Ex Machine Review

Justin, Dad, & I saw Ex Machina on May 6, 2015!! This was a brilliant look at artificial intelligence blended with the ego of humanity. This year hasn't been a particularly great one for good movies thus far, but this was a pleasant surprise. This shows us how great independent movies can be. Blockbusters, in my opinion, are usually the worst movies of each calendar year. Movies like this place an emphasis on story/substance & acting performances over special effects and empty plots.

In this movie, we follow Caleb, played by Domhnall Gleason, a computer programmer that works at a large Internet corporation. He is selected to a competition to spend a week long retreat with Nathan (who is the CEO living in recluse), played very well by Oscar Isaac. Oscar Isaac is one of the best actors on the scene. I've enjoyed all of his work. He always plays a great dark character. His reclusive nature & eccentric personality made Nathan such an awesome character to watch. Isaac's chemistry with Gleason felt natural. The dialogue was strong throughout between these two. Nathan has put all of his scientific knowledge into creating a state of the art robotic female named Ava, played by Alicia Vikander. Vikander stole the show. She's a beautiful girl that has a tremendous future in the industry. Her ability to differentiate between being a robot and a human female was amazing to watch. Her chemistry with Gleason was great. I like movies like this. Much like Hard Candy, it's a focus on very few characters that allows the performances to sell the story. That's exactly what happened here. You have three characters: Nathan, Ava, & Caleb.

This is one of the most intriguing movies of 2015-I'd rank this as one of my favorite movies in a while. I enjoyed every second of this movie. The acting was excellent. The twists were presented in an intelligent manner. Caleb uncovers so many secrets in Nathan's house. Ava ultimately ends up being the definition of artificial intelligence. I really liked the Ava character. Where Isaac's Nathan created the universe, it's Vikander's Ava that gives the movie it's voice. Gleason's Caleb provides the bridge between two characters, while also adding his own substance bringing out the voice of Ava and exposing the eccentricity of Nathan. I give this movie a 5/5 for an excellent plot and incredible performances that place an emphasis on acting. I highly recommend this movie. It might be too early, but considering the Oscars should be celebrating the entire year of movies, then Oscar Isaac, Alicia Vikander, & Domhnall Gleason all deserve nominations for their work on this film. I can see Vikander possibly getting a nomination, though, which would be awesome if it happens. Ex Machina is one of the best movies you'll see in 2015. As far as I'm concerned, it was my favorite movie this year so far.