The Assistant is such a truly singular viewing experience. It's one of those films where seemingly nothing happens, but in reality it is bristling with microaggressions and subtle power plays that are just fascinating to watch play out.
Julia Garner is superb as the eponymous Assistant, giving such a subtle and understated performance with so much emotion beneath the surface. It's barely worth mentioning the rest of the cast as this is purely Garner's show, but Matthew Macfadyen pops up with a great role in one of the best scenes of the whole piece.
There isn't much to comment on regarding the story as there isn't much of one so to speak. It follows a day in the life of Garner as an assistant at a movie production company, charting the toxic work conditions that exist. It's a film devoid of any big set pieces. It has no real peaks or troughs. No raised voices. No fancy camera work. It is just a frank and stark exploration of the hell that this woman goes through.
In this way I think this film is so immensely gripping. Every interaction has so much to take from it. So much to dissect. It's utterly absorbing in every way.
The Assistant is a very intense and unique viewing experience. I don't think I've ever seen a film that achieved such suspense, drama, and tension, with so little. A remarkable achievement in film making.
Julia Garner is superb as the eponymous Assistant, giving such a subtle and understated performance with so much emotion beneath the surface. It's barely worth mentioning the rest of the cast as this is purely Garner's show, but Matthew Macfadyen pops up with a great role in one of the best scenes of the whole piece.
There isn't much to comment on regarding the story as there isn't much of one so to speak. It follows a day in the life of Garner as an assistant at a movie production company, charting the toxic work conditions that exist. It's a film devoid of any big set pieces. It has no real peaks or troughs. No raised voices. No fancy camera work. It is just a frank and stark exploration of the hell that this woman goes through.
In this way I think this film is so immensely gripping. Every interaction has so much to take from it. So much to dissect. It's utterly absorbing in every way.
The Assistant is a very intense and unique viewing experience. I don't think I've ever seen a film that achieved such suspense, drama, and tension, with so little. A remarkable achievement in film making.
Tell Your Friends