Marjorie Prime (film)

Movie
Original title	Marjorie Prime
Country of production	United States
original language	English
Publishing year	2017
length	98 minutes
Rod
Director	Michael Almereyda
script	Michael Almereyda
music	Mica Levi
camera	Sean Price Williams
cut	Kathryn J. Schubert
occupation
	Lois Smith : Marjorie; Jon Hamm : Walter; Geena Davis : Tess; Tim Robbins : Jon; Stephanie Andujar : Julie; Leslie Lyles : Mrs. Salveson; Azumi Tsutsui : Marjorie's 19-year-old granddaughter; Bill Walters : Jon at the age of 75;

Marjorie Prime is an American Mystery - tragicomedy by Michael Almereyda , in the context of the January 23, 2017 Film Festival Sundance celebrated its world premiere. The science fiction film , which tells of a future world, is based on a play of the same name by Jordan Harrison .

action

In a future world, modern technology will help people cope with grief .

To appease Marjorie, who is over eighty and suffering from Alzheimer's disease , her family, daughter Tess and son-in-law Jon, bought a device from Senior Serenity that creates a holographic simulation of her late husband Walter in bloom of his life, and programmed with their own memories of him. The task of the hologram is to keep Marjory's memories fresh, to preserve her memories and to constantly remind her of events from her life. But despite all the advanced technology that is in Walter, he is only a software-controlled blank and can only represent the basic properties of the deceased, and is therefore only as good as Marjorie's memories of Walter.

Her daughter Tess has a problem with seeing a younger version of her father hanging out on the living room couch. The conversations of the other family members with the hologram show that there are unspoken secrets in the family and a tragedy that hovers over everything, but which they have never really dealt with.

Literary template

The film is based on the play of the same name by Jordan Harrison , Marjorie Prime , who was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his work and was among the finalists for dramaturgists in 2015. In the play, Marjorie not only suffers from Alzheimer's disease , but also from arthritis, and every movement causes her pain. One of the secrets of the play is that their daughter Tess and son-in-law Jon do not tell about their beloved son Damian, who took his own life at a young age.

The play Marjorie Prime celebrated its world premiere in September 2014 at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in a performance by the Center Theater Group.

production

Production history and staff

It was directed by Miguel Arteta , who also adapted Harrison's play for the film. Behind the camera, Almereyda was assisted by Sean Price Williams .

occupation

Lois Smith took on the title-giving leading role from Marjorie

The title role of Marjorie was cast with Lois Smith . Smith was already on stage in the role of Marjorie at the premiere of the play Marjorie Prime in the Mark Taper Forum from September / October 2014 . She also took on this role at Playwrights Horizons from December 2015.

Jon Hamm plays Marjorie's late husband Walter, who comes back to her in the form of a hologram in his younger years. Geena Davis plays her daughter Tess and Tim Robbins plays son-in-law Jon, played by Bill Walters at the age of 75 . Stephanie Andujar played Julie, Leslie Lyles played Mrs. Salveson, and Azumi Tsutsui stars as Marjorie's 19-year-old granddaughter.

Filming and film music

The shooting took place in Amagansett on Long Island in the US state of New York.

The score was composed by Mica Levi .

publication

The film celebrated its world premiere on January 23, 2017 as part of the Sundance Film Festival . A screening at the International Film Festival Rotterdam took place on January 31, 2017 . The film was released in selected US cinemas on August 18, 2017.

reception

Reviews

The film has so far won over 90 percent of Rotten Tomatoes ' critics .

David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter says Marjorie Prime is one of the rare film adaptations of a play that is better than what it was based on .