ARXIV

7/21/2020

I read an ASC Short Takes article on this sometime last year and must've bookmarked the Vimeo page for later perusal. That later is now. ARXIV over-relies on CGI, something I find irritating especially when it's sloppy—as is frequently the case here. It's possible to tell a good science fiction story without decadent levels of production design. If a unique style one of a film's major facets, go ahead. Otherwise, I'd argue it's preferable to tone things down. It doesn't help that they stuck with a generic Blade Runner/Star Wars sequels aesthetic. If there's one thing I did appreciate, it is their tendency to model technology for aesthetic appeal and not futurological "accuracy." Consider the clinic receptionist's antique accounting machine and the office's square, mid-aughts IPS disp