Automata (2014)

Automata is like movies I usually like. It is slow and beautiful science fiction movie. It has interesting premise and few good ideas. But it doesn't make me care about it. It tries to have least interesting characters possible. I understand why robots are like they are but I don't get why main character Jacq has to be so uninteresting.

Jacq is burned out insurance investigator who doesn't care about anything. He wants to leave the city and go to coast. There may not be any seas left because water has gone and everything is wasteland. Jacq's wife is about to give birth to their first child. Jacq doesn't want child into world they live in. If Jacq doesn't care about anything why should I?

Robots have two rules. They can't harm anything living and they can't modify themselves or other robots. Only robot manufacturers can modify or repair robots. "Clocksmiths" modify robots illegally. This cause robots to malfunction and Jacq is called to investigate.

In his latest case Jacq see robots behaving oddly. One is preparing itself and another burns itself. This is science fiction movie about artificial intelligence. So it is easy to guess where this is going. Points for the movie not making robots too human like. Robots look like robots and act like robots. They never become human like. They even rip off their faces to show they have cut themselves from humans.

While this is good idea it put more pressure to have interesting human characters. Movie revolves around Jacq who doesn't care until nothing changes and he cares about something. Jacq's only character trait is he wants to get away. Wife's character trait is she is pregnant and she gives birth. Then there are police/bounty hunter and hitmen who hate robots and Jacq. Movie doesn't give me any reason to care about any of them.

Same topic is studied better in The Machine and Ex Machina. Movie has few interesting twists but main story has too much cliches and is too predictable. I wanted to like this. Interesting main character would have helped. Making movie 90 minutes long would have also helped. Now it is 110 minutes. There is not enough story for movie that long.