Review of Ex Machina (2015) by Andy H — 20 Jul 2017

Elegantly profound sci-fi fable with just three characters: a whiz kid programmer who wins a competition to visit his tech genius employer's isolated estate, and is thrilled to discover that his purpose is to test the authenticity of a newly developed artificial intelligence named Ava.

I really appreciate how the filmmakers have a story to tell and stick to it without adding unnecessary subplots, which is not to say there is a lack of intrigue: the compound experiences strange power outages, Ava issues ominous warnings about her creator when the cameras are briefly down, and hints that everyone seems to harbor their own secret agenda are craftily sprinkled in.

Don't be misled into thinking this is a white-knuckle futuristic thriller, even though there are thematic echoes of Blade Runner and the limited CGI on display is jaw-droppingly realistic. In truth, this story is too philosophical and brain-engaging for many people.

That's OK, they have a slew of Transformers movies they can watch instead, but thankfully every once in a while we get an Ex Machina.