The Social Reckoning, Klara and the Sun and Ghosts:The Possession of Button House

 

I could not believe that half the film was just one set. In 2021, Mark Zuckerberg is being rehearsed for his forthcoming interview at the senate. None of this was particularly interesting. Far better are the scenes where whistleblower Frances Haugen (a brilliant Mikey Madison) meets Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White) from the Wall Street Journal. But the film has no real resolution. I think Aaron Sorkin made a mistake trying to emulate the success of The Social Network.

How has Taiki Waititi (writer/director of the superb Jojo Rabbit) somehow messed up the book Klara and the Sun by Ian McEwan? My introducing too much humour into the character of humanoid Klara. She was forever grinning, instead of adopting a more deadpan approach. I'm not sure if the visuals that Klara experiences are worth transmitting to the big screen. Amy Adams is excellent as the mother, but I thought that Mia Tharia as her daughter Josie was miscast. I found Jenny Ortega as Klara also disappointing. As was their New Zealander help. I have to say that the second half was a little better. Wendy Ide in The Guardian said it "does not do the novel justice", and Empire Online said it was "wildly inconsistent". It was not even reviewed in Sight and Sound Magazine. I'm surprised that David Hayman's Hayday Films did not step in as they were let down by the director.  

I guess that a feature film based on the excellent TV series had to do something different. So I should not have been surprised that Ghosts: The Possession of Button House did. It had an ingenious plot, though very far-fetched. I will resist saying anything about what happens, except it involves a lot of young people. The house is in danger, but for anyone who saw the last episode of the TV series, they will know the ending. It was a shame that Alison and Mike were absent for so much. Instead, we get a lot of new characters with the protestors and those children. Thank goodness the ghosts get all the good lines, and I did laugh quite a bit. It just about kept me interested; much is down to the sharp editing as we dodge between the various plots. And Simon Farnaby was predictably brilliant as the Tory MP.