Felix Greystone (Richard Kind) is forced into early retirement from his job at an architectural firm, which he has devoted his life to. A housebound life proves to be something he can’t adapt to, especially considering he is left to fend for himself after his wife (Susan Blackwell) gets a promotion that requires her to work longer hours, and his daughter (Simone Policano) moving out of home. As a result of his boredom (and a touch of loneliness), he resorts to the retirement gift given to him by his colleagues – an augmented reality companion called Auggie, which takes the form of a young woman only he can see when wearing a pair of technologically-advanced glasses. Suddenly, Felix finds himself making a new friend that may not be entirely real, but at least gives him the attention he craves. The problem comes when that attention turns into affection, and Felix starts to grow increasingly obsessed with his artificial companion, to the point where he becomes detached from reality, neglecting his family and dwelling in a world of romance that doesn’t really exist, with a woman who is merely a construction, based on the intersections of technology and desire. The real world starts to pale in comparison to his fantasies, which brings with it a whole set of problems that put Felix in a precarious position, and the realization that another world may harbour our deepest desires, but is no replacement for the real one.

Auggie is a film very few have seen, and I don’t expect many more will find their way across it on their own, which certainly is a shame, because if this a film that would greatly benefit from wider viewership, because it contains more heart and meaning than the majority of mainstream films that try and explore similar themes. A small and intimate film about human nature and our relationship with technology, Auggie is something special, and while the idea of a lonely man falling in love with an artificial construction may echo Spike Jonze’s brilliant Her (which is almost identical in the underlying plot), the film finds its own way, becoming a quiet and poetic piece that provokes some fascinating discussion and challenges a lot of what we blindly accept to be true. There is so much to love about this film, one that may not be as original as it may think itself to be, but through a wonderful performances, the sentimental storytelling and the interesting approach to a far-fetched them, to the point where it becomes so truthful, is the exact reason why this film deserves to be sought after, rather than stumbled across, which would appear to be the main method in which the few (but passionate) viewers have come to find this film and enjoy its unique and heartfelt exploration of very human themes through the guise of technology.

Richard Kind stealthily gives one of the best performances of the year in Auggie. An actor who has worked for decades as a dedicated character actor in film and on television, but never given the opportunity to take on a lead role quite like this, Kind makes great use of the chance to showcase his talents, and demonstrate that he is far more than just the lovable nebbish that appears in small roles, always making an impact but never lingering on for more than the time necessary. No longer is he existing solely to bolster the seemingly more interesting performances around him, taking on a role that places him at the centre. It is hardly surprising that the result was one of the year’s most endearing performances, a simple but effective portrayal of a man trying his best to navigate a world he is feeling isolated from. Ultimately, if we are to praise Auggie for anything, it should be for the fact that it gave a wonderful character actor like Kind the chance to play a leading role, and prove himself as a gifted actor who can carry a film, even if it is a small one, almost entirely on his shoulders. This is a very special performance, one that sees Kind embodying the nuances and idiosyncrasies of a lonely man in such a natural, convincing way. It’s a simple film, but his performance is so complex and brimming with life, something always lurking below the surface, its singularly impossible to ignore what Kind is doing here. The film may not stand the test of time, but the performance certainly will.

Auggie is one of the many films produced over the years that isolates itself to a time in the near future, and endeavours to show us a vision of a world that is familiar enough for us to be able to relate, but detached from reality in such a way that it can speculate towards what is to come. It’s a sub-genre of science fiction that appears too realistic to be entirely far-fetched but also constructed enough to look at issues from a radically different perspective, which forms a fascinating dynamic that facilitates remarkably complex and resonant social and cultural discussions in terms of where we are heading. Moreover, much like many of these films, Auggie focuses on the relationship between human beings and technology, demonstrating our dependence on the comfort and ease that machinery can bring to us, and how easy it is for it to take over and consume us. As technology progresses, it becomes more human, and as a result, we’re naturally drawn to it because of the benefits it offers – artificial intelligence is a field that only increases exponentially with each new attempt to bridge the gap between humanity and technology. Auggie challenges this without deriding it – we are both beneficiaries and victims of the digital world, and this current Industrial Revolution, as wonderful as it may be, also impinges us from realizing that life exists outside of the constructed world and that the emotions and experiences we encounter can’t ever be captured by a computer, let alone relayed to us in a way that feels fully authentic. This is what Auggie takes aim at, and it is relatively successful, showing a side to a familiar issue that has a gravity that very few of us actually realize.

Ultimately, Auggie is a film is simple but effective, and flourishes as a result of its minimalistic style and natural delivery of some themes that would be wild, far-fetched ideas had Matt Kane not opted for something that moves out of the realm of strictly science fiction, being far more impressive in its nuanced combination of speculative storytelling and intimate realism. This film operates as a cautionary tale to not neglect reality, which may consist of tough moments and situations that all of us would much rather ignore, but is still worth living and experiencing, because while there are days that make us want to retreat into the solace of the digital world, there are others that bring joy and exuberance that can’t ever be felt through artificial means. It is a poignant film, one that may often be overly dramatic at times, and perhaps slightly more saccharine than a film like this ought to be, but still contains a vital message which is delivered with fierce conviction and generous humanity. Auggie is not a major work, and it isn’t the kind of film that becomes a resounding success, but rather a wonderfully intimate character study that ventures into our culture, showing us a radically different perspective that may not always been entirely believable, but is still profoundly moving, and can perhaps challenge us to reconsider our own relationship with technology, and realize that there’s a deeper meaning to this world that we don’t always notice as a result of the irresistible tugging of the digital world, which can’t ever be a replacement for the real thing, no matter how much science tries to convince us otherwise.