Visionary filmmaker David Cronenberg (A History of Violence, Eastern Promises, Crash) reunites with Viggo Mortensen for the twisted sci-fi thriller Crimes of the Future. The one-minute trailer for the Neon release sets up the vibe without giving away too much while, at the same time, teasing a bleak future for humans.
Writer/director David Cronenberg described Crimes of the Future as a meditation on human evolution. “Specifically – the ways in which we have had to take control of the process because we have created such powerful environments that did not exist previously. Crimes of the Future is an evolution of things I have done before. Fans will see key references to other scenes and moments from my other films. That’s a continuity of my understanding of technology as connected to the human body. Technology is always an extension of the human body, even when it seems to be very mechanical and non-human. A fist becomes enhanced by a club or a stone that you throw – but ultimately, that club or stone is an extension of some potency that the human body already has.
At this critical junction in human history, one wonders – can the human body evolve to solve problems we have created? Can the human body evolve a process to digest plastics and artificial materials not only as part of a solution to the climate crisis, but also, to grow, thrive, and survive,” stated Cronenberg.
In addition to three-time Oscar nominee Viggo Mortensen, the cast includes Léa Seydoux (No Time to Die), Kristen Stewart (Spencer), Don McKellar (Blindness), Scott Speedman (Grey’s Anatomy), Tanaya Beatty (Yellowstone), Nadia Litz (Big Muddy), Lihi Kornowski (Losing Alice), and Welket Bungué (Berlin Alexanderplatz).
Cronenberg’s behind the scenes team includes editor Christopher Donaldson, production designer Carol Spier, director of photography Douglas Koch, and costume designer Mayou Trikerioti.
The Crimes of the Future Plot, Courtesy of Neon:
In a not-so-distant future, humankind is learning to adapt to its synthetic surroundings. Their biological makeup changed, many humans have adapted to life with “Accelerated Evolution Syndrome” thanks partly to specialized equipment that aids in everything from eating to sleeping.
Beloved performance artist Saul Tenser sleeps in a womb-like bed suspended in mid-air. The OrchidBed, as it’s called, comes complete with software to anticipate, and adjust his every bodily need. The machine even detects the growth of new organs, which Saul’s creative partner Caprice can observe and tattoo in his personal operating theatre. Together, Saul and Caprice have turned the discovery and removal of these new body organs into performance art, via sold-out voyeuristic surgical shows using a sarcophagus-like machine where the surgeries take place.
These human evolutionary changes do not receive universal positivity. Before long, a new secret government entity is established – the National Organ Registry, led by bureaucrats Wippet and Timlin – to discreetly track new organ growths, with particular enthusiasm for Saul’s artistic anomalies.
With increased scrutiny on the syndrome and therefore his art, Saul is forced to consider what would be his most shocking performance of all.
