Her is a science fiction romantic drama starring Joaquin Phoenix (Gladiator), Amy Adams (The Fighter), Rooney Mara (The Social Network), Scarlett Johansson (The Avengers), and Chris Pratt (Moneyball).  Director Spike Jonze is best known for having very abstract and surreal perspectives in his films.  His more popular works like Being John Malkovich and Adaptation explore elements of our lives in ways we never knew possible.  According to Rolling Stone‘s Peter Travers, “[he] creates movies that make us see the world in startling new ways.”  Travers couldn’t be more right.

Her centers on Theodore Twombly (Phoenix), a lonely writer living in a near future Los Angeles, where people are able to connect with artificially intelligent operating systems for companionship.  After dealing with his impending divorce from Catherine (Mara), Theodore is anxious about whether or not he is prepared to be in a new relationship, or if he even wants to have one again.  From being stuck between love and loneliness, Theodore eventually becomes acquainted with a new operating system named Samantha (Johansson), built to meet his every need — social and professional.  Theodore eventually falls head over heals for Samantha, and their relationship becomes just as real as any other in the eyes of the soulful Theodore and the charming Samantha.

As the bond between Theodore and Samantha grows stronger and more sincere, everyone begins to question it, especially his soon to be ex-wife Catherine.  Catherine believes that Theodore can’t handle commitment with a real person.  This makes him question how much he really loves Samantha, his belief on what true love is, and the many different attractions people have in order to feel any form of intimacy.  Among one of Theodore’s closest friends is Amy (Adams), who also becomes acquainted with her operating system and understands how close to Samantha he feels.

Director Jonze’s two hour long, bizarre, yet poignant love story not only investigates the many ways we may fall in love, but our evolutionary relationship with technology and how it could affect our connection with the people around us.  In my opinion, Her is the best film the year, not only because of Jonze’s thought provoking and visionary approach, but for Joaquin Phoenix’s breathtakingly subtle and heartbreaking performance.  This is one of the most fantastic original “love” stories since Sofia Coppola’s Lost in Translation (also starring Scarlett Johansson), paired with spectacular sets and vibrantly colored cinematography.  If you were to ask me what my favorite film of 2013 was, it would definitely be Her.  I would give it a 9.6/10.  Go see this one!

Her is rated R and was released December 18th in NY, LA, and Toronto, but will expand nationwide January 10th.