Little Joe
Scientist Alice (Emily Beecham, winner of Best Actress at Cannes) develops new plants for a commercial bio company. She is very proud to have come up with a revolutionary innovation: an eye-catching red indoor plant that gives off a pollen that makes you happy. Breaking all the company rules, she takes home a prototype of the anti-depression plant. She names it after her teenage son: Little Joe.
Little Joe really does make people happier – but what are the side-effects? In this chilling thriller, the people exposed to the plant seem like cold-blooded zombies, who except for happiness feel no emotions at all. Austrian auteur Jessica Hausner (Lourdes, Amour fou) uses an oppressive, almost clinical visual style to put across the anaesthetising effects of this mysterious plant. Her first English-language film is a contemporary answer to Invasion of the Body Snatchers and a sinister reflection on the anti-depressants industry, genetically modified products and experimental bio-medical innovations. The screening on Wed 29 Jan is part of Erasmus Tiger College.
Film details
- Countries of production
- Austria, Germany, United Kingdom
- Year
- 2019
- Festival edition
- IFFR 2020
- Length
- 105'
- Medium/Format
- DCP
