The premise of By Design might sound like the setup for a quirky indie comedy—one that challenges your willingness to suspend disbelief—but Amanda Kramer’s latest film explores an unexpected narrative. At the core of the story is Camille (Juliette Lewis), a woman whose soul merges with a chair.
This seemingly absurd concept transforms into a profound commentary on consumerism, identity, and societal value of objects over human connections. The unexpected transformation allows Kramer to examine how people relate to material possessions. The chair becomes a silent yet intricate symbol of Camille’s deepest yearnings: recognition, desire, and connection.
Before her transformation, Camille feels disconnected. Her life revolves around superficial conversations with friends (Samantha Mathis and Robin Tunney) and a distant relationship with her mother (Betty Buckley), who appears more interested in buying things than understanding her daughter. Camille’s sense of emptiness becomes clear as she grows captivated by a chair—an object she initially observes from a distance.
She sees this piece of furniture as a potential pathway to meaning. Her physical form gradually becomes passive while her spirit gravitates toward the object. Through this shift, Camille transcends being a mere person existing in the world—she becomes an object within it, prompting profound questions about desire, belonging, and self-definition beyond physical existence.
Kramer crafts a thought-provoking exploration that transforms an outlandish concept into a deeply moving reflection on human experience.
The Heart of By Design: Performances and Character Evolution
By Design explores characters’ internal struggles, using their interactions with each other—and with the chair—as both a source of comedy and reflection. Camille, portrayed by Juliette Lewis, begins as a passive participant in her life, overlooked by friends and family. Her journey reveals isolation, frustration, and a desperate need for recognition.
The chair becomes a metaphor for her emotional emptiness and the spark of her transformation. Her initial infatuation grows into a deeper search for meaning, control, and visibility. Lewis captures this evolution with subtlety, her expressive face communicating volumes even when motionless. Sadness permeates her performance—a quiet defeat that speaks to anyone feeling ignored.
Olivier (Mamoudou Athie), Camille’s caretaker, becomes enamored with the chair. His obsession extends beyond object desire—he finds something that grants him importance and security. Athie portrays Olivier with a detached yet wistful energy, his deep voice adding emotional complexity. The character shifts from distant to someone filling his own existential void. As Camille’s consciousness inhabits the chair, Olivier’s emotional connection becomes symbiotic, reflecting his inner needs and Camille’s silent yearning. Athie creates an unsettling intimacy within the character’s obsession.
Supporting characters—Irene (Samantha Mathis), Lisa (Robin Tunney), and Cynthia (Betty Buckley)—contrast sharply with Camille’s inner world. Their interactions with Camille’s lifeless body expose their superficiality and disconnection. Irene and Lisa’s casual chatter reveals society’s tendency to prioritize surface concerns over genuine human connection. Buckley portrays Camille’s mother with chilling indifference, treating her daughter’s physical form as another object rather than a person to understand.
By Design: A Reflection on Desire, Identity, and Materialism
By Design critiques consumer culture through the surreal story of a woman merging with a chair, exploring our deep obsession with material goods. The chair becomes more than furniture—an emblem of longing for recognition. Camille’s fixation reveals how self-worth gets tied to possessions.
The film exposes how pursuing idealized objects creates an empty existence, where people seek validation through ownership. The chair transforms into a vessel of desire, representing unmet emotional needs.
Camille’s transformation explores identity formation through external validation. She exists invisibly, unnoticed by friends and family, trapped in superficial relationships. Her merger with the chair signals a desperate need for visibility.
Shifting from passive observer to desired object, Camille confronts a critical question: does being wanted as an object surpass being ignored as a person? Her chair-like state exposes the emptiness of modern connections, where interactions become transactional and driven by surface-level wants.
The chair symbolizes control, perfection, and the prioritization of material objects over genuine human connections. Pristine and flawless, it contrasts with the messy reality of human interactions. The film illustrates society’s preference for immaculate, consumable experiences—a reflection of how brand identity and consumption shape our world. This symbolic representation uncovers a stark truth: our pursuit of perfection can leave us immobilized and unseen, mirroring Camille’s entrapment within her most coveted object.
Aesthetic Choices in By Design: A Theater of the Absurd
From its opening moments, By Design emerges as a theatrical cinematic work. Amanda Kramer’s bold visual approach immerses viewers in a world where traditional film techniques dissolve into a stage-like experience. The sets, minimalistic and artfully arranged, evoke a black-box theater atmosphere.
Each space, especially the chair store where Camille first encounters “The Stunner,” feels curated like a modern art installation. Stark, deliberate lighting casts dramatic shadows, creating an unsettling, otherworldly environment. Vintage aesthetic choices—dusty pinks, soft yellows, and muted blues—summon memories of mid-20th-century homes, weaving an eerie nostalgia that examines identity and consumption.
Kramer integrates modern dance as a key storytelling mechanism, transforming movement into an intimate communication method. A mesmerizing sequence features a sensual dance between Camille and Olivier, their bodies twisting around the chair. This moment captures desire while revealing their emotional struggles. The choreography becomes an extension of internal turmoil, physically expressing their yearning and disconnection in a world that reduces humans to objects.
