Caught up on The Assistant, a movie I’d heard described as a film where nothing happens. Why that interested me is primarily down to the very positive critic score and very negate viewer score. Not the first time that’s happened but it got me curious this time.

The Assistant is about a day in the life of an assistant to a powerful movie producer. A day in which we see her arrive at work very early, set things up for her boss and co-workers, get some food in the kitchen, and generally just kind of do her job. Seems like an alright job that she hopes will allow her to advance to producer herself. And, technically, that’s about it. But the movie is subtle, almost experimental, in what it’s really about. If you aren’t paying attention, half watching, you’ll probably come away wondering why they put this on film. But a closer watch will show the many, many micro-aggressions and slights she puts up with, either because she’s just an assistant or because she’s a woman. But the film offers no dramatic catharsis, no monolog about respect, and, indeed, very little characterization, at least not spoken. But the lead in the film is doing all the acting you need to understand how she’s feeling.

This movie shouldn’t have worked but somehow (somehow!) it had me subtly mesmerized. You’re just watching a person do her job for ninety minutes and out. The acting, the sound mixing, the tone, the editing all work together to make something unique. The movie seems to break the conventions, the agreement between viewer and screen, and even the rules of drama and conflict in fiction. Yet… somehow it worked. And I’d totally understand if it didn’t work for others.

Score: 82