Review of Ex Machina (2015) by Carrot P — 31 Dec 2015

This was one of the biggest surprises of the year for me. Going into the movie I was slightly sceptical to say the least especially having been disappointed by a number of science fiction movies I have been excited to see of the last few years such as Transcendence.

However this for me was one of the most enjoyable well made movies of the year in my opinion. Although the difference between Ex Machina and Transcendence was that the premise was well executed in practice and doesn't just look interesting on paper and really does address what it is that makes is human.

The film was well shot, well written and well acted and the fact there is a relatively small cast and such a remote setting gives us very interesting well rounded characters who the audience can connect to.

As for the setting we get some amazing visuals from out side the building which shows the vastness of the landscape and how far they are away from civilisation, which give the feeling of vulnerability to the characters and adds to the suspense.

When I was watching the film I was blown away by the acting, particularly the performances of Alicia Vikander as Ava and Oscar Isaac as Nathan Bateman who in my opinion stole the show delivering a creepy, unnerving performance and made for an enthralling character who added to the tension and the suspense.

The only real complaint I had was that I thought the story was a little bit linear and more or less everything you think is about to happen, happens without to many twists and turns however this is more than compensated for by how well made the film is and some of the exceptional acting performances.