By Design (2025) is truly a very strange movie. It is filled with empty sets, it is devoid of dialogue that feels like humans wrote it, and it is totally confounding. The concept is played so extremely straight there is not a single wink at the camera, no acknowledgement of absurdity. There is a narrator who provides more surreality and discomfort. This may sound like criticism. It is not. I love it. I wish everyone talked like the characters in this movie. There are so many lines that have been stuck in my head since I saw this movie a week ago. "We NEVER buy..." The supporting cast is so talented, and every line has such intonation to totally transform the meaning beyond words. And, truly, I think the concept of the film is at least a little relatable. Who, at times, does not wish for the simplicity of being a very well-made chair? There is a long history of transhumanists desiring to be machines or robots. What makes a chair different? If anything, being a chair would be better than a robot. You have a divine cosmic purpose set by your literal creator, which may be true for robots, too, but they must take steps to fulfill this purpose! To Be is to fulfill your purpose as a chair. This is a major theme: the unconditional love provided to our objects for simply doing what they were made to do. The Chair is sat in, it holds coats, and it is caressed, loved, and cradled, just as any chair should be. I think I love this movie because it's entirely possible to watch it and think, "wow, that was really weird that chick turned into a chair. what a strange film" or you can imbue every shot with social commentary and meaning. This is the hallmark of a great movie to me. It is an inherently interesting concept to see Juliette Lewis turn into a chair. It is thought-provoking to see Juliette Lewis turn into a chair. I must encourage you to see Juliette Lewis turn into a chair.
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