Theodore is lacking.
As you can see from this still, it seems that everyone is communicating but not with one another. Rather, they are connecting with someone who is only present in the form of sound waves. In Theodore’s case, he is connecting with someone who doesn’t have a physical body. Her name is Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) and she is Theodore’s Operating System. This brings up an interesting point about the role senses play in distinguishing between what is conscious and unconscious. Specifically, I would like to focus on how sound is emphasized in the film to create a consciousness that may otherwise be falsified by other senses.
In general, there are two types of sound that occur in film: diegetic and non-diegetic. Diegetic sound is sound whose source is visible or implied on the screen. In other words, it is sound that belongs to the reality of the film and can be acknowledged by the characters. Examples of diegetic sound include voices of characters, sound made by objects, as well as music from instruments or devices within the scene. Inversely, non-diegetic sound is defined as sound that is not present or implied within the narrative universe. Examples of this include music or score used to augment emotions, actor’s commentary/narrative, and any extra sound added for effect.
To begin, I’d like to address the non-diegetic elements of the film. These are the sounds that are created solely to catalyze an emotional response from the spectator. According to Elsaesser & Hagener sound “is a three dimensional phenomenon of immersion and enveloping presence” (Film Theory, 146). This is illustrated in the opening scene of Her by a calm combination of music and darkness. The music is subtle and very repetitive, it sounds like a quilt of Windows 98’ error codes chopped and screwed to perfection. The screen is black, giving the viewer time to slowly drift away from any worries that may be on their mind and equalize themselves in time and space inside the world of the film. In normal life we use our ears to detect threats and navigate our way through space. In the world of film, where physical motion is omitted, “sound has a much more encompassing role of actually and metaphorically anchoring and stabilizing the spectator’s body” (Film Theory, 148)
Another example of how diegetic music is used to create mood is in the scenes that show past glimpses of Theodore with his ex-wife. The scenes themselves show trivial things: playful pillow talk in the morning sun and arguments around a kitchen table. As Samantha says “the past is just a story that we tell ourselves”. It’s funny the things that we unconsciously choose to remember and forget. Looking back on my freshmen year of college, I tend to dwell on the good things: skateboards, milkshakes, and the sour smell of Kentucky Deluxe. But I forget so easily the gnawing feelings of alienation, of wanting to escape in anyway possible but having nowhere to go. If it wasn’t for music I don’t think I could have coped with the shock of that year, but it’s the music that haunts me with bittersweet nostalgia. There are some feelings and visions that cannot be expressed in words or images. Similar to how Samantha says she exists somewhere between the words, memories of the past are intangible, they exist somewhere between reality and daydreams. While it is impossible to completely share a memory with someone else, the closest I have come to expressing and interpreting these visions is through music. Where words and images construct a mental ice cream cone, music provides the flavor. Music is pure feeling, it is soundwaves triggering an emotional response. The world of a film is created with a “padded bubble of light and sound” (Film Theory, 147). Within this bubble, the spectator uses their eyes to visualize forms while “the ear allows cinematic experience to probe deeply into the spectator and listener’s inner self” (Film Theory, 148). It is these properties of sound that allow Her to draw such a dramatic emotional response from it’s viewers.
While non-diegetic sound is effective in adding emotion to the film, diegetic sound is used as an interesting device of character development. A significant problem in the character plot is that Theodore develops romantic feelings for Samantha, who doesn’t have a physical body. Before seeing the film I had heard nothing but good things. I was familiar enough with the plot-line, a nerdy future guy falls in love with his computer, and was curious myself whether or not the film could pull it off without being totally ridiculous. After seeing the film I really didn’t know what to think. I first saw it with my mom, who thought it was the most absurd thing she had ever seen (she still gives me crap about making her go see it). I was nonetheless intrigued and after viewing the film a few more times, I see that it is much more than the literal storyline of boy meets computer.
In the beginning, Samantha is everything Theodore wants her to be. She is there whenever he wants her to be, she reads (and enjoys) all of his writing, and seems to look up to him and envy his corporeal privilege. Although she cannot satisfy his organic needs, it seems that Theodore is already predisposed to alternative methods of getting sexual gratification. This is noted by one of the beginning scenes when Theodore solicits the phone sex line. Although he is not able to get what he wants out of it, it seems the other human (sexykitten) is more than satisfied by verbal stimulation. Given that the film takes place in the near future, this scene is an interesting commentary on the emotional needs of future humans, “who would rather be spooned than have dirty sex” (Film Theory, 146).
While sex is not everything in a relationship, I would argue that being present is. Samantha may not have a body but when she is with Theodore (safety pinned to his pocket), she certainly has a presence. One scene in particular that really captures Samantha’s presence is the Photograph Scene. In this scene, Samantha shares a song that she wrote for Theodore, which she explains is meant to be like a photograph, capturing their exact moment in time and space together. While Theodore is listening to the song, we are seeing various flashbacks to memories of Theodore with Samantha. What’s interesting is that although we never see anyone but Theodore and his environment, he says that he can see Samantha in his flashback memories. It’s as if Samantha is apart of Theodore in his memories but also apart everything she comes into contact with. In this way, Samantha is a modern portrait of the acousmêtre. According to Michel Chion, the acousmêtre is the “bodiless voice in cinema that apparently has no origin. It can see everything, know everything, and have an impact on everything, and it is also ubiquitous,” (Film Theory, 156). Examples of the acousmêtre in earlier films include the wizard in Wizard of Oz and the computer Hal 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey. In previous films the acousmêtre is always defeated. For instance in the Wizard of Oz, the wizard is shown to be a mere human, and in 2001: A Space Odyssey Hal 9000 is shut down by a human. What’s interesting about Her is that it is the first time we see an acousmêtre triumph over humanity.
In the scene when Samantha explains to Theodore that she and all of the OS’s are leaving she asks him to lie down with her. She asks him if he can feel her, to which he emphatically responds yes. Although her body is not physically with him I believe he does feel Samantha. Charles Sanders Peirce once said: “viewing a thing from the outside, considering its relations of action and reaction with other things, it appears as matter. Viewing it from the inside, looking at its immediate character as feeling, it appears as consciousness”. This shot showing Theodore lying on the bed talking with Samantha has an uncanny resemblance to the earlier scene of them on the beach. While they are at the beach, Samantha plays him a song about how it feels to be with him in that moment. It is really a beautiful tune, kind-of sad but also hopeful and reminiscent of the sunset (or sunrise). In the moment on the beach, Samantha transcends her material limitations by allowing Theodore (and the audience) to really feel her presence. She is not only present in the moment but is able to interpret and transmit what it feels like to be in the moment. Despite not being able to touch Theodore physically, Samantha is able to use soundwaves to touch him on a much deeper level.
As I have stated before, Her is a landmark in modern cinema. Observing Theodore’s relationship with Samantha from an outsider’s perspective causes us to question our own relationship with technology. By giving human qualities to a digital persona, the film gives the opportunity for the spectator to feel empathy for a non-human consciousness. While some would argue that because Samantha lacks a body she is not entirely conscious, I would argue the opposite, that it is Samantha’s lack of body that allows her supercede the constraints of human consciousness. Throughout the film there are various instances when Samantha tells Theodore that she cannot explain in words the way that she is feeling. Rather she uses music to illustrate her feelings in that moment. This, in my opinion, is a very successful tactic. Music allows the spectator to feel moment by moment how Samantha is feeling, it provides a glimpse into the place she describes as being somewhere between the words.
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