Klara and the Sun review

KLARA AND THE SUN: 

JENNA ORTEGA IS LIKABLE, BUT TAIKA WAITITI’S ROBOT IS GLITCHED UP! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** out of 4

COLUMBIA PICTURES

Jenna Ortega in Klara and the Sun

 

            An android companion befriends a young girl and learns human emotions in Klara and the Sun, the new film from director Taika Waititi (What We Do in the Shadows, Thor 3 and 4, Jojo Rabbit), based on the 2021 novel of the same name by Kazuo Ishiguro. I have not read the book, so I’m not sure how faithful this film adaptation is; I’m just going in as…usually a fan of Taika Waititi. 

            I enjoy Waititi as both a director and actor; he’s talented and has been behind some great movies. I think What We Do in the Shadows is an incredibly smart and funny vampire mockumentary, and Thor: Ragnarok is one of my top 3 favorite Marvel movies. However, after 2019’s Jojo Rabbit, his career started to take a dive. I’m not a fan of Thor: Love and Thunder and thought the overabundance of Marvel humor completely ruined a compelling story, and I barely remember Next Goal Wins, that soccer movie he did a few years ago. 

            This movie looked kinda interesting when I saw the trailer, especially in the AI-filled society we live in now…for better or worse. I was hopeful this would be a return to form for Waititi after being disappointed by his last two outings, and I’m sad to say, Klara and the Sun continues this downward slope. 

            There are glimmers of good ideas here, and Jenna Ortega (Scream 5 and 6, Wednesday, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice) is very likable as the titular character, but this is a very bare-bones sci-fi movie that’s neither funny nor emotional enough to leave an impact. I’m convinced Taika Waititi peaked with Thor: Ragnarok and, aside from Jojo Rabbit, hasn’t been able to recapture the magic he once had. 

            The film is set in a dystopian future and follows Klara (Ortega), a robot built as an Artificial Friend for humans who wants nothing more than to find a perfect home. When Klara meets Josie (Mia Tharia-Phoenix Rise, September Says, The Listeners), who has a fraught relationship with her mother, Chrissie (Amy Adams-Enchanted 1 and 2, The Fighter, American Hustle) after her sister’s death, they sense kindred spirits in each other, and Klara’s kindness and curiosity begin to heal the family and bring light to Josie’s complicated world. 

            The film also stars Aran Murphy (LOLA, Youth, War) as Josie’s best friend Rick, Natasha Lyonne (Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, American Pie franchise, The Fantastic Four: First Steps) as Store Manager, Steve Buscemi (The Big Lebowski, Monsters, Inc. franchise, Hotel Transylvania franchise) as Capaldi, Rachel House (Whale Rider, Eagle VS Shark, Hunt for the Wilderpeople) as Chrissie’s housekeeper Melania, and Harry Greenwood (Hacksaw Ridge, The Nightingale, The Drover’s Wife) as Rex. 

            Overall, Klara and the Sun is well-intentioned and has strong performances by the cast, but they aren’t enough to make up for the film’s indifferent script and clumsy execution. The movie just hits every beat you’d expect from this kind of film without really doing anything that unique with the tropes. 

            As disappointing as the ending to this film was, Steven Spielberg’s A.I. Artificial Intelligence handled this sort of premise much better, and the robot Pinocchio story aspect was enough to make it stand out. This just felt like a blatant copy of A.I.; again, this is coming from someone who’s never read the original book with some eerily similar scenarios. 

            I will give credit where credit is due; I really like Klara herself, not just Jenna Ortega’s performance, but the actual character. She is very likable as an older model android who’s less refined than the newer models and often makes mistakes, like a human. I thought that aspect of the film was clever, and both Ortega and Klara herself have a lot of charm and carry the emotional beats well. 

            Honestly, all the actors do a fine job despite the subpar material; Mia Tharia has great chemistry with Ortega as Josie and tugs at a few heartstrings later in the movie. Amy Adams is always a pleasure to watch and gives a very against-type performance as Josie’s mother, who initially despises Klara but learns to appreciate her as the film goes on, and Rachel House is genuinely funny as Chrissie and Josie’s maid. 

            While the sudden shifts between comedy and drama aren’t nearly as distracting as they were in Thor: Love and Thunder, they are instances during the film where Waititi just felt the need to throw a joke in after a dramatic scene just because. You’ll have a legitimately heavy and emotional scene with the characters, but then someone says a joke or funny remark, and it ruins the drama of the scene; that just seems to be the trend with modern Taika Waititi, sadly. 

            Klara and the Sun is a movie that exists, and while there are some inventive ideas and heartfelt scenes the actors pull off, it’s an incoherent and rather dull mess that ranks incredibly low on the Taika Waititi totem pole. Maybe one day, we’ll get that Thor: Ragnarok or Jojo Rabbit project again that brings us back to his glory days, but if this, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Next Goal Wins are anything to go by, we’re just gonna have to keep waiting.