The Assessment

Vikander, perhaps recognizing how tantalizingly different this type of role is for her, turns Virginia into an unsettling tour de force of disciplined abandon.

A provocative and sometimes squirm-inducingly funny sci-fi that gives its three leads lots of juicy material to chew on, with Vikander, in particular, turning her Virginia into a compellingly inscrutable, but not entirely unsympathetic, antagonist.

The first feature from [Fleur Fortuné] has a ton of style, and signals from the beginning her confident use of framing, texture and color.

Prioritizing aesthetics over narrative, the film offers only superficial hints of a society riven by class and authoritarian politics.

The performances are first-rate, particularly those of Vikander and Olsen, waging a war of wills — the tension is palpable.

The Assessment works its way through intriguing conundrums about the motivations and qualifications of parenthood, as well as the power dynamics at play between parents and children.

“The Assessment” is not entirely unpredictable, but it is absorbing for most of its runtime, and it is refreshing to have a dystopian tale that does not require a plethora of special effects.



Vikander, whose still astounding work in the modern sci-fi classic Ex Machina feels most relevant to some of what she is doing here, is a menace in the best possible sense with layers upon layers to her performance.

The Assessment doesn’t have the heft to fully maximize the potential of its premise, its entertaining eccentricities dulled by its disappointing shallowness.

Chilling because it's both outlandish and alarmingly grounded and plausible, this sci-fi drama is likely to be scrutinized in your own dome long after the credits roll.