M3GAN 2.0 is less fun, a sequel that's preachy instead of campy

The Advertiser

2 days ago

M3GAN 2.0
M, 120 minutes
2 stars
At first, I thought I had wandered into the wrong cinema. This movie begins like a political thriller involving the US in the Middle East (no doubt a coincidence but all too timely). I was discombobulated for a moment, but then there was an outburst of violence and mayhem from a killer android in a female body and my equilibrium was restored.
M3GAN (2022) was a fun if unremarkable sci-fi/horror movie in which the title robot - a companion and protector for a young girl - went way beyond her programming and turned into a killer.
She was finally stopped, but the low-budget movie was a big box office hit so a sequel was assured and, to their credit, the filmmakers don't simply do a rehash.
But the new film is far from a total success. Excessive length - it's almost 20 minutes longer than the first movie - is just one of the problems. Unlike the first film, which knew it was somewhat silly - M3GAN was reminiscent of Chucky from the Child's Play movies - this has a fair bit of lecturing, and it ain't subtle.
At the start of M3GAN 2.0 - set two years after its predecessor - it's not M3GAN herself who's on the rampage. It's AMELIA (an acronym for Autonomous Military Engagement Logistics and Infiltration Android) who looks like an adult woman (played by Ivanna Sakhno). She is the product of a secret, dodgy program using the same technology as M3GAN but - this will sound familiar - has become self-aware and decided to do what she wants, when she wants. And her ambitions make M3GAN look like an underachiever.
Meanwhile, M3GAN's creator Gemma (Allison Williams) has become an author and fierce advocate for regulating artificial intelligence. Gemma's relationship with her niece Cady (Violet McGraw) is still strained - quite apart from the traumatising events from before, the kid is an orphan who feels a bit neglected (and, of course, she's a moody teenager regardless).
M3GAN is kept safely in a harmless little robot body, but when AMELIA's increasing control over computer systems and other technology gets out, it becomes clear Gemma will need to rebuild and upgrade M3GAN in order to take on the new threat.
M3GAN (voiced by Jenna Davis) requests a taller body, a clever way to incorporate teen actress Amie Donald's growth spurt since the first film. But given what happened last time, can M3GAn be trusted?
Director Gerard Johnstone - who scripted from a story he concocted with the first film's writer, Akela Cooper - keeps the pacing in the early part of the film crisp, but things slacken markedly as the film goes on, with lots of characters and story turns to follow.
One new character is a billionaire jerk named Christian (Aristotle Athari) who might, possibly, be modelled on Elon Musk. Just a little bit. There's lots of tech talk and also copious discussion on the ethics of AI. It seems like we're intended to take the philosophical aspects seriously, but this really isn't the platform. Not that the ideas aren't worthwhile - especially when, in the real world, AI keeps getting pushed forward - but the handling didn't need to be so blatant.
And this material sits uneasily beside the expected campier elements, such as M3GAN's foul-mouthed snark and the Knight Rider theme coming in out of nowhere (Tellytubbies, Knight Rider - are these references still current for younger viewers?) The second Terminator movie seems to be a big inspiration and, in a running joke, Steven Seagal and his movies keep coming up. In this instalment, M3GAN and AMELIA engage in martial arts fights. Well, it's different. It's just not great.
Still, it's not a bad showcase for some New Zealand talent (it was filmed there) and some effects work was done in Australia. So not all technology is bad.
M3GAN 2.0
M, 120 minutes
2 stars
At first, I thought I had wandered into the wrong cinema. This movie begins like a political thriller involving the US in the Middle East (no doubt a coincidence but all too timely). I was discombobulated for a moment, but then there was an outburst of violence and mayhem from a killer android in a female body and my equilibrium was restored.
M3GAN (2022) was a fun if unremarkable sci-fi/horror movie in which the title robot - a companion and protector for a young girl - went way beyond her programming and turned into a killer.
She was finally stopped, but the low-budget movie was a big box office hit so a sequel was assured and, to their credit, the filmmakers don't simply do a rehash.
But the new film is far from a total success. Excessive length - it's almost 20 minutes longer than the first movie - is just one of the problems. Unlike the first film, which knew it was somewhat silly - M3GAN was reminiscent of Chucky from the Child's Play movies - this has a fair bit of lecturing, and it ain't subtle.