Production design plays a critical role in storytelling. The soft, washed-out color palette creates emotional distance while echoing Camille’s search for perfection. Room arrangements—clean, organized, clinical—speak to her emotional disconnection and unfulfilled life. Costumes meticulously underscore characters’ roles within the film’s metaphor of objectification.
Camille’s wardrobe appears simple and unremarkable, suggesting her emotional withdrawal. Olivier’s clothing reflects his desire for control, featuring stark, clean lines that indicate emotional distance and attempts to construct an idealized reality. Visual and aesthetic choices shape the narrative, exploring themes of identity, desire, and self-objectification.
The Dance of Absurdity and Emotion: Tone, Pacing, and Structure in By Design
By Design expertly weaves between quirky humor and existential depth. The film embraces an outlandish premise—a woman merging with a chair—with a wry, self-aware approach. Melanie Griffith’s deadpan narration and intentionally awkward dialogue acknowledge the scenario’s inherent strangeness.
This absurdity becomes a gateway to exploring profound themes of objectification, identity, and human longing. Sudden tonal shifts create a dynamic experience, moving from bizarre comedy to emotional contemplation. The film’s ability to balance these extremes—triggering laughter one moment, prompting reflection the next—defines its unique storytelling.
The narrative sometimes struggles with repetitive rhythms. Scenes of Camille’s transformation and Olivier’s growing fixation feel like variations on a single theme. Certain moments appear disconnected from the central story, existing purely for their weird quality rather than plot progression.
The film’s commitment to unconventional storytelling occasionally undermines narrative momentum, leaving viewers questioning the purpose of specific scenes. Absurdist humor stretches beyond its initial impact, diminishing the comedic freshness.
Emotional complexity emerges as the film progresses. Initial campy absurdity gradually transforms into a deeper exploration of character isolation. Humorous elements become tools for revealing inner emotional landscapes. The gradual shift exposes characters’ profound emptiness, transforming initial comedy into a meditation on human disconnection. Viewers experience a subtle emotional journey that reveals the characters’ hidden vulnerabilities beneath the surface-level strangeness.
The Sound of Desire: Music and Sound Design in By Design
Music in By Design emerges as a pivotal element, with a jazz-inspired score matching the film’s eccentric and surreal atmosphere. Unpredictability characterizes the musical landscape, mirroring the bizarre premise of a woman transforming into a chair. Jazz elements—spontaneous and improvisational—reflect the film’s experimental spirit while commenting on human desire’s chaotic nature.
Moments of tension receive musical depth, amplifying Camille’s internal conflict. The score becomes an emotional extension, capturing both the scenario’s absurdity and her profound yearning. Musical passages heighten key sequences, such as the dance between Camille and Olivier, rendering their connection fragile and intense.
Sound design reinforces the film’s thematic exploration. Silence punctuating specific scenes—particularly during Camille’s immobile moments—intensifies her sense of alienation. Sonic absence carries as much weight as musical passages, revealing the character’s emotional disconnection.
Ambient sounds—footsteps, chair creaks, muffled voices—infuse visual moments with layers of meaning. These sonic choices, intertwined with the jazz-like score, create an immersive environment that illuminates the film’s examination of identity, desire, and human objectification.
By Design: An Exercise in Absurdity and Ambition
By Design explores identity, materialism, and human desire through a surreal narrative. The film scrutinizes self-worth by depicting a woman merging with a chair, revealing how society frequently prioritizes possessions over genuine connections.
Camille’s transformation critiques methods of seeking recognition through material objects that mirror personal insecurities. Kramer’s experimental approach unfolds themes through physicality, movement, and visual storytelling, creating an intellectually provocative cinematic experience.
The film represents a daring artistic statement, disrupting traditional filmmaking by embracing surrealism and theatrical elements. Its nonlinear structure and oscillating tone position By Design closer to performance art than conventional storytelling.
Artistic ambition creates both compelling moments and structural challenges. Experimental sensibilities produce a viewing experience that demands viewer engagement, while occasionally sacrificing emotional clarity through repetitive absurdist techniques.
Kramer’s work probes profound questions about human identity and consumer culture. The film challenges audience expectations, presenting a complex meditation on emotional disconnection. Viewers willing to embrace unconventional storytelling will discover a rich exploration of human experiences hidden beneath the strange narrative surface.
The Review
By Design
By Design is a bold and experimental film that challenges conventions with its surreal exploration of identity, materialism, and desire. While its avant-garde approach and whimsical tone offer a fresh perspective on these themes, its pacing issues and reliance on repetitive absurdity sometimes undermine its emotional depth. Despite its flaws, the film’s intellectual ambition and unique narrative structure make it a thought-provoking experience, especially for those open to unconventional cinema.
PROS
- Bold, avant-garde approach to storytelling.
- Thought-provoking exploration of identity, materialism, and desire.
- Strong performances, particularly from Juliette Lewis and Mamoudou Athie.
CONS
- Pacing issues and some repetitive scenes.
- Reliance on absurd humor that may feel detached from the central narrative.
- The film’s experimental nature might alienate mainstream audiences.
