Automata (2014)

Autómata

Country of Origin: Spain, Bulgaria

Primary Audio Language: Spanish

Director: Gabe Ibáñez

Film Length: 1h 49m

Synopsis: Human race is at edge of the end. Robot race is at edge of the beginning.

Star Rating: ★★★★★

Review: A surprising, yet ultimately disappointing, sci-fi dystopian film staring Antonio Banderas.

This movie was surprising only because I had never seen Antonio Banderas in this type of film, like most uncultured Americans, I associate him mostly with Spy Kids, The Mask of Zorro, and other gun-slinging roles, but his specific fans may or may not be aware of other similar roles he’s played before. I generally try not to associate new movies to ones I’ve seen before, but Automata was heavily reminiscence of some sort of more severe crossbreed between Will Smith’s I, Robot and Chappie, both of which I enjoyed, despite equivalent poor critic reception.

Sci-Fi is my normal go-to movie genre, particular dystopian/post-apocalyptic storylines, but this particular movie left a lot to be desired. It featured decent characterization, but which failed to even be compelling or get me invested in most of the reoccurring characters, topped by a weak plot line, predictable ending, and an overly-serious tone that was disconnected from several of the cringey stereotypical sci-fi tropes the movie chooses to utilize, such as sex robots.

Ultimately, this was a dull film. The best thing I can say about it was that it had stunning visual effects, in the way of an interesting setting background, but that’s as far as I would go. It’s the same old tale of humans vs. robots with growing intelligence with almost nothing original to add to the genre.

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Available On: Netflix

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