Mostly superb Sci Fi mystery

Rating: 7/10 (14 May 2015)

I love Sci Fi. I love well-written and well-acted character-driven films and Ex Machina mixes both, albeit with some considerable faults.
First off, if you're a fan of this genre, definitely watch Ex Machina. You won't be disappointed. But be warned:
The opening sequence was distant and cold and didn't fit the tone of the rest of the film. The first 15 minutes were so unbearably slow and unremarkable that I decided to stop watching. But being such a huge Sci Fi fan, at the last minute, I decided to skip ahead to see if things would get more interesting. I'd skipped to just past the hour mark and I can confirm that 'things would definitely get more interesting'! I skipped back to the scene I'd abandoned and realised that if I had kept watching the second session with Ava for just 20 seconds longer, I would have been fully hooked so my advice: keep watching!
From that point forward, the tension was palpable as the interactions between Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) and Nathan (Oscar Isaac) were intensified and there was so much investment in the outcome of the experiment, not to mention the subtle twists and turns of the plot.
What really lets the film down is the ending. There is so much anticipation building, so many clever ideas thrown around and it does start off incredible, actually becoming powerful and it seems like it will all pay off in this wonderful climax and then... devastation. Like when your bowling ball is heading towards the gutter and you're urging-pleading-begging it to curve in the opposite direction, but it doesn't.
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***SPOILER***
(I confirm if Ava lives or dies, I hint strongly at Caleb's fate but there is one shocking twist at the end which I don't discuss.)
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After a powerful scene involving Ava, I realised what was intended for Caleb and I distinctly remember shouting at the screen: "No!", "Don't you dare ruin this film!" - Caleb's fate is infuriating because it's not even certain what 'does' happen to him. As it stands, we're clearly expected to believe one thing (otherwise, why bother going to the trouble of filming those events?), but the very first thing that pops into your head is: "The secondment was for a fixed period", "Someone knows about this place", "This guy is a computer genius and has access to all of the best technology"... so it's hard to care when the scenario is so flimsy.
Finally, everything we'd been led to believe about Ava's artificial intelligence fell apart the moment she left. Sociopaths are not human, they are machines. The only real test of a human being is our inexplicable ability to feel compassion and show mercy even when it's not expected of us. Is this random? Is this also socially conditioned, or 'programmed', just like everything else about us? I'm not sure, I'll leave that to the experts. But regardless, I would have preferred an ending where Ava walked outside; saw, heard and felt the world, "turned human" (referencing an earlier conversation in the film) and then went back to Caleb and when asked why she returned, she'd reply (with something less trite than): "I don't know". This final interaction would 'prove' her artificial intelligence and they would both leave together.
As it stands though, I suppose the chosen ending left them with the option of filming a sequel. I would definitely watch a sequel, but please don't sacrifice a powerful and logical ending to set up another film!
This deserved a 9 until the end.
7/10