Ex Machina (MA). Director: Alex Garland. Starring: Alicia Vikaner, Domhnall Gleeson, Oscar Isaac. 108 minutes
In an illuminating piece of synergy, the screening of Ex Machina — acclaimed genre screenwriter Alex Garland's directorial debut — was led by a trailer for the upcoming 'final cut' of Ridley Scott's 1982 noir sci-fi thriller Blade Runner. Scott's film, based on a novel by Philip K. Dick, is renowned as much for its attention to philosophical questions about the nature of humanity as for its groundbreaking production values. It sets highly sophisticated, artificial humanoid life forms (Replicants) alongside the lives of 'real' men and asks: Which is more human?
Ex Machina takes Blade Runner's questions about what is the essence of humanity, and the ethical and moral implications when humankind adopts the mantle of Creator, and deconstructs them in a highly contemporary context. It takes place in the fortress-like, palatial home/research facility of programming genius Nathan (Isaac), owner and creator of the (fictional) search engine juggernaut Bluebook. He has enlisted the help of one of his employees, naïve but astute coder Caleb (Gleeson), with the final stages of his latest, top-secret project.
The project in question is an artificial intelligence (AI) that approximates human consciousness. It will, Nathan believes, be an accomplishment of evolutionary proportions (a belief that no lesser than Stephen Hawking would share). The affable but megalomaniacal Nathan is happy to accept the mantle of 'god', but knows that as a mere mortal he (or at least his species) will ultimately be superseded by his creation. Still, it is a frontier that must be plied: technological advancement, the pinnacle of human achievement, should not be restrained.
Ex Machina addresses such esoteric notions explicitly and implicitly, but is not bogged down by them, instead drawing from them a palpable sense of existential dread, that underpins its more straightforward, thrilling plot. Caleb's task is to conduct the Turing test (a test of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behaviour equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, that of a human) on the AI, which has been built to appear like a young woman named Ava (Vikander). Caleb's series of conversations with the captivating Ava form the core of the film.
There are numerous mysteries to draw the viewer in. The case for Ava's 'human' intelligence — evidenced by her ability to make jokes, her sophisticated flirting with Caleb, her indulgence of creative urges — is persuasive. But is it 'real' intelligence, or simply