Transcendence

Actors: stars Johnny Depp, Rebecca Hall, Kate Mara, Cillian Murphy, Paul Bettany, Morgan Freeman

Rating:  6 out of 10, Captain Jack himself couldn’t save this.  This film has a fascinating concept involving the relationship of technology to humanity but misses the mark on a number of fronts.  Depp totally mails in his performance which dooms the movie since the plot revolves around his humanity.  He plays the world’s foremost AI scientist who’s loaded into a computer when tragically assassinated.  There were some really cool effects but plot holes you could drive a well-stocked semi through make it seem kind of silly.  The movie is told through flashback as we see the results of the climax before anything happens.  That plot device only works if getting there makes sense which this doesn’t.  Rebecca Hall does a great job as Depp’s devoted wife but she’s fighting a losing battle with his lack of presence.  Morgan Freeman and Kate Mara are criminally underused in supporting roles.  Instead of being a soaring statement about the possibilities and dangers of technology, it comes across as something trite; ploddingly so.

MVP:  Hall as the brilliant but confused wife Evelyn Caster