Dream journal
A movie about a dystopian world like that of The Handmaid's Tale, only more so. Almost everyone lives alone, even mated couples, who generally interact only for baby-making, and talking to other people at all is seen as highly suspect. (The movie doesn't make clear how people learn language; perhaps the speaking-to-others prohibition only applies to adults.)
The female protagonist (played by an ageless Emma Thompson) and the man chosen to impregnate her are preparing for their first attempt at baby-making, which doesn't go well (I'm not clear on how). So then you see them preparing for a second attempt. He's carefully following the directions -- "Grease yourself up. Remember, the point of this is to stimulate yourself..." -- and they're both carefully trying to get into the prescribed emotional state of utter detachment. They both know that if the second attempt doesn't go according to spec, the third attempt will be a "watch-along", with many of their neighbors watching to help figure out what they're doing wrong. During the proceedings, the protagonist briefly notices her partner making eye contact with her, as though he were aware of her existence -- always a bad sign for baby-making -- but then thankfully he returns to seeing only himself.
The female protagonist (played by an ageless Emma Thompson) and the man chosen to impregnate her are preparing for their first attempt at baby-making, which doesn't go well (I'm not clear on how). So then you see them preparing for a second attempt. He's carefully following the directions -- "Grease yourself up. Remember, the point of this is to stimulate yourself..." -- and they're both carefully trying to get into the prescribed emotional state of utter detachment. They both know that if the second attempt doesn't go according to spec, the third attempt will be a "watch-along", with many of their neighbors watching to help figure out what they're doing wrong. During the proceedings, the protagonist briefly notices her partner making eye contact with her, as though he were aware of her existence -- always a bad sign for baby-making -- but then thankfully he returns to seeing only himself.
