Finch. Movie Review and Analysis. 2021 Movie
Summary of the post
The following summary includes the list of the topics we will cover in our post related to “Finch”
- Introduction
- The Story
- Trailer
- Review, Analysis and Insights – (Spoilers Begin)
- Pros, Cons, Best Scene and Final Rating
- Where you can watch Finch
Finch – Introduction
2021 is an important year for Apple movie’s production. They released interesting films, well-directed and written, such as Cherry and CODA. Finch adds more value to the catalogue because it’s a piece of art with many suitable lessons to learn and enjoy. And we want to help you to discover them with our analysis.
Released in November 2021, Finch lasts for one hour and fifty-five minutes. It belongs to drama, adventure and sci-fi categories, and the director is Miguel Sapochnik. You probably know him, as Sapochnik directed some episodes of “Game of Thrones,” such as “The Bells” (2019), “Battle of the Bastards” (2016) and “The Winds of Winter” (2016).
Finch is a journey to discover life and the essential elements of it. Finch brings relevant topics on the screen, including just one actor (Tom Hanks), a dog and two robots. It may look like a simple story or static because of the apparent lack of characters, but, trust us, it’s engaging and let us think about our life and purpose. So let’s dive into the story.
Finch – Details about the movie
| Release Date | November 2021 in the U.S.A. |
| Country | USA – United Kingdom |
| Genre | Crime – Comedy – Action |
| Duration | 1 hour and 55 minutes |
| Director | Miguel Sapochnkik |
| Actors | Tom Hanks (Finch) – Caleb Landry Jones (Jeff) – Marie Wagenman (Daughter) |
Finch – The Story
We are in a post-apocalyptical world. A solar flare destroyed the ozone, making life almost impossible on earth. Finch is one of the few survivors, and he struggles to take care of his health, his dog and his robotic friend Duwei. Finch’s skills as an engineer are good. Therefore he spent his time building a robot to take care of his dog Goodyear once he will be gone.
Tornados, storms and the dangers on earth push Finch to move from its forte and find a new, safer destination. So, the journey begins for them and us. There is a lot to discover, even after an apocalypse.
- How will the new robot behave?
- Will Finch succeed on his mission?
- And how is life living during the night?
Finch – The Trailer
Finch – Review, Analysis and Insights
(SPOILERS BEGIN – Watch the movie and then enjoy it and let us know your opinion)
We mentioned that Finch teaches us vital lessons, and we will break down the ones that we think are essentials to appreciate the most of the movie.
1. A journey through life to discover common sense
Common sense is the key to understand the movie. We learn about it during the film. Every time, our characters need to pay the price for their mistakes. But not only them, let us explain.
The denunciation of the climate crisis
In 2021 we have already watched and reviewed “The Tomorrow War.” The Amazon’s production showed us how we are harming ourselves, destroying the planet and our existence. Finch goes a step forward. It shows us what the world will look like if we don’t take immediate actions to reset the countdown, which will destroy us.
The movie’s beginning is apocalyptical, and we immediately understand the gravity of the situation. The only humans who survived the apocalypse can go out only during the night when the radiations are lower. The only one we see moving around is the clever Finch, who built his protections to find food to survive.
The film denounces what could happen in a few years, where the earth temperature could rise to 70 degrees Celsius or 150 Fahrenheit. Then, the sun will fry us alive because we won’t have the ozone anymore to protect us. Finch demonstrates all of this when he burns his hand on purpose to show the consequences to Jeff.
Like in “The Tomorrow War,” humans are the cause of their troubles. And it’s even crazier if we think that we are responsible for our choices. Like when Jeff goes into the building to collect food. Being greedy cost a lot to Jeff. Especially when he tried to steal a lot of food on its own. Dewei died because Jeff didn’t take care of it. Jeff also brought dangers to Finch and Goodyear’s lives because the humans started to follow them. Jeff learnt a lot from this terrible experience.
We are like Jeff, greedy and unable to see the risk where we are heading. Our greedy politicians prefer to keep their positions instead of forcing a real climate plan to reconvert energy production. The difference between Jeff and us is that he understood the lesson. Unfortunately, we are still greedy and distracted from reality. But is this the world we want for us and our future generations? We don’t think so. But, again, it’s a matter of common sense.
Humans are cruel
If reading the above section, you developed a sad feeling about humans, then wait because the film provides more facts. Finch’s stories are a light motive during the movie. They help us understand life and learn something, and Finch knows it; this is the way he uses it to teach Jeff.
Finch tells Jeff how he met Goodyear. It’s a sad story of survival and selfishness because humans have no mercy, even for children. Another fact Finch explains to Jeff is how his father disappeared from Finch’s life, not once but twice. First, when Finch was a baby. Then, creating a heartbreaking illusion, after he sent the postcard to him looking to meet each other and, instead, never showing himself again.
We rarely see people during the whole movie, but we can feel them. And always in the dangerous moments. Humans are creatures of contradictions, said Finch. We can only agree with him considering, for example, how aware we are of the climate crisis and no one is forcing actions.
However, if humans can kill children, abandon their sons, and destroy their environment, it means we are miles away from robots because Jeff will teach us something.
