Ex Machina was a compelling science fiction thriller concerning artificial intelligence. Morgan – which is in the same sphere – starts with promise.
A corporate troubleshooter, Lee Weathers (Kate Mara) is sent to a remote, top-secret location, where an A.I. experiment has been underway with a skeleton crew for seven years. But something has gone badly wrong. The creation, named Morgan (Anya Taylor-Joy), is for all intents and purposes a highly intelligent girl/young woman. She was “born”/created and has been effectively brought up in laboratory conditions. Although only five years of age, she presents like a normal, but advanced thinker, possessing emotional intelligence. She also happens to look like a young adult.
All was proceeding well until a terrifying incident, in which Morgan stabbed one of her carers in the eye, an episode which the staff and the person stabbed regarded as out of character. But given the serious nature of events, Weathers and a psychiatrist are dispatched to find out more. The staff’s feeling for Morgan is unmistakable, but that doesn’t affect Weathers or psychiatrist, Dr Alan Shapiro (Paul Giamatti), because they are purely driven by the job they have to do. It is soon clear that Morgan has major anger management issues that have devastating consequences.
The first half of the movie drew me in. I was intrigued and fascinated by the set up, but let down by the follow through. Sophistication turned to cheap thrills and what I considered to be “B” or “C” grade horror. It was near on impossible to build a connection to a robotic Kate Mara, who expresses no warmth or sensitivity … and that was a major problem as she is, effectively, the person who drives the story.
Artificial intelligence and how it can go wrong is the stuff of many movies, including I, Robot and, unfortunately, Morgan turns out to be a poor cousin of the best of them. The longer is progresses the more messy it becomes. The major problems are the script and a lack of credibility. A pity, because it is a subject that greatly interests me. Rated MA, Morgan scores a 5½ out of 10.
Director: Luke Scott
Cast: Kate Mara, Anya Taylor-Joy
Release Date: 17 November 2016 (limited)
Rating: MA 15+
Alex First
David Edwards is the editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television
