HCA Gradebook: “Crimes of the Future”

Film: Crimes of the Future

Plot: Humans adapt to a synthetic environment, with new transformations and mutations. With his partner Caprice, Saul Tenser, celebrity performance artist, publicly showcases the metamorphosis of his organs in avant-garde performances.

Cast: Léa Seydoux, Kristen Stewart, Viggo Mortensen, Scott Speedman, and Don McKellar

Director: David Cronenberg

Release Date: June 2, 2022

Studio: Neon

HCA Overall Grade: B-

Number of Grades: 13 

Fiona Underhill says “Cronenberg is back, baby! Absolutely no one is doing it like him. His ideas, his mind, his unique way of seeing the world and yes, the future. Pretty sure he wrote this before we all found out that our bloodstreams are basically made of microplastics. Kristen Stewart is extraordinary here. And the Howard Shore score blew my head clean off. This has immediately become my film of the year. I hope and pray that Cronenberg makes films for a long time to come.” 

Grade: A+

Brian Formo says “Crimes of the Future is both eerie and endlessly fascinating. I came for the body horror but come out the other side thinking of the future of the planet, of the future of our creative cultures — two horrors so large that we cannot seem to tackle them. I went in expecting to be disgusted and uneasy, and I left feeling like I’d instead been granted admission to a beautiful mind. Maybe I’m sick in the head but this ended up being one of the more body positive/human positive movies I’ve seen in our modern era. It eased me into ugliness but instead of reflecting it back it came out the other side.”

Grade: A

Nikki Fowler says “Léa Seydoux, Viggo Mortensen and Kristen Stewart were brilliant in David Cronenberg’s dystopian film, Crimes Of The Future. Technology merges with the human body in this dark, twisted and squeamish story, as ‘art’ provokes and questions the future of the human life form. Would have loved to have seen more development on supporting characters. I felt a few scenes were unnecessary offering just shock factor when the film had more than enough visual stimulation already, which broke the flow of the story for me. Overall an intriguing film and left wanting to see more.”

Grade: B+

Aaron Neuwirth says “Accompanied by Cronenberg’s particular brand of weird, this film is certainly a return to the abstract and, at times, gross sci-fi designs that haven’t been seen by him since 1999’s eXistenZ. It holds together thanks to great work from the cast and the films commitment to dry humor and finding meaning in the grotesque.”

Grade: B+

Erik Anderson says “Crimes of the Future may not be as provocative as it thinks it is, it almost feels like a lateral move for Cronenberg, but it has some interesting ideas about sexuality, evolution and environmentalism. The cast seemed game for more. I loved everything Kristen Stewart was doing, which felt at times like a very intentional parody of how she is sometimes perceived as an actor.”

Grade: B

Matthew Neglia says “The world-building of David Cronenberg’s Crimes of the Future hooked me with its dissection of human evolution & how it connects to the earth, sex & technology. Viggo Mortensen & Léa Seydoux’s characters & relationship are fascinating. Highly imaginative score, production design & makeup but it ultimately left me wanting more. Feels like there’s 15 minutes missing which could’ve fleshed out these characters & side plots more.”

Grade: B-

Chauncey K. Robinson says “The new science-fiction horror film Crimes of the Future is one that will make many who watch it uncomfortable. Not only because of its graphic depiction of body horror, but due to the questions the film poses regarding what it means to be human and the future of our kind. It’s an imperfect movie with an alluring atmosphere and grotesque charm. The true crux of the film seems to deal with how our society, and those in power, have a tendency to stand in the way of progress. It’s a bizarre ride of a movie that may be too weird for some and too unclear in its intention for others.”

Grade: B- 

Gisela Savdie says “Cronenberg submerges us in a Saramago-like universe, where the lack of physical pain creates the need for another kind of pain.”

Grade: B- 

Cole Jaeger says “An intriguing return to body horror from Cronenberg, brimming with fascinating ideas and creative world building. Unfortunately it becomes over-reliant in exposition and ends before it finds its footing. It felt like the first episode to a mini series, like there was more behind the curtain that I didn’t get to see.”

Grade: C+

Nancy Tapia says “Crimes of the Future opens another perspective of what art is. Reminding there are zero limits to the imagination.”

Grade: C

David Gonzalez says “Ultimately, the biggest crime in David Cronenberg’s Crimes of the Future is failed potential. In clamoring and hoping for a vintage throwback to Cronenberg classics of yesteryear, cinephiles are privy to a tame, uninteresting, and dull entity.”

Grade: C-

Jami Philbrick says “Crimes of the Future delivers classic David Cronenberg themes that ultimately fail to resonate. A combination of eXistenZ and Crash, Cronenberg’s latest film has fascinating characters and an interesting story but gets buried by its own deliberate weirdness.”

Grade: C-

Scott Menzel says “Crimes of the Future touches upon some interesting ideas that only David Cronenberg would dare to tackle. Unfortunately, the script doesn’t flesh out those ideas quite enough and as a result, the entire film comes across as rather aimless. It may sound strange to say but for a Cronenberg film, Crimes of the Future is simply not weird enough. The film was marketed as something that was suppose to be so “out there” and “shocking” but I didn’t feel that when watching it. Cronenberg fails to dive deep into the concept, therefore, this a film that was already seen to alienate the majority of audiences, but may also divide hardcore fans of his work.” 

Grade: C-

Crimes of the Future is now playing in limited release