Downsizing
Entry updated 24 August 2026. Tagged: Film.
US film (2017). Ad Hominem Enterprises. Directed by Alexander Payne. Written by Payne and Jim Taylor, based on an idea by Doug Taylor (uncredited). Cast includes Hong Chau, Matt Damon, Laura Dern, Neil Patrick Harris, Rolf Lassgård, Udo Kier, Christoph Waltz and Kristen Wiig. 83 minutes. Colour.
Scientist Jørgen Asbjørnsen (Lassgård) has devised a way to permanently shrink people to the height of five inches (see Miniaturization) and argues that popularizing the process would be beneficial, as the tiny people would consume fewer of Earth's resources. As the process becomes available to anyone, many are choosing this option, as ordinary people can effectively live like rich people in communities created for them where their limited incomes enable them to own mansions and lead luxurious lives. Physical therapist Paul Safranek (Damon) and his wife Audrey (Wiig), who are experiencing financial difficulties, witness a convincing presentation by a shrunken couple, Paul and Laura Lonowski (Harris, Dern), and decide to undergo the procedure; but Audrey backs out at the last minute, leaving Paul to face a solitary life in his small home. His new friends include Dusan Mirkovic (Waltz), a sleazy businessman, and Ngoc Lan Tran (Chau), a Vietnamese woman shrunk against her will who becomes an advocate for the poorer residents of their community. Mirkovic takes Paul and Ngoc to Norway, where they meet the people who originated the process, and they have grim news: despite improvements due to shrinking people, they have calculated that the Earth is doomed, and they are retreating into an underground community where they can survive. Paul is tempted to join them, but he is persuaded by Ngoc to return to his home and continue helping other people.
This is one of the rare sf films that thoughtfully explores the implications and effects of a posited new invention, instead of regarding it as a horrific disruption of the status quo that must be eliminated. Thus, a typical film about shrunken people would focus on their problems and conclude with the happy ending of having them returned to normal size, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (1989) being one of several examples. But Downsizing dares to suggest that, all things considered, it might be beneficial in many ways to be five inches tall, as most of the affected people seem to be enjoying their new lives. Also, while the science behind the basic idea of shrinking people is dubious at best, the writers were attentive to details, so that anyone about to undergo the process must have all of their dental work removed, since it would not shrink along with the people and could cause their deaths. Still, the film ultimately disappoints as the protagonists do not choose to join the people struggling to keep the human race alive, which would be the usual overriding priority in sf, instead opting for comforting Altruism, not the desperate need to survive. [GW]
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