At the start of M3GAN 2.0 - set two years after its predecessor - it's not M3GAN herself who's on the rampage. It's AMELIA (an acronym for Autonomous Military Engagement Logistics and Infiltration Android) who looks like an adult woman (played by Ivanna Sakhno). She is the product of a secret, dodgy program using the same technology as M3GAN but - this will sound familiar - has become self-aware and decided to do what she wants, when she wants. And her ambitions make M3GAN look like an underachiever.
Meanwhile, M3GAN's creator Gemma (Allison Williams) has become an author and fierce advocate for regulating artificial intelligence. Gemma's relationship with her niece Cady (Violet McGraw) is still strained - quite apart from the traumatising events from before, the kid is an orphan who feels a bit neglected (and, of course, she's a moody teenager regardless).
M3GAN is kept safely in a harmless little robot body, but when AMELIA's increasing control over computer systems and other technology gets out, it becomes clear Gemma will need to rebuild and upgrade M3GAN in order to take on the new threat.
M3GAN (voiced by Jenna Davis) requests a taller body, a clever way to incorporate teen actress Amie Donald's growth spurt since the first film. But given what happened last time, can M3GAn be trusted?
Director Gerard Johnstone - who scripted from a story he concocted with the first film's writer, Akela Cooper - keeps the pacing in the early part of the film crisp, but things slacken markedly as the film goes on, with lots of characters and story turns to follow.
One new character is a billionaire jerk named Christian (Aristotle Athari) who might, possibly, be modelled on Elon Musk. Just a little bit. There's lots of tech talk and also copious discussion on the ethics of AI. It seems like we're intended to take the philosophical aspects seriously, but this really isn't the platform. Not that the ideas aren't worthwhile - especially when, in the real world, AI keeps getting pushed forward - but the handling didn't need to be so blatant.
And this material sits uneasily beside the expected campier elements, such as M3GAN's foul-mouthed snark and the Knight Rider theme coming in out of nowhere (Tellytubbies, Knight Rider - are these references still current for younger viewers?) The second Terminator movie seems to be a big inspiration and, in a running joke, Steven Seagal and his movies keep coming up. In this instalment, M3GAN and AMELIA engage in martial arts fights. Well, it's different. It's just not great.
Still, it's not a bad showcase for some New Zealand talent (it was filmed there) and some effects work was done in Australia. So not all technology is bad.
M3GAN 2.0
M, 120 minutes
2 stars
At first, I thought I had wandered into the wrong cinema. This movie begins like a political thriller involving the US in the Middle East (no doubt a coincidence but all too timely). I was discombobulated for a moment, but then there was an outburst of violence and mayhem from a killer android in a female body and my equilibrium was restored.
M3GAN (2022) was a fun if unremarkable sci-fi/horror movie in which the title robot - a companion and protector for a young girl - went way beyond her programming and turned into a killer.
She was finally stopped, but the low-budget movie was a big box office hit so a sequel was assured and, to their credit, the filmmakers don't simply do a rehash.
But the new film is far from a total success. Excessive length - it's almost 20 minutes longer than the first movie - is just one of the problems. Unlike the first film, which knew it was somewhat silly - M3GAN was reminiscent of Chucky from the Child's Play movies - this has a fair bit of lecturing, and it ain't subtle.
At the start of M3GAN 2.0 - set two years after its predecessor - it's not M3GAN herself who's on the rampage. It's AMELIA (an acronym for Autonomous Military Engagement Logistics and Infiltration Android) who looks like an adult woman (played by Ivanna Sakhno). She is the product of a secret, dodgy program using the same technology as M3GAN but - this will sound familiar - has become self-aware and decided to do what she wants, when she wants. And her ambitions make M3GAN look like an underachiever.
Meanwhile, M3GAN's creator Gemma (Allison Williams) has become an author and fierce advocate for regulating artificial intelligence. Gemma's relationship with her niece Cady (Violet McGraw) is still strained - quite apart from the traumatising events from before, the kid is an orphan who feels a bit neglected (and, of course, she's a moody teenager regardless).
M3GAN is kept safely in a harmless little robot body, but when AMELIA's increasing control over computer systems and other technology gets out, it becomes clear Gemma will need to rebuild and upgrade M3GAN in order to take on the new threat.
M3GAN (voiced by Jenna Davis) requests a taller body, a clever way to incorporate teen actress Amie Donald's growth spurt since the first film. But given what happened last time, can M3GAn be trusted?
