Movies like The Terminator made the concept of artificial intelligence cool, brutal, and somewhat scary, while warning us of the danger they could pose. However, Ex Machina presents AI as more… mysterious. Unpredictable. Oddly Sympathetic. And above all… sexy. And that is truly the most terrifying part.
Ex Machina stars Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac, and Alicia Vikander. Domhnall Gleeson plays a programmer named Caleb, who wins a contest to go participate in a top secret experiment that’s overseen by his boss, Nathan, played by Oscar Isaac. Nathan is the head of Bluebook, this movie’s fictional version of Google, and has been working for years to make a successful artificial intelligence in the form of a very human-like machine. This machine is called Ava, and Caleb is tasked to test out her intelligence, to learn her capabilities and discover how truly human she can seem. Soon, after speaking with Ava, Caleb becomes attached to her and starts to see her as more than a machine. He sees her as a living, sympathetic person.
And from there, things get really, really… interesting. As Caleb interacts with both Nathan and Ava, the film becomes a suspenseful mystery. Caleb doesn’t know who he can really trust. Ava, who’s so sympathetic and innocent, or Nathan, the actual human being with a natural conscience that created the AI? The audience won’t know who to believe, either, and that is arguably the best thing about this movie. Throughout the entire film, you’ll be guessing and wondering and pondering about who’s right, who’s trustworthy, and what’s actually going on. Ex Machina throws twists and turns that I didn’t see coming, and it gets tense. This is fueled by the dialogue, cinematography, and music.
The dialogue is both engrossing and insightful. The writing in general obviously crafted to deliver a deeper message about humanity and how we interact with both machines and other people. It says a lot about how much a computer with a human-like mind can learn about a single person based on how they use something like an internet search engine, or a phone or any sort of technology of that sort… and how such a computer can use that information for a purpose. However, the dialogue is written so well and so naturally, and the performances by the actors are so good that it doesn’t come off as contrived. It seems like actual people in a situation that could potentially happen, and these people do things that they’d naturally do when faced with such issues. They place their trust elsewhere, maybe in the wrong place. They do things that seem suspicious, but they may be doing it for a different reason. These characters seem real, and that makes this movie work.
This is also a very exceptionally well directed film. Everything from the lighting to the editing to the way it’s shot is terrific. And I was surprised to learn that this is the director’s first time directing a film. Alex Garland has only ever written a few other movies, but watching Ex Machina, I could’ve sworn that whoever it was that directed it must have had previous experience. I was wrong, and I am pleasantly surprised at this. I will be looking forward to whatever films Garland plans on directing in the future.
The music was another thing that I absolutely loved about this film. It’s eerie, gives a sense of dread and builds tension better than most scores I’ve heard. At times it was very reminiscent of the soundtrack from the movie Gone Girl, and that is not a bad thing. Now that I think about it… Ex Machina reminds me a lot about Gone Girl in a few small ways, not just the music. If you’ve seen both of these movies, you may see what I’m getting at.
But by far the most impressive thing about this movie was the special effects. Ex Machina is not a film with huge amounts of CGI with large scale action set pieces. The computer generation was used primarily on Ava herself… and it is one of the most realistic, most believable, and most perfect special effects accomplishments that I have ever seen in any film in my entire life. If you see it, your eyes won’t see CGI. They will register what you are seeing as real, unaltered footage of a real robot. And I call this an accomplishment in special effects not because of how utterly great it is, but because of how it was used in the film. The special effects aren’t used to ‘wow’ audiences and make their eyes sparkle with how good it looks alone. It’s used to make a character come to life. While the effects aren’t the focus, they’re the most impressive thing about it, while not overshadowing the greater value of the other aspects of the film.
In conclusion, Ex Machina is one hell of an experience that needs to be seen at least once. I wouldn’t hesitate to call it one of the best movies I’ve seen in my life. I would gladly watch it again and I would gladly own it on Blu-Ray. The directing is great, the acting is perfect, and the effects are ridiculously realistic. It’s tense, sometimes scary, has a lot of unexpected turns, and really makes you think about a lot after it’s all over. It’s a slow paced mystery that messes with your logic and your emotions, and I recommend it to everyone.
FINAL RATING: 50 / 50
STORY: 5 / 5
ACTING: 5 / 5
CHARACTERS: 5 / 5
SPECIAL EFFECTS: 5 / 5
SUSPENSE/MYSTERY: 5 / 5
SOUNDTRACK: 5 / 5
TONE: 5 / 5
ENJOYABILITY: 5 / 5
REWATCH VALUE: 5 / 5
OWNING VALUE: 5 / 5
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