“One day the AIs are going to look back on us the same way we look at fossil skeletons on the plains of Africa. An upright ape living in dust with crude language and tools, all set for extinction.”
– Nathan
SYNOPSIS: Caleb, a 26 year old coder at the world’s largest internet company, wins a competition to spend a week at a private mountain retreat belonging to Nathan, the reclusive CEO of the company. But when Caleb arrives at the remote location he finds that he will have to participate in a strange and fascinating experiment in which he must interact with the world’s first true artificial intelligence, housed in the body of a beautiful robot girl. – via IMDB
I have been looking forward to seeing this for a while, the concept sounded very interesting, and like something both myself and my fiancé would enjoy because it contains both of our professions/fields of study. Boy, were we in for something! Ex Machina was so much more than I expected to be, and I was engrossed pretty much from the second it started. The story reels you in and then just gets the ball rolling quickly, and before you know what it happening you are in for a serious trip. The cast is very limited, but it is perfect for this movie, it is not bogged down by a multitude of unnecessary and flat characters. We were both at the edge of our seats throughout, convinced that at some stage Alex Garland would drop the ball. That happens all too often in sci-fi… great premise, and it all starts so well, and then they manage to do something that sours it all. I just want to commend Garland for giving us a great movie. Througout, I was not completely sure what was going on, and every time you think you have a handle on things, the aspects change, and you start to rethink everything you have seen. The conclusion was great for me, I loved it. It really stretched the idea of a machine with or without emotion to the extremes, and about the validity of this Turing test that was being administered. There is so much to talk about in this movie, but I can’t really because I truly hate spoilers and don’t want to ruin anything for anyone. You have to see it at least once though. Really. I loved the way the movie was shot and how the dialogue flowed, how it got really technical in places, but never so much as to lose a viewer. The performances all round were strong ones, and their interactions with each other were wonderful. The score fit everything perfectly, too, and the slightly washed out look the movie had was so suited for the story that was told. There were so many things going on at any given moment, and your attention is demanded for every second of the film’s run time. What I do know, however, is that everyone should see this movie at least once. If you are a programmer, you are going to love it, if you are into psychology, I think you will enjoy it, and if you like sci-fi then I am sure you will be all over this. I can see, however, how it won’t be for everyone, but those that appreciate this type of thing will really like it. Okay, that’s all I can really say without spoiling anything, though if anyone wants to talk more about this, you know where to find me! I was a fan and so was my fiancé, and he isn’t usually easily impressed by things like this. I can see myself watching this a few times to come still. What a fascinating movie!
A really awesome film for sure!
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Agreed!
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I just saw this last night and I agree it was a very rewarding experience. I agree keeping the cast short was a good idea. It was one of those Sci -Fi movies I feel could become real in the next 5 or ten years tops Great review.
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Thanks a lot! I am glad to see we are in agreement here. So much of this just worked!
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Great review for a great movie. I liked this one a lot too!
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Yay! It definitely was an unexpected surprise for me! I didn’t expect to love it.
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I knew it was right up my alley so I had high expectations but it lived up to them 🙂
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I knew you would love this!
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😀
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UGH. I am so mad at myself for not seeing this in theaters. I intended to, but then plans fell through. 😦 Well, it’s good to know that you think so highly of it! I’m definitely renting it when it comes out! Excellent review, Miss Zoe!!
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Thanking you kindly lady! Ah, hope it comes soon, it is a bloody brilliant watch and I think you will find a lot to like in it!
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It’s going to take something pretty special to dislodge this one from my Top spot right now. I absolutely adored this hi-tech world, the characters that made it what it was, and the performances from Isaac, Gleason and Vikander were just. . . wow. Loved it. Fantastic bit of reading here, too!
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Thanks Tom! This was just fantastic on so many levels and I am glad I finally got to check it out. Definitely right up there for me 🙂
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