What if aliens invaded Earth but all they really wanted to do was use us for entertainment? That’s the basic premise of the new film, “Landscape with Invisible Hand.”
As seen in the trailer for the film, “Landscape with Invisible Hand” tells the story of two teenagers who fall in love. And to help earn some extra money, they decide to use their love as entertainment for aliens who have come to Earth. You see, these aliens are highly advanced but they lack the capacity for emotion, so they find entertainment in watching humans fall in love. But what happens when you fall out of love and try to pretend for the broadcast?
The film stars Asante Blackk, Kylie Rogers, and Tiffany Haddish. ‘Landscape’ is written and directed by Cory Finley. The filmmaker is probably best known for his previous films, “Thoroughbreds” and “Bad Education.”
We were able to see the film at its debut during Sundance, and in our review, we said, “But ‘Landscape with Invisible Hand’ is, at best, an ambitious failure. Finley’s first films were notable for their prickly, tart dialogue and a firm sense of characterization—he wrote and directed movies that were interested in people, in their motivations and contradictions and the terrible things they were willing to do to each other (and themselves). Here, working on a larger canvas with the concerns of genre and special effects, he just seems lost.”
“Landscape with Invisible Hand” debuts in theaters on August 18. You can watch the trailer below.
Here’s the synopsis:
Years into a benevolent alien occupation of Earth, the human race is still adjusting to the new world order and its quirky coffee table-sized overlords called the Vuvv. Their flashy advanced technology initially held promise for global prosperity, but rendered most human jobs – and steady income – obsolete. When 17-year-old artist Adam Campbell (Asante Blackk) and new girlfriend Chloe Marsh (Kylie Rogers) discover the Vuvv are particularly fascinated with human love and will pay for access to it, they decide to livestream their budding romance to make extra cash for themselves and their families. Life is good, for a while, until the flame of their teenage love fizzles out and they’re forced to make very different, absurdly life-altering sacrifices for their families.