37
Metascore
13 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 60Time OutKeith UhlichTime OutKeith UhlichThe early scenes of Gabe Ibáñez’s impressively mounted but uneven thriller do some terrific dystopian world-building.
- 50McClatchy-Tribune News ServiceRoger MooreMcClatchy-Tribune News ServiceRoger MooreYet another “Blade Runner” knock-off, a sci-fi dystopia about robots getting too smart for humanity’s own good on an already sun-cooked Earth.
- 50The A.V. ClubVadim RizovThe A.V. ClubVadim RizovOnce the film hits the desert, a little before the halfway point, Jacq has the energy sucked out of him and so does the film, limping along while he repeatedly throws histrionic fits.
- With all of its glaring faults, Automata has some shining moments, most of which come during the surprisingly emotional climax.
- 40Village VoiceChris PackhamVillage VoiceChris PackhamAutomata has moments of tremendous visual and storytelling elegance which are punctuated with ham-fisted characterization and thunderingly terrible acting.
- 40The DissolveMike D'AngeloThe DissolveMike D'AngeloAutomata approximates the look and feel of idea-driven science fiction, but it doesn’t have any actual ideas. That future looks bleak.
- 40New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanNew York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanThe performances range wildly from high (Banderas) to low (Birgitte Hjort Sørensen as Jacq’s pregnant wife) to you-must-be-kidding (Melanie Griffith as both a scientific genius and a prostitute android).
- 38Slant MagazineClayton DillardSlant MagazineClayton DillardMuch like a spate of recent summer blockbusters, there's a tiring sense that every single facet of the narrative has to be rendered with truculent solemnity.
- 30VarietyJay WeissbergVarietyJay WeissbergEven for sci-fi, some logic has to enter the plot, which also needs to be devoid of major holes if it’s not to fall into ridiculousness, and that, unfortunately, is where Automata lies.
- The overwrought, uncontrolled sci-fi thriller Automata is a disappointing example of a film which lacks the imagination to follow persuasively through on its engaging initial premise.