Finch vs Jeff. Who is the robot? The power of artificial intelligence.
When Finch built Jeff, he didn’t have enough time to transfer all the information to Jeff. But that didn’t stop Jeff from learning; instead, he combines everything he knew with everything Finch tells him and, most importantly, with the lessons learned by its mistakes. Artificial intelligence is one of the powerful topics the movie brings on the screen. Jeff learns how to walk, stand up, drive, and take care of Goodyear.
If we thought this was science fiction, we were wrong. Artificial intelligence is a reality that is going to change our world forever. We suggest you to check how many suggestions your mobile phone provides you during the day, without your request. Robots will do our job and will interact with us. They will be part of our lives, and they will learn to suit your needs better. And it’s curious to see how Finch doesn’t like the theatre, while Jeff, yes. But also how curious is Jeff and, instead, Finch is not.
For example, Jeff wants to discover the world, learn as much as he can, while a sad Finch will understand this lesson too late, unfortunately. Finch is robotic in his approach to life. He calculates everything, and this is the reason why he can survive. Jeff, instead, learns through mistakes, although he should know how to calculate the risks. And that seems the proof that life is something you learn while living this incredible journey that it’s life.
Unfortunately, Finch followed only once his instinct instead of his calculation, costing them their van and lives, where they remained stuck under a bridge. Finch is always harsh to Jeff because he thinks this is the proper way to teach him. Instead, Jeff cares for Finch’s reactions, and therefore he is sad and wants to improve himself to become better and make Finch proud of him.
Most of the time, Jeff seems more human than Finch. He learnt the importance of adapting to his people. Therefore, Jeff tries to understand how Goodyear speaks to better communicate with the dog in a funny scene. We can discuss Finch’s methodology to teach Jeff how to live, but he definitely succeeds in it.
2. What is trust? And why it’s crucial.
Finch couldn’t find a way to define trust. He tried through a story, but Jeff didn’t understand it. We know that Finch didn’t like humans because of the cruelty we explained above. Finch can’t trust people because they are a danger. When Jeff tries to tell him that he can’t be sure that all the people are the same, Finch gets nervous and badly closes the conversation with Jeff.
There is only one way to explain the movie and trust: Goodyear.
Dogs are the answer to a better world. Although Goodyear doesn’t trust Jeff initially, he appreciates how Jeff takes care of the sick Finch. How Jeff learnt to drive and Goodyear understands that they can be friends. Goodyear never leaves Finch side, especially in the heartbreaking scene when Finch dies.
Trust is something that dogs can teach us in their infinite love for humans. And that’s the reason why Finch wants to protect dogs more than people for the future of the earth. A world with more dogs and robots, sadly, seems better.
3. American Pie, a light motive that closes the circle
The movie starts and ends on the notes of “American Pie” by Don McLean. As the author explained in February 2015, the song describes a world heading in the wrong direction. Life was becoming less idyllic in 2015. Who knows what Mr McLean would think after watching Finch because the scenario is even worse than the one he described.
For McLean, “the day that the music died” was when a plane crash killed in 1959 the rock and roll stars Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens. In Finch, the music represents something more. It’s life and that happiness we had that we have lost because of our mistakes. Finch is another alert for our society because tackling climate changes must change.
The risk is that it won’t be only music to die, but also our species and life. “This will be the day that I die” was singing the song. Therefore let’s not stop the music because we still want to dance in this world.
Pros, Cons, Best Scene and Final Rating
Pros
As we promised, there is a lot to learn watching Finch. The director and the whole cast did a fantastic job. We need to remember that we had only three characters during the entire film, and two of them were a dog and a robot. Finch focuses on exploring and learning life, like in a journey where we need to find the poetry of our Golden Gate Bridge.
And, therefore, the movie lets us explore love, friendship, trust. And it’s heartwarming discovering the unique relationship our characters built between them. The cinematography, photography and special effect are top-notch. The music is excellent, and Tom Hanks is a one-man show. If a movie combines all of these pieces, it delivers its purpose.
Best Scene
It’s challenging to pick one scene in such a beautiful movie. Anyway, we want to highlight when Jeff tried to learn driving and almost exposed Finch and Goodyear to the radiations. Finch gets mad at him, but Jeff doesn’t get offended. Instead of complaining, he learns his mistake and the day after, he takes care of the sick Finch and starts to gain Goodyear trust. It’s an excellent lesson in humility and intelligence. Maybe we need more artificial intelligence for us too?
Cons
The story has some holes, like the swiss cheese ozone. For example, how they can travel in the van at 70 degrees? How Finch and Goodyear can resist that temperature? And how does a machine learning system learn so much data and behaviour in just a few hours? However, we forgive those points because they are pointless in front of what the film wanted to deliver. But also because a movie is a fiction. So let’s dream while watching the film because this music, which is our life, must never die.
Our final rating is
8.5/10
Where can you watch Finch?
You can currently watch Playing God on Apple. But check this link to see where you can watch it in your country.
Follow Spot a Movie to spot the best movies with us
Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest, Reddit, Instagram, Flipboard, Tumblr, Medium
