We're Siri-ous: Joaquin Phoenix falls for a computer in 'Her'

Posted Thursday, August 8, 2013 at 4:26 PM Central
Last updated Thursday, August 8, 2013 at 4:44 PM Central

by John Couture

Admit it. You've had the thought. At some point when communicating with Siri, the intelligent personal assistant with a female voice who is at your beck and call on most newer Apple mobile products, you've wondered what the woman behind the voice actually looks like.

I'll admit it, I've had that thought. Which brings up a good point, why is it a woman's voice? Well, I'm sure Apple did a lot of research into it before deciding on a female voice, but I was shocked to learn that Siri will soon be available as either a male or female voice.

Well, Spike Jonze took that idea and exploded it into a movie. The movie is called Her and Joaquin Phoenix is the lonely guy who starts to fall for his new operating system, voiced by Scarlett Johansson. I'm pretty sure that had ScarJo been the actual voice of Siri, this movie would have happened long ago.

You'll remember Spike Jonze as the quirky director behind Being John Malkovich and it seems that he's building a career out of making beautiful women appear homely. In Being John Malkovich, Cameron Diaz got the "Spike Jonze treatment" and here it's Amy Adams on the business end of a bad hair day.

The trailer is as bizarre and quirky as you would imagine, but the idea really isn't that novel. You've had films such as Lars and the Real Girl and Making Mr. Right that have breached the topic of unconventional relationships in the past. Interestingly, John Malkovich starred in dual roles in Making Mr. Right, thus bringing this story full circle.

Rooney Mara stars as the past love in Joaquin Phoenix's life that has scarred him, while Chris Pratt (and his svelte new figure) and Olivia Wilde also show up in the film, despite not being in the trailer. Her is set to open on November 20 and will most likely be heavily involved in the awards season.

P.S. We didn't even mention Joaquin Phoenix's porn 'stache. We're proud of ourselves for that one.