Ex Machina

Alex Garland has developed a reputation as a screenwriter of sinuous, sinister slices of future-shock with his scripts for 28 Days Later, Sunshine and Dredd, and he builds on that rep with his directorial debut, Ex Machina, a seductive and unsettling story of weird science.

Timid computer coder Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) gets the high-tech equivalent of Willy Wonka’s Golden Ticket when he’s invited to spend a week at the isolated compound of his boss Nathan (Oscar Isaac), a self-styled alpha-male Internet billionaire (in the parlance of the pay-TV comedy Silicon Valley, he’s a ‘brogrammer’) with a top-secret project up his sleeve.

You see, Caleb isn’t there to spend quality time with his employer; he’s there to perform a ‘Turing Test’ on humanoid robot Ava (Alicia Vikander) to help determine if her artificial intelligence and consciousness can pass for that of a human being’s. And while Ava’s personality is ‘real’ enough for Caleb to gradually bond with her, the question still lingers: what will Nathan do with Ava if the experiment isn’t successful? What will he do if it is?

Garland wisely provides himself a set-up that befits a first-time filmmaker — one location, handful of characters — but it’s also one that allows him plenty of room to explore his ideas about traditional femininity and toxic masculinity. Ex Machina isn’t driven by twists and turns either, and its relatively straightforward narrative enables the filmmaker to display confidence and capability in his choices as a storyteller and stylist without getting too tricky or show-offish. (That said, the offbeat flourishes he displays are most welcome.)

Gleeson’s well-conveyed empathy makes his Caleb a fine audience surrogate, while Isaac consolidates his position as one of the most captivating and charismatic actors currently working. And Vikander’s terrific performance makes Ava a reflection of Ex Machina – a sleek and precise appearance and manner that’s a veneer for the ideas coursing beneath the surface.