Ex Machina Reflection

The more I think about Ex Machina, the more I like it. There are so many components of it to unpack, and as I do this, I come across new interpretations. I think that the filming itself is beautifully done and paired well with the movie’s themes. I really enjoyed the juxtapositions throughout the film: lush nature versus glass walls, stocky Nathan versus slender Caleb, human versus machine, body versus consciousness.

One part of the film that stood out to me was the discussion of gender. The ideas of gender and Ava’s role as a woman was placed very prominently. I think that she was made with the intentions of commenting on the constructs society places on women. However, there are other aspects of her that follow these motifs – being beautiful, helpless, and flirtatious. Ava reminded me of Judith Butler’s writing on gender performance. Ava is a robot acting as a woman.

The film also got me thinking more about Sophia, the robot that was granted citizenship in Saudi Arabia recently. In an interview, she was asked if robots can be self aware and conscious. In response, she asked the interviewer how he knew he was human and never answered the question. Sophia was nowhere near advanced as Ava, but I think that the unknown aspect of AI is what worries people.