Mr. Nobody
2009 · Directed by Jaco Van Dormael
Original language: English
- science fiction
- drama
- romance
The story
Nemo Nobody leads an ordinary existence with his wife and 3 children; one day, he wakes up as a mortal centenarian in the year 2092.
What it’s like
Saturated, shifting color is the signature here: a glossy, widescreen Belgian-French look that jumps from the sterile whites and steel of a 2092 future hospital to warm amber kitchens, rain-slick Brussels streets and a dreamlike, fluorescent-lit lakeside world of sparkling water and fractured light. Camera moves are restless and inventive, with split screens, sweeping tracking shots and playful visual rhymes that repeat across timelines, all set to a lush, swelling orchestral score and a bright, dreamy piano motif. Its vibe is wistful and kaleidoscopic, a dreamy puzzle that feels both melancholic and hopeful, best suited to a slow Sunday afternoon or a late night when you want to be carried away. The pacing is long and unhurried, looping back on itself as branching versions of one man's life unspool, and the emotional register swings between tender and quietly devastating. Its central figure, an aging man reckoning with his choices and the people he loved, is shaped by longing and regret. Intensity is low: there is some sexual content and a few sad, bittersweet deaths, but no real gore or cruelty, and the one jolting moment is a wrenching scene rather than violence. For people who want thoughtful, visually rich science fiction about love, chance and the lives not chosen.
More films like Mr. Nobody
Closest in mood, pacing and theme. Tell us why you loved Mr. Nobodyand we’ll explain which ones fit you.
