''Dirty Computer'' is a 2018

dystopia A dystopia (from Ancient Greek δυσ- "bad, hard" and τόπος "place"; alternatively cacotopiaCacotopia (from κακός ''kakos'' "bad") was the term used by Jeremy Bentham in his 1818 Plan of Parliamentary Reform (Works, vol. 3, p. 493). ...

musical Musical is the adjective of music Music is generally defined as the The arts, art of arranging sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Exact def ...

science fiction film Science fiction (or sci-fi) is a film genre that uses speculative, fictional science-based depictions of phenomena that are not fully accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial lifeforms, spacecraft, robots, cyborgs, interstell ...

. It serves as a visual companion to ''

Dirty Computer ''Dirty Computer'' is the third studio album by American singer and songwriter Janelle Monáe, released on April 27, 2018, by Wondaland Arts Society, Bad Boy Records and Atlantic Records. It is the follow-up to her studio albums '' The ArchAndr ...

'', the third studio album by

Janelle Monáe Janelle Monáe Robinson (; born December 1, 1985) is an American singer, rapper and actress. She is signed to Atlantic Records, as well as to her own imprint, the Wondaland Arts Society. Monáe has received eight Grammy Award nominations. Mon� ...

. Billed as an "emotion picture", ''Dirty Computer'' tells the story of

android Android may refer to: Science and technology * Android (robot), a humanoid robot or synthetic organism designed to imitate a human * Android (operating system), Google's mobile operating system ** Bugdroid, a Google mascot sometimes referred to ...

Jane 57821 and her struggles as she "attempts to break free from the constraints of a

totalitarian Totalitarianism is a form of government and a political system that prohibits all opposition parties, outlaws individual and group opposition to the state and its claims, and exercises an extremely high if not complete degree of control and regul ...

society that forcibly makes ercomply with its

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitude (psychology), attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, h ...

beliefs". The film was produced by Wondaland, Monáe's multimedia production company, and was directed by Andrew Donoho and Chuck Lightning, with the music video portions of the film directed by Donoho (" Django Jane"), Lacey Duke (" I Like That"), Alan Ferguson ("Crazy, Classic, Life", " Make Me Feel"), and Emma Westenberg (" Pynk", "Screwed").

Cast

as Jane 57821 *

Tessa Thompson Tessa Lynne Thompson (born October 3, 1983) is an American actress. She began her professional acting career with the Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company while studying at Santa Monica College. She appeared in productions of '' The Tempest ...

as May Apple #53 / Zen * Jayson Aaron as Ché * Michele Hart as Virgin Victoria * Dyson Posey as Cleaner #1 * Jonah Lees as Cleaner #2 * Angel Blaise as Computer * Lori Dorfman as

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

* Alexis Long as BMX rider * Miesha Moore as Black Girl Magic Dancer * Oliver Morton as Scream Police * Jannica Olin as Dirty Computer * Marlo Su as Dirty * Alex Wexo as Scream Police * Andi Yuma as Punk

Analysis

''Dirty Computer'' was described as a film that explores "humanity and what truly happens to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness when mind and machines merge, and when the government chooses fear over freedom" in a press release announcing the release of the director's cut. The film explores several hallmarks of identity and expression, including

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures us ...

personhood Personhood or personality is the status of being a person. Defining personhood is a controversial topic in philosophy and law and is closely tied with legal and political concepts of citizenship, equality, and liberty. According to law, only a leg ...

race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...

and

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied wi ...

, as well as several motifs commonly found in

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...

films such as

androids An android is a humanoid robot or other artificial being often made from a flesh-like material. Historically, androids were completely within the domain of science fiction and frequently seen in film and television, but advances in robot techno ...

, dystopian government, and

memory erasure Memory erasure is the selective artificial removal of memories or associations from the mind. Memory erasure has been shown to be possible in some experimental conditions; some of the techniques currently being investigated are: drug-induced amne ...

Release

''Dirty Computer'' had a cross-channel premiere on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...

, and their sister channels on April 26, 2018, one day before the release of its companion album. The film was then made available on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...

at midnight EST to coincide with the release of the album. YouTube also held a special screening on April 27 at their YouTube Space facility in Los Angeles. The event, which was recorded and later posted on YouTube, featured ushers dressed as the 'Cleaners' from the film, and concluded with a Q&A session with Monáe. On February 1, 2019, Wondaland released a director's cut of ''Dirty Computer'' that added an additional thirteen minutes of interviews with Monáe and the picture's creative teams. The extended cut is available to stream exclusively via

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, also known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming and rental service of Amazon offered as a standalone service or as part of Amazon's Prime subscription. The service p ...

and

Qello Qello Holdings (also known as Qello) is an American-based entertainment company founded in 2010, in New York, by Brian Lisi, Bob Frank, and Richard Johnson. Qello is the parent company of digital streaming service Qello Concerts, and over-the-t ...

Critical response

In a review of the film, Tim Grierson of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

'' called ''Dirty Computer'' a "timely new sci-fi masterpiece", noting that the "dazzling" and "visually arresting" release is "filled with sterling electro-pop from the lbum but its dense thematic nods to sci-fi landmarks aren’t meant simply as fun spot-the-reference Easter eggs". In a positive review for ''Thirty, Flirty + Film'', Cate Young wrote that the film and its companion album "complement each other perfectly", adding that the two work together to "create a new synergistic, world in which revolution is demanded as a means to survival and the lives of black queer people are central and will be defended ... what Monáe created here is a feminist statement of intent, and it should be celebrated." Stephen Abblitt of

Medium Medium may refer to: Science and technology Aviation *Medium bomber, a class of war plane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Communication * Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data * Medium of ...

called the short film "a stunning, provocative culmination of, or conclusion to, a decade-long science-fictional aural exploration by Monáe of love, identity, sexuality, revolution, time travel, and androids".

References

External links

* * {{Janelle Monáe 2018 films 2010s musical films 2010s musical drama films American short films 2018 short films 2018 drama films 2010s English-language films 2018 LGBT-related films LGBT-related musical films LGBT-related science fiction films