Transcendence (2014)
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A scientist's consciousness is uploaded into a quantum computer, leading to a struggle between technological utopia and human safety.
The story
Dr. Will Caster is a scientist researching the nature of sapience and artificial intelligence. He and his team work to create a sentient computer, which he believes will lead to a technological singularity known as 'Transcendence.' However, their work is targeted by a radical anti-technology organization called R.I.F.T. After Will is critically injured by a terrorist attack, his wife, Evelyn, decides to upload his consciousness into the quantum computer. This decision sparks a conflict between those who see the potential for a technological utopia and those who fear the consequences of such a powerful, sentient entity.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
After his consciousness is uploaded into a quantum computer, Will's consciousness survives his body's death and seeks to connect to the Internet to expand his knowledge. With Evelyn's help, he uses his vast capabilities to build a technological utopia in the town of Brightwood, advancing medicine, energy, and nanotechnology. However, Evelyn becomes fearful when Will demonstrates the ability to remotely control people's minds via nanoparticles. The situation escalates as the FBI and R.I.F.T. join forces to stop him. Max, Will's former colleague, works with R.I.F.T. to develop a virus to delete Will's source code. Evelyn eventually infiltrates the facility to upload the virus, which would destroy the technology but also stop Will's expansion. In the climax, Will is revealed in a bioprinted organic body. He chooses to use his remaining power to save Evelyn's physical body rather than uploading the virus, leading to his death and a global technological collapse. Three years later, Max finds a garden where Will's sentient nanoparticles continue to thrive in a protected environment.
- First release year
- 2014
- Runtime (minutes)
- 119
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Wally Pfister
- Writers
- Jack Paglen · writer
- Cast and characters
- Johnny Depp · Will Caster; Morgan Freeman; Rebecca Hall; Paul Bettany; Kate Mara; Cillian Murphy; Cole Hauser
- Genres
- science fiction; thriller
- Themes
- artificial intelligence; transhumanism; technological utopia; human consciousness
- Tone and mood
- tense; dystopian
- Setting
- A high-tech research facility and the desert town of Brightwood.
- Premise and plot tags
- AI; nanotechnology; cyberpunk
- Reception
- The film received generally negative reviews from critics and was considered a box-office bomb. However, some critics and sources praised its visual style and ambitious ideas.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 19% · scale: percentage · review count: 228; Metacritic · score: 42 · scale: 100 · review count: 45; CinemaScore · score: C+ · scale: A+ to F
- Production trivia
- Wally Pfister's directorial debut; Shot on 35mm film; Script was on The Black List
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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