Review of Ex Machina (2015) by Ahnehnois — 03 May 2015

Despite this film taking on the timely and intriguing issue of artificial intelligence, my number one take-away was "Damn, I want to live there". "There" being the rather spectacular robotic lab/man cave/posh pad/remote getaway that the film quickly deposits us in. It is a visually compelling work, and even when humans and robots are sharing the screen, never feels anything less than vibrant and vivaciously real.

The script is provocative, though there are a few moments that fail to have impact, notably when a character wins a lottery that is so obviously rigged I don't feel the need to tag this for spoilers, but the characters act as if it's some big revelation. This is minor though, and the film's exploration of artificial intelligence is on the whole compelling. It's a lot easier to start a sci-fi film than it is to end it, and the conclusion wraps up tightly, if not with the dramatic punch I might have hoped for.

To me, the highlight performance is Oscar Isaac, who presents the age-old ambiguity between genius and madness, and sells the story. The robot you're here to see is also an impressive achievement, both technically and dramatically. There are a few moments of action and swells of predictably electronic score, but it's ultimately a cerebral movie, one of the few of late that is truly science fiction, speculative fiction, rather than a conventional story set in space. Definitely recommended.