I haven’t seen Hustwit’s Helvetica, which sounds interesting, if trendy, but Objectified is just the sort of film I expected it to be given that film’s presence on Hustwit’s résumé. The film is clean, sleek, and polished, just like the Helvetica font, and has a similar commercial plasticity that he atrocious Art & Copy has, but at least it has the decency to stay on topic. While this film is well-organized, well-researched, and occasionally thought-provoking, it left me feeling like it had only scratched the surface. Like Art & Copy, Objectified is mainly interested in the big shots. The film’s first significant subject is Apple, which makes sense given all of the talk in the film about the simplicity, elegance, and intuition that is exhibited a ‘good’ design. The film goes on to feature Ikea and some important designers of cellphones, toys, and chairs. Halfway through, the film shifts gears to talk about longevity; specifically, the environmental harm of producing something that will end up in a landfill in only a few years time, if not much less. It was pleasant to see the film take the responsibility and put forth such close attention, to this facet of design.
There are two missing pieces in this film that I think make it suffer: the brief time spent with consumers, getting to know how satisfied they are with certain designs and how closely they feel a product function according to the designer’s intent; and the other is a perspective from bad designers, like makers of mass-produced junk ($.99 toothbrushes, cheap DVD players, modern turntables, and hazardous children’s toys). Not to mention that the film ignores Ikea’s reputation for producing short-term furniture that breaks and falls apart within a couple of years (Ikea is only praised in the film for their innovative design, pshh). The film is essentially a broad FAQ for modern industrial design, touching on important things, but skipping the intricate details which would ask more insightful questions. The measured pacing of the film makes it feel like it was crafted by a robot rather than a human, which comes off brilliantly given the subject matter.