I AM MORTAL
US, 2021, 83 minutes, Colour.
Abraham Lewis, Eloise Smyth, Sean Gunn, Lauren Lindsey Donzis, John Harlan Kim.
Directed by Tony Aloupis.
A brief futuristic film, aspects of science-fiction, aspects of philosophical and religious speculation. It has divided bloggers, some condemning the small-budget treatment, others praising the imagination but, more importantly, some praising the issues raised while others are quick to condemn as Christian propaganda.
There is a basic premise, that a scientist made a discovery that could enable everyone to be immortal. And, by and large this has happened with the population 200 years into the future. However, as with this kind of film, there is always a group of rebels, denouncing the effect of immortality and the leader, The Pilot, who has taken control of the way people live. However, the immortality does depend on some medication – and the promise that when the person has achieved highest peak, they will be frozen.
While there is some attention given to The Pilot, his speeches to the population, his interactions with the young woman protégé who has become immortal, attention is also given to a young woman who takes groups on tour of the laboratories and a young man who takes the medication and is about to make a decision about his being frozen.
The group of rebels approach him to persuade him about the disastrous impact of immortality. There is a lot of discussion, perhaps holding up the action, about immortality in this vein stopping all exercise of free will, choices, personal fulfilment. The young man is persuaded, is taken over by The Pilot, but, with the help of the guide who comes to see the light, the young man will be saved.
In fact, some of the discussion does sound like discussions about these and atheism, and the role of free will. In times of crisis, people always ask where is God and why doesn’t God intervene to save everyone. In the screenplay, The Pilot then becomes the equivalent of a God-figure who does intervene, saves everyone from war, illness, giving them immortality – but, the thesis of the screenplay is that it is far better to have free will, to make personal choices, than to be absolutely controlled.
Interesting to ask who was the target audience for this film, older audiences perhaps dismissing the science fiction aspects, but younger audiences perhaps reflecting on some of the issues of the dialogue.
