In a serious blow to sci-fi fans, one of the genre’s best modern films is leaving HBO Max as of May 1st. Having more than earned its impressive 92% critics rating, it puts its own spin on the question of what makes a person a person, making the age-old narrative feel fresh, while also tapping into an eerie sense of existential dread intrinsic to sci-fi as a whole.
Ex Machina, which debuted in 2014, masterfully builds a creeping sense of horror by centering on Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson), a low-level programmer at a large tech company. Unexpectedly, Caleb wins a contest, the prize of which is spending a week living at the private estate of the company’s mysterious CEO, Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac). When he arrives, Caleb is told that his stay at Bateman’s home isn’t the real prize; the true prize is that he has been chosen as the human component in a Turing test to determine the capabilities and consciousness of Bateman’s newest creation, Ava (Alicia Vikander), a beautiful and terrifyingly lifelike robot. But Ava’s uncanny self-awareness soon makes itself known, and Caleb realizes that nothing in the tech palace is what it seems.
It’s a Perfect Blurring of the Lines Between AI and Human Emotion
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More dialogue-heavy than expected, tension and a serious level of anxiety are woven throughout almost every moment in Ex Machina, and it feels more timely now than it did twelve years ago when it was released. “Ex Machina has much more good than bad and much more surprise than contrivance when it comes to traversing the mine field that can be the science fiction topic of artificial intelligence, especially with a potentially damning title like that,” says critic Don Shanahan. It truly is a mind game from start to finish, and while you think you have an idea of how it will end, the true ending sneaks up on you in a way that’s both shocking and satisfying.
Casual viewers also felt that the film was ahead of its time, calling into question the ethics of AI long before the exploitation of those same principles became an issue for society as a whole. One viewer went so far as to say, “This film is why movies were created. The feelings you feel while watching this movie is more then I can give credit to 90% of movies I watch. It’s not a perfect film, but it does its job of creating emotion, and it’s thought-provoking, leaving behind a greater sense of accomplishment upon finishing it in comparison to other movies, which just leave you feeling empty inside after watching.”
Do you have a favorite moment from Ex Machina? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. And don’t forget to check out the ComicBook forum to keep the conversation going with other sci-fi fans.