Those three words pretty much sum up what I want to tell people about this film.
Ex_Machina came out earlier this year but due to it being nominated for a BIFA (British Independent Film Award) it was played once more at my local cinema.
Ex_Machina has got to be one of the tensest films I have ever seen, from the opening shot right through to the end credits I was filled with a sense of dread of what dark and twisted revelation may or may not be round the next corner. This is all thanks to the terrific scrip and cinematography.
The former creates tight dialogue between the three main leads (Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Issac and Alicia Vikander) that is friendly enough on the surface but has subtle hateful undertones that really set the tone for the movie extremely well.
The latter bathes the shots in a futuristic glow that is strangely clinical on the eye and gives and sense of unease to the facility where a vast majority of the film takes place.
The real star of the show however is Alicia Vikander as Ava. She manages to give a distinctly robotic performance (which is good as she is playing a robot) whilst having it be sympathetically human in parts. Vikander also imbues a child like quality to the charterer that, on the surface, is endearing but the more you see it in action the more it becomes unsettling.
I came away from Ex_Machina with my head spinning with questions about humanity and conscience and other morally ambiguous topics. For me this is a great feeling when a movie genuinely makes you think when leaving the theater. If however you like seeing movies just for a bit of brain switch off fun then I might give this one a miss.
Overall Ex_Machina is an incredibly slick and inventive sci-fi that poses some important questions to mull over, all wrapped up in an unnerving physiological thriller. Great, great stuff.
-Joe
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