Ideally, the name of Asif Kapadia should be enough to get you to watch anything. The man has cemented his place when it comes to documentary filmmaking already—mainly due to the trilogy of Senna (2010), Amy (2015), and Diego (2019), all of which should be considered pinnacles of the genre. Kapadia’s last work about tennis legend Roger Federer’s final days was quite weak in comparison, but that’s no reason to not get excited about his latest—especially when he’s making a La Jetee (1962)-inspired futuristic docudrama. That’s new territory for the filmmaker, by the way, and on paper, 2073 does sound like quite the thing. Sadly, though, the final execution is a mess. Never have I ever thought I would have to check my watch while watching something made by Asif Kapadia, but that’s exactly what happened here. Anyway, the point of the article is to give you an explanation of what you’ve watched, so let’s get into it.
What happens in the docudrama?
The year is 2073, and the world looks quite apocalyptic. Kapadia’s vision of the future is not much different from what we see in your usual dystopian sci-fi movies. In fact, the lack of uniqueness in the presentation is actually disappointing—the same old ruined cityscape, unnecessary sepia tint, and scary-looking drones all over the sky. I did notice a billboard showing Ivana Trump—who’s the president of current America, which is a nice touch. The story is set in New San Francisco, which is the government HQ. Our lead character is a rebel, though. She calls herself Ghost, lives off the grid, and compares her life to that of characters from graphic novels. Ghost is not alone; she is part of a community of people who haven’t given in to the authoritarian government. They live in the tunnels in order to hide from the law. For the rebels, life is mostly about scrapping, scavenging, and surviving. However, there’s another thing they must preserve: memories—of a world of art, culture, compassion, and freedom.
How did it all happen?
The story now goes to flashback, and this is where Kapadia gets to show his mastery—by using real footage from the time we’re living in. The answer to the question is pretty simple and very depressing. Fascism is at the center of it. Kapadia does not hold back showing us the true face of right-wing fundamentalism as well as red autocracy—what you see shouldn’t be unfamiliar to you (unless you’re living under a rock), no matter what part of the world you’re from—China, India, the USA, or Brazil. We get a glimpse of most of the villains—unsurprisingly, they’re all political leaders from our generation only, who are as popular as any Instagram influencers thanks to their respective IT cells. Speaking of that, the use of technology by these oppressors is highlighted here as well. So it’s how some of the tech giants and businessmen are getting unbelievably powerful and decoding the course of the world.
We also see snippets from interviews given by renowned journalists like Rana Ayub, who have been threatened by governments they’ve been critical of. And it is very frustrating to watch, considering how we all have been part of the same world and we know that we’re going down altogether. I found it particularly troubling because I have always been pretty vocal about any sort of oppression, and I’m sure it’s the same for many of you. But the problem here, however, is the constant back and forth between the fictional future narrative and the gritty documentary narrative of the present, which don’t quite gel well together. There are some scenes that do move you, though—like the shot of the body of a little kid washing up on shore.
Is there a solution?
If this was a sci-fi feature, we would have probably found one. But Kapadia’s film sticks close to reality, even with the futuristic angle in it. So it’s futile to expect a solution to the problem here. And I don’t think the director has even tried to provide us one. Rather, it is more about awareness. We know what’s happening, and we need to think about what can be done in order to save the future. 2073, in fact, begins with a call for help from Ghost, who believes she is too late already, but whoever is listening to her recording still has some time, maybe?
If you think about it, there’s a solution, though. We do hear about that from Ghost. She doesn’t explicitly say it out loud, but she does mention that she expects one day there will be a tussle between those who want to follow the system and those who want to stand against it. I suppose the only way we can prevent something like 2073 is by asking questions and making other people do so. Confronting our situation is perhaps the only way we can save the world; otherwise, it will all be gone. That’s what Kapadia is trying to convey here, which is pretty clear to me, but the execution could have been way better.
The La Jetée Comparison
I sincerely don’t think this is needed at all, but since 2073 is marketed as something inspired by Chris Marker’s iconic French featurette, we have to touch upon that a bit. If we think about the fact that the structure of both the films is sort of the same, then the comparison does make a bit of sense. In case you’re wondering, “La Jetée” revolves around time traveling in future Paris, where a group of scientists tries to find a way to save the world by sending the protagonist to different time periods. I cannot say more about it, because I want you all to watch it and can guarantee that your minds will be blown. Despite using still photographs, “La Jetée” managed to pull off a form of narrative that was never seen before. For its originality and impact on modern-day cinema, it is often regarded as one of the greatest pieces of media ever created. Kapadia’s latest film is not even a shadow of that, and by no means am I trying to insult it.
What happens to Ghost in the end?
Ghost was never going to survive anyway. 2073 is not your typical summer blockbuster sci-fi where the heroes win. So she gets caught by the end and gets detained. The interrogation scene is nicely done, by the way, where you (and Ghost) only see a camera with a blinking light. We also find out that someone is watching Ghost on an analogue television screen—which is a hint of technology not particularly progressing much in the future, or maybe degenerating. As for Ghost, she remains silent for the entire time. That’s the only resilience she can show given the circumstances. We don’t know what happens to her in the end, but it clearly doesn’t look good for her.