Jenna Ortega in Confoundingly Bad Movie
IndieWire • • entertainment
Key Points:
- "Klara and the Sun," directed by Taika Waititi and starring Jenna Ortega, is a critically panned adaptation of Kazuo Ishiguro's novel, criticized for its overly twee tone and lack of sincerity in addressing existential themes.
- The film features a dystopian world with class stratification, genetic engineering, and artificial intelligence, focusing on Klara, an artificial friend who develops human-like emotions through sunlight exposure.
- Critics highlight the film’s tonal inconsistencies, awkward humor, and narrative confusion, with particular disappointment in Waititi’s direction and Ortega’s underwhelming performance.
- The story centers on Klara’s relationship with a sick genetically enhanced girl, Josie, and her struggle to survive amid mysterious health issues, but the plot is described as muddled and poorly edited.
- Overall, the movie is seen as a misfire that fails to capture the depth of Ishiguro’s source material, earning a low grade and opening in theaters on October 23.
