Geração do Futuro

"The Pod Genetation" is a sci fi movie that critisizes the evolution of AI and how that can overtake even nature.

The story has a smooth start and it is obvious from the begining that something is off. The big eyes of the AI assistants, the wierd Pod company, the creepy 'psychologist', even the office environment along with the AI home assistant who was trying to be helpful but ended up dictating her owners' lives, everything lean in to a more horror genre, which the movie never lived up to. Rather, the story took a turn towards the more optimistic side, opting for a message where the human relationships and nature prevails. And, honestly, that was a nice touch.

However, the story did get stuffy towards the ending and there were some boring scenes as well. In addition, the humour was subtle and, sometimes, difficult to detect.

Finally, the performances were enjoyable.

Start's off strong and intriguing with dark undertones..... around halfway through the film however, it just suddenly turns silly. The behaviour of the two leads becomes juvenile and slapstick and it goes from alluding to being more of a thriller into a light hearted comedy. It also slows pace massively and the second half is just padded out with nothing really interesting happening and just more of a romance story.

This would have been better suited to an hour long short show, and it ending with a sinister tone. The two leads act well with what they are given. The dreamlike sequences were also overused massively and irrelevant to the story.

I liked the premise of the film and the visuals so it had that going for it. It got the sci-fi aesthetic right at least.

"The Pod Generation" had the potential to shine as a gripping Black Mirror episode, with a compact runtime of just one hour. However, it seemed to have been needlessly stretched to 111 minutes, weakening its impact and leaving the narrative feeling rather hollow. Throughout the film, there were several scenes (dream scenes, therapy sessions, ...) that felt exuberant and ultimately failed to contribute significantly to the story, resulting in a sense of dragging and stagnation.

Even with the extended runtime, "The Pod Generation" left viewers with a lingering sense of incompleteness, as though there were unresolved threads that needed further exploration. I would have loved further world building or an extension of the conspiracies that were teased. Without any of that, the story could have been tighter, focusing on its core themes and plot points, and it would have benefitted from a more concise approach to storytelling, akin to the thought-provoking brevity that Black Mirror is known for.

Like others said, this film very much feels like an extended Black Mirror episode, but without a twist or something edgy to make it memorable.

This young couple want to have a baby in a world where babies can be made in artificial wombs i.e. Egg-shaped "pods". The woman (a nice portrayal by Emilia Clarke - the American accent was probably unnecessary given that there's no relevant backstory) is a highly successful professional, working for the same corporation that actually offers the pod services. She's an all around modern woman, having accepted the quirks and conveniences of this very high-tech society. Her husband, on the other hand (a warm and relatable portrayal by Chiwetel Ejiofor) is an old-school botanologist, who loves nature and is sceptical towards all of this tech taking over natural processes like pregnancy and childbirth.

You'd think that this conflict would drive the plot, but it doesn't. It somehow gets resolved very easily, without much of a takeaway and that's the problem of the whole film. No conflict, no high stakes, no twists or sinister revelations, just literally what it says on the tin: a couple having a baby in a pod.

There is no discernible stance or point that the film is making. If the point is "natural is better", it is made in a very underwhelming manner. If the point is to offer some food for thought and debate, then it also fails: there is, for example, the angle of this method of reproduction being liberating for women and an opportunity for men to bond with their unborn baby in a more meaningful way - but this gets quickly dismissed and satirized as if there isn't a deeper discussion about bodily autonomy and gender roles behind it.

One thing I will praise is the pace and aesthetic. I didn't find it slow, despite the lack of an exciting plot. And that's an achievement of the art department, which made the whole flow and visuals soothing and satisfying.

Decent effort, but ultimately powerless.

In this world where mother nature is transplanted - transferred, replaced, displaced, where surrogates are grafted, you have a partner who's organic, whose whole life is quite botanic, but you take him to a place, where dreams are shafted. Incubation is the option you have chosen, allows you to pursue your work, without demotion, devolution is the way, an evolving science day, although at first, you may just lack, vital devotion. As for concerns, a trip to the all seeing eye - will resolve anxiety and clarify, that you must do as you are told, you must remain part of the fold, this is the way the human race will multiply.

Not as good as it could have been.