Alicia Vikander, Domhnall Gleeson and Oscar Isaac in the Alex Garland movie ‘Ex Machina’

A thriller based in science fiction, artificial intelligence and drama captures our interest with this review of the Alex Garland written and directed movie Ex Machina (2014). The high quality of the conceptual thinking underpinning this film demands your consideration.

(From left, Domhnall Gleeson as Caleb Smith, Alicia Vikander as Ava and Oscar Isaac as Nathan Bateman in the Alex Garland movie Ex Machina).

The movie opens with Caleb Smith, a programmer in the search engine company Blue Book, winning a one-week stay at the posh, isolated home of Blue Book CEO Nathan Bateman. Smith arrives at the home to find that Bateman has a live-in servant named Kyoko who, according to the CEO, does not understand English. Caleb, Nathan and Kyoko are portrayed by Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac and Sonoya Mizuno, respectively.

(From left, Oscar Isaac as Nathan Bateman and Domhnall Gleeson as Caleb Smith in the Alex Garland movie Ex Machina).

Nathan shortly thereafter reveals to Caleb that the intention of bringing Caleb to Nathan’s isolated home. Caleb will be evaluating the thinking and consciousness capabilities of Ava, a humanoid robot of Nathan’s creation imbued with humanlike qualities. Ava, portrayed by Alicia Vikander, evokes sympathy and romantic feelings from Caleb through the course of the evaluation periods that largely occur under Nathan’s observation.

(From left, Alicia Vikander as Ava and Sonoya Mizuno as Kyoko in the Alex Garland movie Ex Machina).

Drama is introduced to this seemingly straightforward and ethical process when Ava demonstrates an ability manipulate the security system as well as the periods of observation to confide what passes for feelings of dishonesty from and distrust of Nathan. Firsthand experiences Caleb witnesses of Nathan’s behavior, coupled with what Caleb increasingly comes to feel for Ava and Kyoko, leads Caleb to confront what he feels of a manipulated situation to choose to act either for Nathan’s or Ava and Kyoko’s well-being.

(Sonoya Mizuno as Kyoko in the Alex Garland movie Ex Machina).

A psychologically adult set of circumstances follow from this point, with blurred lines between human and artificial ethics playing out remarkably murky and gray. That self-motivation underpins robot and human choices of life and death, along with the qualities of life and death coupled with questions of the right for self-determination, prove powerful in holding a mirror to humanity itself. Watching the film to see the cinematography of the movie spectacle, along with how the story plays out for the different characters, are worth the effort.

(From left, writer and director Alex Garland and actress Alicia Vikander on the set of the Alex Garland movie Ex Machina).

I grant the movie Ex Machina as directed and written by Alex Garland 3.75-stars on a scale of one-to-five.

Matt – Saturday, June 8, 2024