‘Bliss’ Review: A High Concept, Under-Designed
#masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusBest of Amazon PrimeBest Netflix DocumentariesNew on NetflixAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main story‘Bliss’ Review: A High Concept, Under-DesignedNot even the charisma of Owen Wilson and Salma Hayek could energize this science-fiction film about telekinetic drifters.Owen Wilson and Salma Hayek in “Bliss.”Credit…Hilary Bronwyn Gayle/Amazon StudiosFeb. 4, 2021, 7:00 a.m. ET”Bliss”Directed by Mike CahillDrama, Romance, Sci-FiR1h 43mFind TicketsWhen you purchase a ticket for an independently reviewed film through our site, we earn an affiliate commission.Greg (Owen Wilson) begins the science-fiction film “Bliss” at the end of his rope. He’s in the middle of a divorce and has just been fired from his job when he meets a mysterious woman at a bar. Her name is Isabel (Salma Hayek), and with a wave of her wrist, she shows Greg that she has a telekinetic ability to manipulate reality.Isabel promises a bewildered Greg that the world he believes to be real is a simulation. They are the only real people among fakes.“Bliss” doesn’t try to poke holes in Isabel’s reality-altering claims; it’s plain that Isabel’s powers have material effects. She shows Greg how to light fire at a distance, how to crumple a car with his mind — and the writer and director Mike Cahill creates practical effects that look real enough to confirm Isabel’s story.[embedded content]Cahill previously explored the idea of multiple universes in his film, “Another Earth,” but in this movie, he flounders with creating a sensory experience to match the story’s cerebral ideas. Greg and Isabel gallivant around a dingy, dark Los Angeles and entertain dreams of the better, cleaner, realer world that lies outside the simulation. But when Cahill gets a chance to show the audience what that true home might look like, it’s as color-corrected, underlit and under-designed as the reality they abandoned.There may be a way to justify the shoddiness of the movie’s images with a high-concept explanation — maybe it’s intentional that no matter what reality Greg and Isabel occupy, it looks grubby, flimsy and fake. But “Bliss” fails to engage the senses, resulting in cinematic disappointment.BlissRated R for drug use as a metaphor, language and brief sexual content. Running time: 1 hour 43 minutes. Watch on Amazon.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More
