London Film Festival 2024 Review: The Assessment – “At times, the film plays out like a twisted chamber piece.”

Prospective parenthood is a nightmare for one couple in this dystopian, near-future society. Scientist couple Mia (Elizabeth Olsen) and Aaryan (Himesh Patel) live and work in their modernist home overlooking a desolate beach, she cultivates food, and he creates virtual pets. Their luxury, gadget-filled home seems pointless in a post climate-disaster world. Biological parenthood is impossible, so the state must decide whether they would have access to a gro-bag baby.

The couple have been accepted to take part in The Assessment, and most of the action takes place over the seven-day evaluation period. Enter Virginia (Alicia Vikander), who turns up with her scraped back-bun and clipped delivery, like a Victorian governess who will assess everything about the couple’s life over the next seven days. And she does mean everything.

There’s a touch of Ex Machina about The Assessment, and not just because of Vikander. The visuals and world-building have a pulpy, Alex Garland feel, with buildings and tech as symbols of a wider picture. Darker authoritarianism is hinted at but not really seen. Dissidents are exiled to live in “The Old World,” without access to clean water and breathable air, one of whom happens to be Mia’s mum.

Back to the evaluation. Virginia shape shifts between stern-faced assessor, proxy child – throwing tantrums and breaking things, and sexually predatory third. She blurs the lines so often – the couple can’t be sure what is procedure and what isn’t.

At times, the film plays out like a twisted chamber piece. A darkly comic dinner scene is some much-needed levity from the oppressive tones, especially the acid-tongued retorts from Minnie Driver and Indira Varma. The Assessment is at its best when exposing the cracks in the central couple’s relationship.

Frustratingly, the film touches on but doesn’t fully explore the more existential elephant in the room: Why continue to populate such a bleak world? “The Old World” sounds something akin to The Colonies in The Handmaid’s Tale, but is “The New World” so much better?

Life seems to consist of little more than cultivation of vegetation in greenhouses, working and jumping through absurd hoops in the hope of raising a child – so they can continue this miserable semi-existence. It’s also quite difficult to care about characters who seem underdeveloped. Virginia has more layers than either Aaryan or Mia, but we never fully figure her out either.

The Assessment is director Fleur Fortune’s first feature. She has directed music videos for the likes of M83 and Connan Mockasin. Fortune is an aesthete with an eye for interesting angles and creating a sense of claustrophobia – it will be great to see what she can do with a more developed story.