Intelligent and gripping science fiction

Rating: 9/10 (28 August 2016)

Caleb Smith, a computer programmer for the company Blue Book, thinks he is lucky when he wins a competition to spend a week with the company's reclusive CEO and founder Nathan Bateman. When he gets to Nathan's remote house he discovers that it is more than just a home; it is also a research facility, even though the only people living there are Nathan and his maid Kyoko. Nathan explains to Caleb that he wants him to administer the Turing Test to an Artificial Intelligence he has created that is to say prove that it is genuinely intelligent not just responding according to programming. The AI, named Ava, is in the form of a robot that has a feminine body and a human face. Caleb soon realises that the design was very deliberate and as Eva starts flirting with him he asks questions of Nathan. During their sessions together Ava engineers a power cut during which she warns Caleb that Nathan is not to be trusted; this leads him to do some investigating and he is a little disturbed with what he finds.
This is a superior science fiction thriller; the single location gives a good claustrophobic feel and there is the constant concern that things may not be quite what they seem. The first twist, which I won't spoil, did seem a little obvious but that helped hide some of those that came later. The design of Ava was inventive; on the one hand she was obviously a highly advanced robot but her face and manner were distinctly human; the effects used impress as she looks quite real. The cast does a fine job; most notably Alicia Vikander who is great as Ava, but also Domhnall Gleeson and Oscar Isaac who impress as Caleb and Nathan. There are a few disturbing moments as well as some swearing and nudity but if that doesn't bother you I'd strongly recommend this intelligent sci-fi film.