In Fingernails, a controversial medical test tells if a couple is meant to be together. Anna and Ryan have passed this test, but Anna is still unsure about this relationship. The movie is now streaming on Apple TV+.
Story
A popular yet controversial medical test that can tell if two people are in love with each other has changed the world, as 87% of couples who took part in this test found out that they are not meant to be together.
The test’s harsh truths ended many relationships. Now, love institutes have shown up to help people strengthen their bond before the test so that they can get positive results.
Anna and Ryan are one of those couples who have received positive results. They didn’t even go through any training at a love institute. However, Anna still has doubts about her relationship.
Anna ends up signing up for a job at a love institute, and her dissatisfaction leads her to study the test further to determine whether she is really in love or not.
Performances
Fingernails brings a cast with familiar faces that deliver as expected from them. Jessie Buckley, as Anna, Riz Ahmed, as Amir, and Jeremy Allen White, as Ryan, give convincing performances with chemistry that aptly address the situation that is getting established between them.
All three of them express themselves with their behaviors, if not with dialogues.
Positives
Aesthetically, Fingernails looks very indie with the choice of color palette and the amount of noise on the screen. The look is pretty comfortable for the story being explored.
The film runs slowly but is still absorbing. The viewers won’t find it dull in any way. The dialogue is to the point, and there is always something a viewer learns about the test in the film.
The only great lesson the film might give the viewers is how relationships should be worked on from time to time, even if they are perfect.
Negatives
There is a lot in the film that can be questioned, especially around the medical test and the reactions of humans to it. Even if the film seems to hint at how humans are bending to technology, it’s hard to digest how two people would break their connection just because a vintage-looking machine said they shouldn’t be together.
The film doesn’t give convincing reasons when it comes to why humans have come to rely on this machine. Also, it doesn’t make sense when couples give all their crucial time to training to strengthen their bond and get disappointed by this machine’s analysis.
One can say that Anna’s desperation to find out why she is not comfortable in a relationship is interesting, but even the magic of that withers away later. Anna herself seems not interested in making her relationship work, and then she is questioning whether Ryan is right for her.
Verdict
Fingernails is a bit of a futuristic shot at modern dating culture, but with humans relying way too much on a machine’s opinion. Maybe with some better reasoning and character work, the film would have worked.
It’s still an absorbing watch for the first time, as viewers will keep trying to understand this machine and Anna’s insecurities, but even that keeps one hooked only until they realize how ludicrous this is.
Fingernails
Director: Christos Nikou
Date Created: 2023-11-03 12:30
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