The Assessment

 

Welcome to the future, where the planet has gone to hell. Protective domes, greenhouse food, banned household pets, and population control are part of this dystopian world, a world where we find Mia (Elizabeth Olsen) and Aaryan (Himesh Patel) who would like to have a child but are required to have an assessment by the state to see if they are suitable parents. The assessment is done by an assessor over a week-long period. Enter, Virginia (Alicia Vikander) as the government parent appraiser. She is there to observe, test, play act, and finally render a verdict. Her decision is final. Virginia, for a good chunk of the time, pretends to be their child and goes full method acting. It is darkly funny at times. If you are a parent or even an observer of parents, you will know certain scenarios improvised here - food tantrums, bad dreams, etc. Virginia also tasks Mia and Aaryan to build a from-IKEA-hell child playhouse - a test of patience and sanity; welcome to the Amazing Race. This sci-fi world feels as fresh as when "Gattaca" was released, or more recently the impressive, "Vesper." This is director Fleur Fortune first feature length film and if they don't hit it quite out of the park, they definitely made it to third. Catch this baby now streaming on Prime.