REVIEW: Downsizing with Matt Damon conjures a world where people can be shrunk ultra small

REVIEW: Downsizing imagines a world where overpopulation has people shrinking themselves down to 12cm. The pay-off? A life of luxury with all the mod cons ... and a few hidden cons as well.

DOWNSIZING (M)

Rating: four stars (4 out of 5)

Director: Alexander Payne (Nebraska)

Starring: Matt Damon, Christoph Waltz, Hong Chau, Kristen Wiig, Jason Sudeikis.

Making the most of that shrinking feeling

On occasion throughout Downsizing, you will be compelled to lean forward in your seat to see what is going on.

You may even have to squint a bit.

For this movie is founded, quite literally, upon a little idea writ large.

A pre-shrinking Matt Damon converses with a post-shrinking Jason Sudeikis in a scene from "Downsizing." (Paramount Pictures via AP)

A spellbinding first act lays down the ground rules of the fascinating concept Downsizing wishes to explore.

A Norwegian scientist calls a press conference and tells the world of a technological breakthrough that will solve the planet’s problems with overpopulation forever.

All it takes is one safe and simple medical procedure, at the end of which a person will have been shrunk down to a size of approximately 12 centimetres.

Any brave souls willing to make the ultimate of all small sacrifices are rewarded big. Those who sign up to join this new world of mass reduction get to live out their days in absolute luxury on special miniaturised housing estates.

Matt Damon as Paul brings a regulation-size rose to a party thrown by Christoph Waltz (right) in a scene from ‘Downsizing’.

Just as their physical stature has been reduced, their spending power has been magnified. The cost of living inside these microscopic, climate-controlled domes is a mind-blowing one-thousandth of that in the real world.

Got all that? Good.

So as with any promise of all mod cons, there must be some hidden cons buried somewhere in the fine print, right?

The fella positioned to find this out on our behalf is a regular working Joe named Paul (Matt Damon).

A tough go of it on the home-savings front has prompted he and wife Audrey (Kristen Wiig) to take the plunge and reap the benefits.

And then ...? Well, in the interests of keeping everything as spoiler-free as possible, we should take a detour away from addressing any further plotting matters in Downsizing.

As audacious as the movie’s core premise might be, it does need both the element of surprise, and also the room to answer as many of our ‘What if?’ questions as it can, to properly ensnare the unsuspecting viewer.

Hong Chau plays Ngoc Lan Tran and Matt Damon plays Paul Safranek in Downsizing from Paramount Pictures.

Though Downsizing has been described in some quarters as a satirical comedy, that is, dare I say, selling the whole thing short.

The pure ambition of the story - and the inquisitive and contemplative manner in which it is told - is laced with a sincerity that is rare in a Hollywood production.

The closest release of recent times Downsizing could be likened to in terms of its gentle humour and wide-ranging world view, is Ben Stiller’s The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.

Kristen Wiig, centre left, and Matt Damon, centre right, in a scene from "Downsizing."

This is one of those movies that is both about something and onto something. Those looking for more than just easy, effortless escapism this cinematic summer should be heading straight here.

Downsizing opens in general release on Boxing Day Dec 26, after special previews in selected cinemas on Christmas Day Dec 25.

Originally published as REVIEW: Downsizing with Matt Damon conjures a world where people can be shrunk ultra small