The Slippery Soapbox

[ctaulbee]

Transcendence (2014)

Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) is the foremost researcher in the field of Artificial Intelligence, working to create a sentient machine that combines the collective intelligence of everything ever known with the full range of human emotions. His highly controversial experiments have made him famous, but they have also made him the prime target of anti-technology extremists who will do whatever it takes to stop him. However, in their attempt to destroy Will, they inadvertently ...

PG-13, 1 hr. 59 min.
Drama, Science Fiction & Fantasy
Directed By: Wally Pfister
Cast  Johnny Depp, Paul Bettany, Rebecca Hall, Morgan Freeman, Kate Mara, Cole Hauser
Warner Bros. Pictures



Pretty sad folks and that is being quite kind I think on this one.

Wally Pfister one of the top cinematographers in the industry, having worked consistently with Christopher Nolan and winning an Academy Award for Nolan’s mind-bending masterpiece “Inception.” Made his directing debut with “Transcendence” — and he seems to be aiming for the same kind of philosophical questions and existential dilemmas that “Inception” posed.

Sadly though Pfister has only made a film that’s boring, dull and overlong. Other than exceptional special effects and Hall’s engaging performance, the best part of this travesty in my opinion, as Evelyn Caster wife of the brilliant AI scientist Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp), well the film just falls short in every way a feature film can.

The whole concept of evolution via the merger of human conscious and high tech computer quantum processing is quite interesting but the story as told here fails, it never evolves in any direction but rather tries to skim the surface of a broad subject hitting a few high points and then moving to the next without resolving anything, it's the very epitome of going around in circles and going no where at the same time.

I was truly interested in seeing this now I'm just sorry I did...

I give it one star for the few, very few points where it did succeed.