Director Gerard Johnstone - who scripted from a story he concocted with the first film's writer, Akela Cooper - keeps the pacing in the early part of the film crisp, but things slacken markedly as the film goes on, with lots of characters and story turns to follow.
One new character is a billionaire jerk named Christian (Aristotle Athari) who might, possibly, be modelled on Elon Musk. Just a little bit. There's lots of tech talk and also copious discussion on the ethics of AI. It seems like we're intended to take the philosophical aspects seriously, but this really isn't the platform. Not that the ideas aren't worthwhile - especially when, in the real world, AI keeps getting pushed forward - but the handling didn't need to be so blatant.
And this material sits uneasily beside the expected campier elements, such as M3GAN's foul-mouthed snark and the Knight Rider theme coming in out of nowhere (Tellytubbies, Knight Rider - are these references still current for younger viewers?) The second Terminator movie seems to be a big inspiration and, in a running joke, Steven Seagal and his movies keep coming up. In this instalment, M3GAN and AMELIA engage in martial arts fights. Well, it's different. It's just not great.
Still, it's not a bad showcase for some New Zealand talent (it was filmed there) and some effects work was done in Australia. So not all technology is bad.
M3GAN 2.0
M, 120 minutes
2 stars
At first, I thought I had wandered into the wrong cinema. This movie begins like a political thriller involving the US in the Middle East (no doubt a coincidence but all too timely). I was discombobulated for a moment, but then there was an outburst of violence and mayhem from a killer android in a female body and my equilibrium was restored.
M3GAN (2022) was a fun if unremarkable sci-fi/horror movie in which the title robot - a companion and protector for a young girl - went way beyond her programming and turned into a killer.
She was finally stopped, but the low-budget movie was a big box office hit so a sequel was assured and, to their credit, the filmmakers don't simply do a rehash.
But the new film is far from a total success. Excessive length - it's almost 20 minutes longer than the first movie - is just one of the problems. Unlike the first film, which knew it was somewhat silly - M3GAN was reminiscent of Chucky from the Child's Play movies - this has a fair bit of lecturing, and it ain't subtle.
At the start of M3GAN 2.0 - set two years after its predecessor - it's not M3GAN herself who's on the rampage. It's AMELIA (an acronym for Autonomous Military Engagement Logistics and Infiltration Android) who looks like an adult woman (played by Ivanna Sakhno). She is the product of a secret, dodgy program using the same technology as M3GAN but - this will sound familiar - has become self-aware and decided to do what she wants, when she wants. And her ambitions make M3GAN look like an underachiever.
Meanwhile, M3GAN's creator Gemma (Allison Williams) has become an author and fierce advocate for regulating artificial intelligence. Gemma's relationship with her niece Cady (Violet McGraw) is still strained - quite apart from the traumatising events from before, the kid is an orphan who feels a bit neglected (and, of course, she's a moody teenager regardless).
M3GAN is kept safely in a harmless little robot body, but when AMELIA's increasing control over computer systems and other technology gets out, it becomes clear Gemma will need to rebuild and upgrade M3GAN in order to take on the new threat.
M3GAN (voiced by Jenna Davis) requests a taller body, a clever way to incorporate teen actress Amie Donald's growth spurt since the first film. But given what happened last time, can M3GAn be trusted?
Director Gerard Johnstone - who scripted from a story he concocted with the first film's writer, Akela Cooper - keeps the pacing in the early part of the film crisp, but things slacken markedly as the film goes on, with lots of characters and story turns to follow.
One new character is a billionaire jerk named Christian (Aristotle Athari) who might, possibly, be modelled on Elon Musk. Just a little bit. There's lots of tech talk and also copious discussion on the ethics of AI. It seems like we're intended to take the philosophical aspects seriously, but this really isn't the platform. Not that the ideas aren't worthwhile - especially when, in the real world, AI keeps getting pushed forward - but the handling didn't need to be so blatant.
And this material sits uneasily beside the expected campier elements, such as M3GAN's foul-mouthed snark and the Knight Rider theme coming in out of nowhere (Tellytubbies, Knight Rider - are these references still current for younger viewers?) The second Terminator movie seems to be a big inspiration and, in a running joke, Steven Seagal and his movies keep coming up. In this instalment, M3GAN and AMELIA engage in martial arts fights. Well, it's different. It's just not great.
Still, it's not a bad showcase for some New Zealand talent (it was filmed there) and some effects work was done in Australia. So not all technology is bad.