I recently watched Downsizing on Netflix. No, it’s not about a hoity toity bloke telling companies off for not firing enough people. That’s a Clooney affair.
This one had Matt Damon and my favorite Christoph Waltz. The movie is about a couple that decides to downsize themselves to live a life of luxury in a society designed for tiny people. Invented by a scientist, the downsizing process is hailed by people at the beginning because of its positive impact on the climate, but soon, as with everything else, the critiques start piling on.
Meanwhile our protagonist, influenced by his friend, is all set to move to a downsized community with his partner, they say their goodbyes and he goes through the procedure where they shave off his head and eyebrows ( would have been a hard pass for me then and there), he goes through with it and is soon met with an unpleasant reality. Obviously won’t tell you what that is, you would have to watch it just like me.
But how he gets past his unfortunate reality forms the better half of the movie and how he finds echoes of the bigger world in this Lilliputian Odyssey. But will our guy do something about the extended inequities plaguing the inside and outskirts of Leisureland ( why didn’t they call it Pleasureland), or will he want to escape this reality too?
The real meat of the story lies in how our guy navigates this tiny world and the even tinier voice in his head. Will he stand up against the injustices or just bail? Tough call.
I’ll be honest, the first hour had me hooked. The whole concept of downsizing had me daydreaming about all the cool stuff I could do—I mean, imagine being the same size as your cat!
The potential benefits w.r.t. overpopulation and global warming and the beautiful doll houses also seem very promising, but soon the movie throws you into the crux of reality and you, like Matt, keep doubting yourself & your decision of going through with (watching) it.
Fingers in symphony 