Teknolust

Critics Consensus

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30%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 33

39%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 806
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Movie Info

In this offbeat sci-fi-drama, Rosetta Stone (Tilda Swinton) is a scientist specializing in biogenetics who has made a major breakthrough in artificial biological engineering. Rosetta has created a type of Self-Replicating Automaton, which looks like a human being, but is in fact part machine and part living organism. In order to survive and reproduce, Rosetta discovers her SRAs need certain human genetic compounds that are found only in male semen. Hoping to kill two birds with one stone, Rosetta programs one of her SRAs, Ruby (also played by Swinton) to seduce men Rosetta has found through a website offering paid "fantasy dates," which will provide both needed materials and ready cash. Ruby brings back used condoms, and shares the contents with her fellow SRAs Marine and Olive (both also played by Swinton). However, after their assignations with Ruby, the men find themselves with a strange illness that leaves them with skin outbreaks and the inability to perform sexually. Two health investigators (James Urbaniak and Karen Black) begin interviewing the men infected, which sends them on a trail leading back to Rosetta and her research lab. Meanwhile, the more Ruby comes in contact with humans, the more she finds herself falling under the sway of human emotions, and she finds herself falling in love with Sandy (Jeremy Davies), a shy man working at a photocopying center. Shot on digital video equipment by acclaimed cinematographer Hiro Narita, Teknolust was screened at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.

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Cast

Tilda Swinton
as Rosetta Stone
Jeremy Davies
as Sandy
James Urbaniak
as Agent Hopper
Karen Black
as Dirty Dick
Al Nazemian
as Dr. Bea
Josh Kornbluth
as Tim
Thomas Jay Ryan
as Preacher
Abigail Van Alyn
as Sandy's Mom
John Bradford King
as Nathan
John O'Keefe
as Prof. Crick
Howard Swain
as Alex
Diana Demar
as Dana
Paule West
as Himself
John Pirruccello
as Ellen
Dick Bright
as Phil
Paul Barnett
as Sam
Paul Ghiringhelli
as Frank
Unique Holland
as Brazilian CFN
Tia Hunnicutt
as Brazilian CFN
Diane Luby Lane
as Sales Clerk
Dena Martinez
as Visna
Jeanne McCulloch
as Photo Double No. 1
Heather Meyer
as Photo Double No. 2
Sumalee Montano
as Nelia
Darian O'Toole
as Suzie Sexpert
Tiffany Waxter
as Stand-In No. 1
Andrea Zomber
as Leonora
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Critic Reviews for Teknolust

All Critics (33) | Top Critics (8)

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Audience Reviews for Teknolust

  • Jan 11, 2010
    What an odd little movie. It's pretty much totally invalid except as a performance showcase for Tilda Swinton, giving her all sorts of bizarre alien landscapes and situations to maneuver through. Its total lack of focus makes it intellectually unengaging, it looks and sounds cheap, and you don't really laugh at its absurdity like you would at most other successful comedies; you sort of revel in it. You get to see Swinton choreograph a three-person dance routine comprised entirely of herself, though, and you get to watch her say "succulent proteins" over and over to some guy at a bakery. Perhaps I'm just a fucking moron, or a die-hard Swinton fan, but little pleasures like these were perfectly worth sacrificing my 80 minutes for. Unless you really want to get your Tilda on, or you're in the mood for a super oddball sci-fi feminist curio, you could probably skip this and not miss out on much.
    Drew S Super Reviewer
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