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A young and talented programmer, Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson), is selected to assist Nathan (Oscar Isaac), the creative genius behind the internationally popular search engine Bluebook. As it turns out, Nathan has created what he believes to be a true artificial intelligence in the form of Ava (Alicia Vikander), it’s up to Caleb to prove or disprove via a series of Turing tests and interviews whether Nathan has succeeded. If it’s a success, we as humans are extinct, if not, it’s back to the drawing board. Just where will our race for existence and desire to be gods lead us? Written and Directed by Alex Garland (writer of 28 Days Later and Sunshine) this is Garland’s directorial debut. Heavily inspired by some of cinema’s heavyweights, think Kubrick and Fritz Lang, Garland weaves a very plausible tale of the singularity and the downfall of humanity; not belaboring the technical aspects or the science involved, Ex Machina chooses to go a significantly more socially introspective route keeping everyone in suspense, viewers and characters alike. Meanwhile, acting from the ensemble all round is top notch with a particular tip of the hat to Vikander for her ability to move from subtlety to extreme all the while keeping us under her thumb. Sharp CGI and sound design add another layer of beauty to this already stunning work of art. Here’s to a thinker! Cheers! See this film. Ex Machina is rated R.

A group of high school friends find themselves tormented by a strange online presence after the suicide death of their acquaintance Laura (Heather Sossaman). Bent on evil, this supernatural presence has a plan of its own, now surviving their Skype chat with each other will be a challenge. Ready to play a game? Basically constructed as a first person laptop screen viewing, props to the director and writer (Levan Gabriadze and Nelson Graves) for thinking out of the box and creating something that probably feels quite familiar to the millennial generation, or anyone who’s spent an evening wrestling with their computer and a malaligned Skype call. And, while the intention of creating a film that showcases cyber bullying is appreciated. The laughable dialogue and overall story arc falls shy of real terror once we get going; had we been induced into the horror trance in just a slightly different way and awoken with a slightly more poignant finish some real tension might have prevailed. In all evil there must be some good, and vice versa, without that counterbalance we’re left with just one dimension and a less interesting story. Interesting exercise in cinema, but more of a rental or skip. Unfriended is rated R.

Following a troupe of Macaque monkeys in Sri Lanka, lower class Maya the monkey struggles to rise in the primate hierarchy and raise her son all the while protected but oppressed by alpha male Raja and his three red faced sisters. Aided by newcomer and challenger to the throne, Kumar, the monkey kingdom is clearly a place of constant turmoil, despite the hours of affectionate grooming. How will these dynamic and daring simians sort their differences and learn to co-exist, not only with each other but also humans? Brought to you by the same makers of several other Disney Nature films (Chimpanzee and Earth) and narrated by Tina Fey, this heavily anthropomorphized look at the primate world proves to be part educational but majoritively fictitious and mashed together to tell a story from the sum of its parts. Albeit, a cute and a fun watch, perhaps a little too pandering in its overall story, whereas a film such as March of The Penguins, most likely constructed in a similar way, spends more time teaching and less time goofing, ultimately reaching a broader audience. Bottom line, looking for an intro to get your kids into nature lightly, this is your ticket. Adults, you won’t hate this, but this isn’t the high brow of David Attenborough. Monkey Kingdom is rated G.