Saoirse Ronan gives great “Put-Upon-By-the-Patriarchy Face.” How else can you explain me feeling the rage of a thousand suns on her character’s behalf while watching a trailer?
Ronan stars alongside Paul Mescal in Foe, a film adaptation of the sci-fi/psychological thriller novel of the same name by Iain Reid (I’m Thinking of Ending Things) directed by Garth Davis (Lion, Mary Magdalene). It tells the story of a young, married couple, Junior (Mescal) and Henrietta (Ronan), who live on a farm in the year 2065. One day, a guy named Terrance (Aaron Pierre) shows up representing an aerospace corporation called OuterMore. Terrance tells Junior that he’s been selected to travel to a large space station in orbit around Earth, where he’ll remain for two years before returning home.
Junior’s worried about leaving Hen alone for that long, but Terrence tells him not to worry! They’re going to make a near identical duplicate of him to stay with her on the farm to keep her company until he gets back. What could go wrong?
While the novel, and the film, seem to primarily be about Junior, it also seems to be a character study of a marriage, and it’s Ronan’s performance that grabbed me in this official trailer:
Maybe it’s because I’ve always been fascinated by outer space despite there being so many ways to die up there. Or, maybe it’s because I’m a woman who deeply understands what it’s like to watch opportunities I’d love consistently go to men instead. But watching Ronan’s face light up at Terrance’s opportunity—then become panicked as Junior speaks for her about her interest, then fall completely when she learns that the offer is only for Junior—filled me with fiery rage.
Paul Mescal is a great actor, too, and I’ve never wanted to punch someone in a trailer so much in my life.
Foe is the latest in a long line of sci-fi examinations of how A.I. can be used to help people mend relationships, navigate loss, or combat loneliness. There’s the “Beyond the Sea” episode of Black Mirror, where complications with a damaged A.I. replica lead to an even more complicated love triangle. There’s the Battlestar Galactica prequel, Caprica, which traces the birth of cylons to a grieving father’s misguided attempt to keep his daughter around, even if her consciousness needs to live in a hulking, metallic body. And, of course, there’s 2013’s her, where a physical body isn’t even necessary for a human being to fall in love with an A.I.
I’m eager to see how Foe adds to the A.I. conversation, especially since the conversation around using A.I. has become so much more pronounced in recent years.
Foe arrives exclusively in theaters on October 6 in the U.S. from Amazon Studios.
(featured image: Amazon Studios)
