Ex Machina called to me as a film to see in the theater, but life got busy, and I didn’t make it. But I finally caught up with it let month on DVD. I’m glad I did not miss it entirely. And to be fair, I’ll admit that it’s been a few weeks since I saw it, and my focus was not completely on the film at that time, so my reflections here are cursory. Apologies for that.
What does jump to mind is the complex layers of suspense and mystery that evolve in the film. Sure, as I watched, I knew things were not as they seemed. But throughout, I was never quite sure what was reality. The movie did a good job of keeping twists, at least the key ones, as a surprise.
The biggest stand-out of the film, though, was the brilliance of the final scenes. Lest you’ve not seen this, I won’t give up what’s happening. But let me say that when you’re dealing with artificial intelligence personified in machines, a lack of emotion is expected. Just when the movie could have ruined this element of the film, it did not. Instead, what you would normally expect to happen with passion happened with utter lack of emotion but instead pure calculation. Again: brilliance.
The film is nominated for an Oscar for Visual Effects and for Writing, Original. The film deserves its nominations, but, given its competition, I don’t expect it to get either statue. Still—the invitation to the party is a big deal, and it should help put this film on your DVD list if you missed it at the theater.