Simulant

I liked the movie and I believe it deserves a higher score of at least 6+.

There are a lot of movies being made today and a lot of them have flashy graphics and cool action, but they do miss any serious point fequently.

Well, the good thing about this one is that it has a point and a good one, it's interesting and even thought it has been raised before it still seems to entertain and entagle thoughts, as A. I. future is more close now than ever.

It's not a flashy blockbuster, it is quite slow paced, some character actions are questionable, dialogue is simple, some scenes seem quite cheaply made, yet I did enjoy this movie.

It has some style.

And I liked it's soul.

The lack of suspense in the narrative and the predictable unfolding of events make for an unenjoyable movie. The filmmakers attempt to explore profound questions regarding the relationship between humans and machines. However, the execution lacks any sense of creativity or enthusiasm. In the movie, all Simulates must obey four precepts: 1) Do not inflict harm on any human being. 2) Do not modify yourself or any other Simulate. 3) Do not commit crimes against international or local law. 4) Obey all commands from your masters. As soon as these rules are read out in the film, you know that they will be broken. All is too predictable. Even the A. I. is not worked out properly. The script, though, indeed looks like something that could be generated by ChatGPT. Simulant is naïve nonsense that asks, "What does it mean to be human?" and answers the question by changing the code of simulates and recommending them a Dostoevsky book! Literally! Do not waste your time. Skip this one.

Where do I begin. Well, for one thing, the acting and photography/coloring/effects is great. I don't always judge a movie by how it looks, but sometimes I do and I give this one extra points for looking very good. Every shot is spot-on and whoever was hired to do the job should get a raise. The sound quality was excellent and that person should also get a raise. This was of course made by HBO and they have enough money to to make a high quality film. That being said, the story is just not done right. I feel like whoever wrote the screenplay should have put more thought into it. Then again, I know how difficult it can be to be a writer and create a screenplay that a director can use to make a successful movie. I think it was an OK movie. Not something I would want to watch again. Someone else might like it.

I really enjoyed this as it keeps you guessing right until the end. You are never quite sure how it it going to play out or how the characters will react to certain tense situations. It's well acted by all and feels like a possible future. It has a lot of soul considering it is a story about androids and AI.

The violence necessary to the story is blessedly kept to a minimum and there is very little gore, for a change. If you want an ultra noisy wham, slam, bang sort of film, then this one will disappoint you as it has rather a slow but very interesting plot development that is also a welcome change.

Here's the problem.

The movie starts with a really good 'Bladerunner' style hunting of a simulant/replicant with is is well made and a great set up. Unfortunately, the movie then drops the pace and the action to a scene were a woman mourns the loss of her husband and has had him replaced with a simulant/replicant. The movie then cuts between the two stories, one interesting, one not so much, until the end.

And as for the ending, well, it's a let down. The plot can only reach conclusions with contrivances and conveniences.

There are so many decent ideas here and a great action movie to be made with the material but it feels jumbled up. In short, too many plot lines spoil the film.