It is a pretty good bet to go see a movie knowing one thing: it stars Elizabeth Olsen. This was my strategy when I decided to see The Assessment at the film festival this year, given that I missed last year’s hidden gem which also starred Olsen, His Three Daughters. Director Fleur Fortuné’s feature film debut The Assessment is anything but alike to Olsen’s latest work, taking her out of the MCU or her character’s father’s apartment and placing her into a bleak, dreary future, alongside co-stars Alicia Vikander and Himesh Patel. In this future, couples must complete and pass a secretive 7-day test, called the assessment, before they are allowed to have children. When the couple Mia (Olsen) and Aaryan (Patel) begin their mystery test with Virginia (Vikander) as their assessor, it is clear from day-1 that this is no ordinary assessment. With stunning visuals that truly isolate the audience and our characters, as well as shocking performances from all involved, especially Vikander, The Assessment is one to watch out for, that might not be for everyone, but is guaranteed to have jaws dropping until the end.

Living in a future world destroyed by climate change, Mia and Aaryan decide they want to have children, and must pass an assessment before they are allowed to do so. If they fail, they as a couple are never allowed to take the test again. Their assessor, Virginia, arrives, and is anything but ordinary, placing the couple through relentless hours of tests and role-playing, in this test that everyone who wants children must complete, but no one is allowed to discuss. For days, Mia and Aaryan question what is truly part of the test, and grapple with the outcomes the test has on their own relationship, before Virginia is able to reveal whether they passed, and continue on to the next couple.

It is clear that a film like this one, so isolated and solely focussed on just three characters, is riding headily on its performances. I, for one, was always expecting Elizabeth Olsen to deliver. She perfectly captures the anxiety that would fill us all were we put in this situation, complementing her partner Himesh Patel as the more laid-back dad character that seems to (somehow) have it all figured out, even though he clearly doesn’t. What I was not expecting was the force that is Alicia Vikander to completely get under my skin in almost every scene she is in, playing a character that becomes something so uncanny and unusual that to say anything about it would be to ruin the whole experience. I will be curious to see how they market this film going forward, if trailers will include aspects of Virginia’s character that I believe worked so well on me because they were so out-of-left-field with what I was expecting but completely worked.

On top of these stellar performances, there is such a unique way these characters are crafted so succinctly captures three very distinct yet realistic mindsets that people in our society could end up with in a future as bleak as the one presented in The Assessment. Ravaged unliveable by climate change, the “old world” is not a place our characters want to be. Instead they live in the “new world”, governed by many strict rules on consumption and production, including the rule requiring the assessment to approve couples’ requests to have children. Mia, Aaryan, and Virginia all appear, on the surface, to be very in tune with what the new world wants. As the test slowly reveals who they really are, without the mask of assessing or being assessed, quite relatable reactions to a dystopia like this one emerge. We can relate to those who want to look at the new world through rose coloured glasses, hoping for the best even when the system is broken. We can understand those who want to use technology to distract from the oppressive realities in which they live. We are inspired by those who do not agree with the governing body, outwardly disputing them or even deciding to live in the old world. In a unique dinner party sequence, when the world opens up for just a bit, we see so many different reactions reflected in the characters present, pressing us a bit harder to question where our three leads will land in the shocking ending, and who we see ourselves reflected in the most.

All that has been said about this film makes it out to be quite bleak, and honestly, it is. It is a cold and dark film, often surrounding our characters in the literal grey cement walls that build the house around Mia and Aaryan. The ocean they visit is loud and vast, it seems like the sun never comes out, and their home is alone on the seaside, isolated from everyone. We wonder, is this what it’s like for everyone? But in this visual isolation of the characters, we also explore what exactly makes this entire process so bleak and dreary. It forces us to imagine ourselves in this situation, governed by leaders who make rules about what a human body is and is not allowed to do. We relate these rules to those that exist in our very real reality, while also pondering for days after whether we are on the path towards a future reflected in The Assessment. An interaction between Mia and Virginia near the end of the film really drives all these ideas home and truly made me think about what place I would be in had I lived in a world like the one build in this film, but still managed to leave me with a sense of hope, and better understanding of those who may not agree with me, but are simply doing what they need to survive.

It is astonishing to learn that The Assessment is director Fleur Fortuné’s debut feature film. I can’t say enough good things about the performances from stars Elizabeth Olsen and Alicia Vikander, or about the way the set design works to further isolate both the characters and the audience itself from the world outside, driving home an idea that a future like this may not be as far off as one might think. With themes surrounding relationships, being a parent, our responsibility in reversing climate change, mothering, and the different ways we all hold on to hope, The Assessment will crawl under your skin and leave you on the edge of your seat.

The Assessment was screened at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Image Courtesy of TIFF.