Rent Downsizing (2017)
2.7 of 5 from 994 ratings
2h 10min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- When scientists find a way to shrink humans to five inches tall, Paul Safranek (Matt Damon) and his wife Audrey (Kristen Wiig) decide to ditch their stressed out lives in order to get small and live large in a luxurious downsized community. Filled with life-changing adventures and endless possibilities, Leisureland offers more than riches, as Paul discovers a whole new world and realises that we are meant for something bigger.
- Actors:
- Matt Damon, Christoph Waltz, Hong Chau, Kristen Wiig, Rolf Lassgård, Ingjerd Egeberg, Udo Kier, Søren Pilmark, Jason Sudeikis, Maribeth Monroe, Jayne Houdyshell, Phil Reeves, James Van Der Beek, Alison J. Palmer, Tim Driscoll, Kristen Thomson, Kevin Kunkel, Patrick Gallagher, Linda M. Anderson, John Reynolds
- Directors:
- Alexander Payne
- Producers:
- Mark Johnson, Jim Taylor, Alexander Payne
- Writers:
- Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor
- Studio:
- Paramount
- Genres:
- Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
- Collections:
- 2018, BAFTA Nominations Competition 2023, CinemaParadiso.co.uk Through Time, Oscar Nominations Competition 2023
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 28/05/2018
- Run Time:
- 135 minutes
- Languages:
- Czech Dolby Digital 5.1, English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1, French Dolby Digital 5.1, German Dolby Digital 5.1, Italian Dolby Digital 5.1, Polish Dolby Digital 5.1, Russian Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
- Subtitles:
- Arabic, Bahasa Malaysian, Cantonese, Chinese, Complex Mandarin, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Korean, Mandarin, Mandarin-Taiwan, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Simplified Mandarin, Slovakian, Spanish, Swedish, Thai, Turkish
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 2.39:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Working with Alexander
- The Cast
- A Visual Journey
- A Matter of Perspective
- That Smile
- A Global Concern
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- Unknown
- Run Time:
- 135 minutes
- Languages:
- English Audio Description, English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
- Subtitles:
- Danish, English, English Hard of Hearing, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish
- DVD Regions:
- Region 2
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 2.39:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
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Reviews (19) of Downsizing
Same old themes re-hashed, like a pastiche of earlier movies! - Downsizing review by CS
I'm not quite sure what the point of this film was and what Matt Damon and Kirsten Wig are doing in such a lame, unoriginal and poor film? Don't get me wrong, it's an ok Sunday afternoon, mindless drivel kind of movie, to while away a wet afternoon, but Blockbuster stuff this is not! Stealing lots of ideas and concepts that have already been done from the 50's onwards, this is little more than the 'Fantastic Voyage (Inner Space)' meets 'The Borrowers' via all the other films that have pinched the same theme in-between. Attempting to make a rather lame point about man and the environment, the storyline explores human relationships on a very light and rather bland level. Kirsten Wig is only in it for the beginning and then does a nasty on Matt leaving him to find his own way in the downsized world. This is supposed to be a comedy, but I didn't find it very funny, a little bit sad, but definitely not funny! And the ending is one of those non endings, that simply leaves you hanging. After watching this I was left asking myself what that was all about and what the point of it all was?!
3 out of 6 members found this review helpful.
Entertaining - Downsizing review by DB
Very interesting and entertaining film. The concept is a good one that hints at bigger questions but doesn't really look to answer them. The film is about unlikely relationships and the impact of humans on our planet and environment. The film is funny, touching and emotional with some great ideas. It is not really open to a sequel but I wanted to see more of the in film universe after the film had finished.
An accomplished, entertaining and enjoyable film with a great cast and a very interesting concept.
3 out of 4 members found this review helpful.
Probably Matt Damons worst film - Downsizing review by CP Customer
There could've been so many angles they could've used, but went for a disjointed dreary one resulting in a pointless unentertaining movie!
2 out of 3 members found this review helpful.
Critic review
Downsizing review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso
Downsizing is most tragic as a sci-fi comedy that begins with big ideas of grand ambitions and quickly shrinks into a sputtering tale of finding hilarity in nihilism. It has a great premise though. To decrease the weight of waste humans use on the planet, scientists develop a technique that can shrink human beings to a smaller size. Requiring less food and making less trash, it seems like an intriguing route to pursue, especially with the attention to detail for how this will affect society. It’s just too bad that by the third act the audience is asking the question “now what?”
Attracted to this new way of life is Paul Safranek (Matt Damon), an occupational therapist who feels his life is too big. While he wants to scale back, his wife (Kristen Wiig) wants to move into a bigger house, despite the two of them not having any children. After speaking with some “downsized” friends, Paul eventually convinces her to go through with the process. Or at least he thinks he does when she decides to pull out at the last minute, leaving Paul all alone in his fancy mansion fit for a tiny human.
Not a bad start to this story, with a newly single guy trying to find something more in a new community. There’s certainly plenty to explore but, of course, Paul happens upon the darker side of downsizing so that there are bigger stakes involved. He trades his mansion for an apartment and tries to find a date while dealing with his noisy neighbor of a Serbian partier (Christoph Waltz). Further tapping into his environmental curiosity is the arrival Ngoc Lan Tran (Hong Chau), a Vietnamese activist who shrunk herself down for a cause in the big world, turned into a maid in the small world Paul now occupies. Desiring to do more, he helps her out on the outskirts of the smaller community where the more unfortunate shrunken live. And from there he discovers a bigger plot about a literally deeper plan for humanity’s survival.
By far the most entertaining aspect of the film is the many layers of how this downsizing move shifts the culture. As more people take the plunge to be small, the economy for the larger world grows unstable, breeding sneering among others about how small people shouldn’t be allowed to vote for not buying the same amount of goods. It’s also clever how the technology is used for immigration and terrorism, where small people can infiltrate a country by housing inside small packages. The very process of downsizing is also pretty clever, requiring the complete removal of hair and teeth for the process to complete without error.
But from these promising beginnings, the story spins out of control by lingering and getting lost on drug trips, turmoil, sex, and the inevitable fall of mankind. It’s really hard to relate to Paul because he seems so aimless and boring as a man who wants to do the right thing when he feels all of humanity is doomed. All he can do is take the plunge, help some poor people, and decide whether or not to go with the next step in mankind’s survival. But does this sound like the journey of an everyman? Where his relationship with Ngoc seems to span pity sex and maybe more?
Downsizing feels criminally underdeveloped, both in what Damon does with the role and how underused Hong Chau feels in what should be more than a supporting player. There’s also a very talented comedic ensemble assembled here that includes Jason Sudeikis, Margo Martindale, Laura Dern, and Neil Patrick Harris. But for all the film presents in an intriguing sci-fi idea, the story amounts to little more than tediously basic cliches. Big ambitions turn up short, where even the absurdity of little people and big objects wears out its welcome.