Review for ‘CASSANDRA’ by Alexander Manolides

Cassandra, an exceptionally well-crafted short by Alexander Manolides, introduces us to a sci-fi vision of Athens in the immediate future, where a service that purports to predict the future of interpersonal relationships based on an intricate algorithm sows chaos in the protagonist's life

Faced with a terrible vision of her future, the protagonist has to confront dilemmas on the nature of destiny, free will, trust, and the insurmountable curiosity that comes with free access to the future. The short asks to what degree we can maintain control of our lives, our choices and our urges in the face of social expectation, of our preconceptions, of various self-fulfilling prophecies in general. It also subtly touches on issues of trust & the formation of defence mechanisms. Filled with interesting twists and subversions, Cassandra plays like a passionately-crafted adaptation of a dystopian novel, or a Black Mirror episode.

Technically, the film excels in almost all areas. From the excellent cinematography to the dynamic editing and aptly foreboding soundtrack, it leaves little to be desired, aside from some color correction issues. The performances range between excellent, as far as the protagonists are concerned, to less convincing, as is the case with some side characters.

To sum up, Manolides' Cassandra is an aesthetic feast that mixes cyberpunk with Greek tragedy and romance plot with realistic sci-fi, for an end result that's thought-provoking, stylish and nightmarish in equal measure.