Automata begins with text that explains the movie’s status quo. Some time in the future, there is a great catastrophe that leaves much of the world uninhabitable. Humanity comes to rely on the services of robots governed by two important protocols: they cannot harm any living thing, and they cannot alter themselves or other robots. The action kicks off with Jacq Vaucan (Antonio Banderas), an insurance inspector for the company that manufactures the robots. Jacq wants to leave the city and bring his pregnant wife out to the coast. But until then, he is investigating an incident that involves a robot that appears to have broken the second protocol.
Any fan of science fiction knows where this story is probably leading. And Automata doesn’t do much to subvert expectations. It gloms on to a very familiar science fiction conundrum and doesn’t really add much to the conversation. This movie treads on very familiar ground as it basically rehashes every story ever told about artificial intelligence gaining autonomy. And it weighs down these familiar arguments with a very static plot that takes way too long to get anywhere.
After some welcome mood setting, the film spends much of its first act belaboring the point that people can’t believe that a robot could have broken the second protocol. Every new person that Jacq encounters seems to think it is a laughable concept. And of course, they are all proven wrong, and the film enters some interesting territory as it introduces an unbalanced class structure that is in part supported by a black market that trades in modified robots.
But then the movie takes a turn, and it comes spend much of its lengthy runtime in an irradiated desert with the main character helpless to do anything that might change his fate. Jacq is stripped of much of his agency, and he is left as a passive observer in his own story. The story just stalls here, once again stuck making the same points over and over again. The movie just squanders whatever narrative momentum it has with this side trip into the desert that features no compelling characters or any meaningful action.
This all leads up to a big reveal that isn’t very interesting at all. As it turns out, the film is short on new ideas. A climactic philosophical discussion feels like a weaker version of scenes that have played out in better fiction. To its credit, the movie has a pretty distinct look. Its robots aren’t very expressive, but they do look pretty good on screen. In the lead role, Antonio Banderas isn’t allowed access to many of the tools that give him a magnetic presence. He plays miserable for most of the film, and he isn’t able to liven up any of the film’s dreariness. A mediocre supporting cast offers the film little respite as well.
Science fiction thrives on a foundation of ideas, and Automata has a dire shortage of them. It feels as if the movie was built around its look. To its credit, the film is able to craft a few memorable visuals. But without a core of meaty ideas, the movie is just an empty shell. It is a façade that presents the appearance of a good science fiction tale, the kind that has something to say about how we relate to technology. But it’s all just gloss covering up a pile of recycled ideas.
My Rating:
