TOtimes Movies: I’M YOUR MAN – Germany’s high tech TIFF and Oscar entry marries love with robotics

MONTREAL, PQ, Oct. 4. 2021 – After recently appearing at TIFF, I’m Your Man, directed by Maria Schrader, is Germany’s entry in the Foreign Language section of the Oscars for 2022 (its original German title is “Ich bin dein Mensch”). It is a comedy that touches on some very relevant issues in these highly technological times.

Alma (Maren Eggert) is an accomplished researcher at the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. She leads a team investigating ancient cuneiform writing. However, funding for the research project is in danger. In order to get new resources, she agrees to participate in an experiment in which, for three weeks, she would be living with a humanoid named Tom (Dan Stevens). The creature is a robot, but its appearance makes it totally indistinguishable from the flesh and blood types.

Equipped with a sophisticated system and based on algorithms, Tom is designed to learn from the interaction with Alma to act in a way that would always satisfy her demands. Unlike the stereotypical perception of robots —which Tom can even mock— Alma’s humanoid is capable of adapting to her feelings and even engaging in sex with her. “It is like a sensation of dissolve,” Tom says after experiencing an orgasm.

Alma and Tom have the opportunity to share many moments together. Still, the feeling of her being, in fact, alone and just talking to a machine makes the relation very complicated. It poses some critical questions about the meaning of love.

I recommend “I’m Your Man” because of the well-developed balance of humour and reflection on contemporary issues that the film presents. Besides the moments of ironic comments on modern life and our technology-dominated society, this movie also makes us reflect on questions such as love, relationships, and even the meaning of life itself. The settings, especially those scenes shot in large, empty spaces of modern architecture, contribute to creating an atmosphere of cold emptiness, perhaps mirroring our own contemporary lives.

This is a movie that will be especially enjoyed by those who like a comedy that leaves some interesting ethical reflections to discuss after viewing it. Those who want romance, and anyone interested in contemporary German cinema, should also enjoy this film.

This movie is screened in German with English or French subtitles (check movie theatres).

Length: 102 min

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