In January, the incredibly intriguing Ex Machina arrives in cinemas and to wet our appetites, Universal has released a new featurette for the film explaining the story. Caleb, played by Domhnall Gleeson (what a 2015 he’s about to have), wins what he thinks is a competition when in actual fact he is there to take part in an experiment to test out artificial intelligence. Here he comes across the leader of the program, Nathan, played by Oscar Isaac (not the first film next year him and Domhnall will star in together) and the first prototype AI, Ava, played by Alicia Vikander (not in Star Wars, but looks like a mix between Hayley Atwell and Brie Larson).
In the featurette, the aforementioned cast and writer/director Alex Garland explain the interesting elements of the story and some of the questions it raises. It ponders ideas of what it means to human, to have control over a living, thinking being regardless of their origin and if we create a being that is better than humans, where does that leave us?
Anyone who knows me knows that I love originality in films, because I’m sick and tired of book adaptions. So Ex Machina is a real welcomed treat. It looks very visually stunning, stars a cast filled with great potential and a clever and unique twist on the AI storyline. As long as the story isn’t too predictable or gets too stuck up it’s own arse, this could become the first great film of 2015, and personally, I really hope it does.
Ex Machina is out January 21st