Only one way in and out creates claustrophobic dread, but then it's magnified to a horrific degree with a makeshift graveyard of those that were unable to escape civilization's ruin. The dark, enclosed tunnel instills trepidation before even factoring in the outbreak. They begin their part in the narrative with lower survival odds and the expectation of added weight for Jim and Selena. The introduction to middle-aged Frank and his young teen daughter contradicts everything Jim has been taught about what it takes to survive. Speed is of the essence against the fast-moving and seemingly tireless aggressors. It set a precedence that survival isn't guaranteed for even the most heroic and fit characters. and can't see the above trailer, try this one.Before this intense scene arrives, Boyle established stakes through more minor scaled attacks by the infected and the shocking demise of Mark. *** = Anyone wanna take bets on this premiering Stateside during SXSW? ** = Rumors persist that Garland was much more involved with the direction of Dredd than some IMDB credits would have you believe. * = If you've only ever seen The Beach, pick up a copy of the novel via the Amazon link below immediately. This thing looks great! BAD readers in the UK will get a look at this one a bit before we will over in the States (it opens January 23rd overseas, April 10th in North America***), but whatever: as a longtime Alex Garland fan, I'm thrilled to see the guy finally step up and direct one of his own scripts, so I'm happy to wait. whose emotional intelligence proves more sophisticated, seductive––and more deceptive–– than the two men could have imagined.Ī solid setup, sure, but that trailer really sells the concept.
That experiment is Ava (Alicia Vikander), an astonishing A.I. Upon his arrival, Caleb learns that Nathan has chosen him to be the human component in a Turing Test-charging him with evaluating the capabilities, and ultimately the consciousness, of Nathan’s latest experiment in artificial intelligence.
Starring future Episode VIIcast members Domhnall Gleeson and Oscar Isaac, Ex Machina is a dark sci-fi thriller wherein.Ĭaleb Smith (Gleeson), a programmer at an internet-‐search giant, wins a competition to spend a week at the private mountain estate of the company's brilliant and reclusive CEO, Nathan Bateman (Isaac). All of which is also to say: we should be excited about that.Ĭase in point: the trailer for Garland's first film, Ex Machina, has just popped up online, and it looks awesome. Alex Garland put himself on the map all the way back in 1996 with his debut novel, The Beach, a sweaty, propulsive little thriller that was eventually adapted for the screen in 2000 by Danny Boyle*. The adaptation's sort of a mixed bag - for everything it gets right, there's another the film gets wrong - but the experience apparently led to a friendly working relationship between Garland and Boyle: the two went on to work together on 28 Days Laterand Sunshine (both of which Garland scripted, and both of which were received much better by critics).Īfter a brief diversion into the gaming world (Garland wrote the script for the underrated sci-fi actioner Enslaved: Odyssey To The West, as well as an unproduced script for the aborted Halo movie, which would've been directed by Neill Blomkamp), Garland returned to the world of film, adapting Never Let Me Go for Mark Romanek in 2010 and Dreddfor director Pete Travis** in 2012. All of which is to say: it was probably inevitable that Alex Garland would write and direct his own film at some point.