



Away from the guiding hand of long-time collaborator and master film-maker Danny Boyle, Garland has, if anything, shrugged off the limitations of a mere writer and taken complete control of the project: the film has a stripped-down, almost B-movie sensibility where any superfluous frills have been trimmed and the occasional extravagance of Boyle’s action set pieces are gone. Make no mistake; this is not an action movie. It is a science-fiction drama packed with so many ideas that – had a less-competent writer taken it on – could very easily collapse under its own weight.









But the reason the film emerges not only unmarked but victorious is how it channels the philosophical discussion; through the three central performances. Domhnall Gleeson as shy coder Caleb channels the inner questions of the audience, reflecting our uncertainty and (understandable) fears about both the experiment and Oscar Isaac’s bearded boffin Nathan, a steely-eyed control freak convinced that he is Oppenheimer reincarnated, willingly creating something that could ultimately send his entire species back to the Stone Age.





Alicia Vikander is perfect as exquisite A.I. Ava, bringing to bear a nuanced performance that captures the slight uncanny valley effect of a robot imitating human life. Enhanced by seamless special effects, she gives every impression of a real person restrained by the limitations of what is essentially a computer programme: her eyes rove a little too precisely and her limbs go from swift motion to stock-still in a microsecond, all the while her inquisitive nature and sleek body involving us in issues of individuality, sexuality, and even the question many films have tried and failed to ask intelligently: what does it mean to be human?





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From prolific screenwriter Alex Garland (andto name but a few) comes sci-fi drama. A young programmer is selected to participate in an experiment run by his boss (Domhnall Gleeson and Oscar Isaac respectively) to test a revolutionary new robot (Alicia Vikander), aiming to determine whether she possesses self-awareness (picture a feature-length version of the Voight-Kampff test fromThe film is drenched in a cold and clinical colour palette whilst the music – a concoction of machine-tooled chimes and rasping electronic reverb – attempts to provoke a physical response. All this and more builds to a startling climax as the development of the plot throws our loyalties hither and thither, leading to the realisation thatare the ones being tested, not Ava: will you pass…or fail?