Instead of a typical alien invasion, LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND asks – what if the aliens who took over were colonizers? What if they believed that they were helping Earth, providing (or rather, selling) medical advancements, technologies centuries out of our grasp, and “educating” us on the galaxy at large instead of our silly little human histories?
The poster and trailer for this film are misleading; the film is largely episodic, and the stated premise of the movie as a young adult love story is only one of these episodes. We follow teenager and artist Adam Campbell (Asante Blackk) and his family dealing with the unemployment and poverty the alien conquest has unintentionally wrought. Adam’s mom, Beth (Tiffany Haddish), was a lawyer, and the father of the Marsh family, staying in their basement, a former accountant, both of whom have their jobs rendered useless. They now rely on their respective children, Adam and Chloe, to broadcast their relationship in a not-so-subtle critique of internet culture and reality TV.
LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND is bolstered by an incredibly unique story, strong performances, and a darkly comedic undertone. It doesn’t resolve itself, but given it’s a commentary on colonization and capitalism, is there even a resolution? At a brisk 105-minute runtime, LANDSCAPE won’t ever leave you feeling bored, but it may leave you feeling disappointed.
LANDSCAPE WITH INVISIBLE HAND is now playing in theaters.
