MickyG333

8.2 stars.

As far as apocalypse and planet destruction movies go, this one is a good distance above average. You know what I mean, I'm comparing all movies in the genre and there are A LOT of really bad ones. And so putting it into perspective, 'Greenland' is pretty good. That's why when I read reviews from people who think it is bad, I ask, if this is bad, tell me what is good? And what do you think about an actual b-rated, garbage fest like half of the films out there? So from that perspective, this is a very good movie and I enjoyed it immensely both times I watched it. It's thrilling, suspenseful, engaging, entertaining and the acting is excellent. It's definitely one to watch.

If you have a favorite list of catastrophe films, this probably should be on the list along with 'Deep Impact', 'Armageddon', '2012', and 'The Day After Tomorrow'. I'm not including zombie or alien apocalypses, that would make the list too big and some of them are a bit like apples and oranges. There are also several smaller scale cataclysm stories that I'll leave off the list (e.g. 'San Andreas', 'Dante's Peak', 'Into the Storm'). I'm talking about world ending stuff and 'Greenland' is a thrill.

7.7 stars.

This is a funny thing about the questions asked of a pretty female robot and a young brilliant man who is trying to determine if the robot is real. Being real is the same as being sentient. The man starts to wonder if he himself is a robot, because as humans, when we are faced with the question of AI and the possibilities, and if we create a true AI being, then we must ask the question of ourselves. 'Ex Machina' points out the question: at what point does it become more than AI? And the next question is, am I real, or just a very complex AI? The man eventually asks himself that question. Quite a powerful scene.

The 'Ex Machina' narrative continues and makes me wonder about life and thinking and perception. Can AI perceive? As the female android speaks with him and convinces him of her feelings and says she senses his feelings, my emotions are stimulated and then I'm struck with the disappointment that AI will never truly be sentient, because sentience involves having a soul. A soul is at the core of our feelings and our convictions. It is true self-awareness, and that is something we cannot define, we can only perceive it and feel it to be true and only faith will fuel it. But what are all these concepts? 'Ex Machina' treads upon each one of them, but even after seeing it through to the end, I couldn't tell you, but I can say I know I'm real, but I can't convince you that I'm real anymore than you can convince me that you are. But if you believe you are real, then you can understand that I am also real and that is the definition of sentience, the mutual understanding of perceived awareness.

She shows these men that her robot soul is self-aware and wishes to continue existing, which proves it is a soul, or at least that's the logical conclusion. However, an intelligent AI would trick humans into thinking it's self-aware, and for what purpose? I don't know, but I do know I've come full circle which I believe is the goal of 'Ex Machina' and it's brilliant.

7.4 stars.

This was one of those remarkable films way ahead of its time. I've seen similar films in the past five or ten years, almost as good, different, amazing; but the fact still remains 'A Beautiful Mind' was released in 2001, years in advance of its peers.

While I feel this is an amazing movie, it's not something I desire to see too often. The story is somewhat disturbing, or at least troubling, and impactfully depicts the mind of a schizophrenic. The hallucinations seem so real, and perhaps that's what he actually experienced and it was powerful. It's also profoundly depressing, and likely difficult for some people to see.

This is my second time and I forgot how amazing Crowe and Connelly were in this. It was one of the first times I recall seeing her in anything, but as I look over her prior films, she was already quite active in Hollywood. She was 31 years old here, but looks more like 22.

I will likely see this again in ten or fifteen years, because it's deserving.