Her

Her is currently streaming in Australia on Amazon Prime Video and Stan, and in the UK on Netflix, and it earns its premise rather than just borrowing genre trappings. It knows exactly what kind of film it is from the opening scene, and never loses that thread. 15,405 people have weighed in on TMDB, and the verdict leans heavily positive. Joaquin Phoenix sets the tone, and the world-building does the rest. There is no real reason to keep putting it off — it is right there on Amazon Prime Video.

There is a reason Her keeps coming up in conversation. What makes Her work is that the ideas never crowd out the people having them. In the not so distant future, Theodore, a lonely writer, purchases a newly developed operating system designed to meet the user's every need. To Theodore's surprise, a romantic relationship develops between him and his operating system. This unconventional love story blends science fiction and romance in a sweet tale that explores the nature of love and the ways that technology isolates and connects us all. Joaquin Phoenix and Scarlett Johansson lead a cast that never lets the concept overwhelm the characters. Her came out in 2013. The rules of Her's world are consistent enough that the big swings never feel like cheating. The consistency throughout is what elevates it — not every moment is the best, but none of them are a reason to stop watching.

Sci-fi fans who want ideas alongside the spectacle will find Her genuinely rewarding. It stands on its own even without an obvious comparison point. The complete film is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. Joaquin Phoenix anchors it with a performance that makes the more abstract moments feel personal. If you have been burned by ambitious sci-fi before, this is the exception.