The film is simply this: Gondry, who we all hope will one day finish his adaptation of Philip K Dick’s Ubik, holds several interviews with Chomsky, films parts of them, and provides animation for the rest. The animations are akin to a stream of consciousness, colourful and dreamlike protuberances and stretching body parts accompanying the recorded conversation. It’s a bit like Terry Gilliam’s Monty Python animations but achieved using a box of felt tips, or the Hitchhikers’ Guide To The Galaxy as rendered by children. As Gondry mentions at the start, the abstract unreality of it is also a way for the audience to feel more free to interpret events their own way – filmed documentaries normally capturing the voice of the director and editor more than that of their subjects. Noam Chomsky, meanwhile, is loosely documented in these interviews, with his life story established in a non-linear manner, homing in on certain details via questioning than a general overview of everything. Discussions of the personal are perhaps more affecting for the omissions, and Chomsky’s views on religion and history are accessible for the novice. Basically, it mixes compassion and blunt honesty, showing a great deal more understanding of people than a mere aggressively stated atheism. His sections on Linguistics and Philosophy are also well conveyed, albeit on less well-known matters. Theories of language are not something that feel as intuitively important as religion and racism, though they underpin both of those. As of yet, though, rival Philosophy of Language professors are yet to commit atrocities because they disagree with each other’s equations. While that statement might seem glib, or possibly opaque, it demonstrates that this is a thought provoking peace despite it just being two people sitting down to have a quiet conversation, driven by Gondry’s intrigue about cognitive sciences. It’s not going to be a movie with mainstream appeal (likely to evoke responses of ‘Who?’ ‘What?’ and ‘Why?’), but for those intrigued by either personality, it leaves a series of impressions in many forms, be they of images, concepts, or individuals. An intoxicating combination of style and substance. Follow our Twitter feed for faster news and bad jokes right here. And be our Facebook chum here.
