Creative Control (2016)

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Better than most people think

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

I do not know why there is that tendency lately to revile technology. Cinema has always reviled everything that was new and now touches technology. I do not see this film as a criticism of a certain kind of people, I think it aims to criticize technology and the people who use it. The worst is that it proposes that its massive use will only be sexual.I think it's a boring movie. Sex, drugs and alcohol are most of the time. While we live in a society with a great loss of values, I do not think it's how this movie puts it. In the end, the film manages to be basically what criticizes.It has enough interpretations. There is none that stands out and none that is not well.A film in black and white that contrasts with so much technology, for what? I would like the director to explain it to me. I do not think it contributes anything.It has many visual effects, which are very simple after all. But so badly used that only gets close-ups with an effect in front.The director does not know what is bored, what does not progress. He does not know how to put the camera. Every now and then he leaves the camera far from the action and takes you out completely.Luckily the lot is not this

Contains spoilers!This movie is about a marketing guy who gets to borrow augmented reality glasses from an inventor so that his company can market them. Also, he is secretly in love with his friend's girlfriend. His guy friend is a photographer and the girl works for his company. Marketing guy lives with another girl who is a yoga teacher. So, marketing guy starts experimenting with the augmented reality glasses and creates a digital copy of his secret crush, which ultimately leads to problems with his yoga teacher girlfriend and his photographer friend. Meh, the drama.Technically, the movie is well made, except they forgot to filter the background noise from some of the scenes.The dialogues between the main character's are tiresome, pretentious and boring. The character's are boring or cliché. Any attempt at satire is ruined by too serious and melodramatic tone. The augmented reality glasses side of the story is unimaginative and cliché. This tech- nonsense-drama is obviously a failed attempt at mimicking 'Her' (2013). This movie was a complete waste of time.

The character studies are priceless . . . and remarkably on targetHow to actually describe this?A stylized rendition of uber fluff post millennial somethings immersed into the quasi emergent culture norm of this near future world, something like "Silicon Valley", extruded through a NY augmented reality enhanced art / ad agency scene mandrel.But, that only barely covers the real description of what this is.The character studies are priceless . . . and remarkably on target (at least in my perturbed opinion), maybe too close to home for some?Visually, this is an art piece to be appreciated, but perhaps that is too distracting for some of the previous reviewers.It's something of a twisted love story, but I had no difficulty at all following the various sub plot threads woven into this story.No, not quite a 10, but certainly a well deserved 8.Yes, this is a bit different, perhaps a bit of a risky tangent to have extrapolated upon, but for what it is, remarkably well done.I don't mind when a production takes a bit of a risk, strays just a bit outside the box to deliver a potential future experience.Some have suggested this will be soon forgotten as a trivial experiment in filmcraft.I'm leaning in the other direction, more toward this maybe becoming a sort of future cult classic in its own context.My humble suggestion . . . watch and absorb this, it will be worth the time spent.

"Creative Control" (2016 release; 97 min.) brings the story of two couples. There is David and his girlfriend Juliette. David is working at an ad agency and is tasked with coming up with a good ad campaign for a new "augmented reality system" called Augmenta. David gets to try it out (by wearing regular-looking glasses) for some time. Juliette is a yoga instructor. It looks like their relationship isn't the greatest. Then there is Wim and Sophie. Wim is David's long-time buddy who hasn't the slightest problem with cheating on Sophie. David then hires Sophie to come work at the ad agency. At this point we're not even 15 min. into the movie, but to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: first, this is the latest release from Amazon Studios, which is starting to spread its wings in the movie business quite nicely. Second, this is the Benjamin Dickinson show all the way: he stars (as David), directs, co-writes and co-produces this film, his first feature-length as a director. Dickinson sets the story in the not too distant future, where things still look quite familiar (certainly New York does), but technology has made continued progress. Yet the idea of an "augmented reality system" is of course not new. In fact, conceptually the movie is eerily similar to/reminiscent of that movie from the early 80s, "Brainstorm" (starring Christopher Walker and Natalie Wood, in her last film), where sex also was a big driver. Yes, I said sex. There is quite a bit of nudity in "Creative Control", so if that bothers you, you'd better pick another movie. "Creative Control" is shot in black and white, and given the slightly futuristic setting, it makes for a very stylish movie, and one of its better aspects. The other lead performers (Nora Zehetner as Juliette, Dan Gill as Wim, and Alexia Rasmussen as Sophie), all below the radar names, do their best to flesh out their characters, but in the end, the biggest failing of the movie is that it left me emotionally uninvolved and, frankly, I didn't feel invested in any of the movie. Plenty of style, but not enough substance."Creative Control" opened this weekend out of the blue without any pre-release buzz or advertising on a single screen here in Cincinnati. The Saturday matinée screening where I saw this at was attended okay but not great. Given the lack of star power and lack of marketing for this movie, I can't imagine that this will play long in theaters. If you are into movies heavy on relationship drama but here with a sci-fi twist, I'd encourage you to check out "Creative Control", be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually of DVD/Blu-ray and draw your own conclusions.