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IMDbPro

Transcendence

  • 20142014
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 1h 59m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
228K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,065
412
Johnny Depp in Transcendence (2014)
Dr. Will Caster, the foremost researcher in the field of Artificial Intelligence, is working to create a sentient machine that combines the collective intelligence of everything ever known with the full range of human emotions. His highly controversial experiments have made him the prime target of anti-technology extremists who will do whatever it takes to stop him. In their attempt to destroy Will, they inadvertently become the catalyst for him to succeed. For his wife Evelyn and best friend Max Waters, both fellow researchers, the question is not if they can...but if they should. Their worst fears are realized as Will's thirst for knowledge evolves into a seemingly omnipresent quest for power, to what end is unknown. The only thing that is becoming terrifyingly clear is there may be no way to stop him.
Play trailer2:34
15 Videos
99+ Photos
  • Action
  • Drama
  • Sci-Fi
A scientist's drive for artificial intelligence takes on dangerous implications when his own consciousness is uploaded into one such program.A scientist's drive for artificial intelligence takes on dangerous implications when his own consciousness is uploaded into one such program.A scientist's drive for artificial intelligence takes on dangerous implications when his own consciousness is uploaded into one such program.
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
228K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,065
412
  • Director
    • Wally Pfister
  • Writer
    • Jack Paglen
  • Stars
    • Johnny Depp
    • Rebecca Hall
    • Morgan Freeman
Top credits
  • Director
    • Wally Pfister
  • Writer
    • Jack Paglen
  • Stars
    • Johnny Depp
    • Rebecca Hall
    • Morgan Freeman
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 596User reviews
    • 372Critic reviews
    • 42Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 3 wins & 5 nominations

    Videos15

    Trailer #2
    Trailer 2:34
    Trailer #2
    Trailer #1
    Trailer 2:29
    Trailer #1
    Transcendence
    Clip 0:50
    Transcendence
    Transcendence
    Clip 0:46
    Transcendence
    "What Is Transcendence?"
    Featurette 2:21
    "What Is Transcendence?"
    Interview
    Interview 8:16
    Interview
    Interview
    Interview 7:35
    Interview
    Interview
    Interview 5:55
    Interview
    Interview
    Interview 5:37
    Interview
    Interview
    Interview 4:28
    Interview
    Interview
    Interview 2:52
    Interview
    "Which Side Are You On?"
    Promo 0:56
    "Which Side Are You On?"

    Photos360

    Kate Mara in Transcendence (2014)
    Rebecca Hall in Transcendence (2014)
    Morgan Freeman in Transcendence (2014)
    Morgan Freeman, Paul Bettany, and Cillian Murphy in Transcendence (2014)
    Johnny Depp in Transcendence (2014)
    Rebecca Hall in Transcendence (2014)
    Cole Hauser and Cillian Murphy in Transcendence (2014)
    Cillian Murphy in Transcendence (2014)
    Kate Mara in Transcendence (2014)
    Paul Bettany in Transcendence (2014)
    Morgan Freeman and Cillian Murphy in Transcendence (2014)
    Kate Mara in Transcendence (2014)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Johnny Depp
    Johnny Depp
    • Will Casteras Will Caster
    Rebecca Hall
    Rebecca Hall
    • Evelyn Casteras Evelyn Caster
    Morgan Freeman
    Morgan Freeman
    • Joseph Taggeras Joseph Tagger
    Cillian Murphy
    Cillian Murphy
    • Agent Buchananas Agent Buchanan
    Paul Bettany
    Paul Bettany
    • Max Watersas Max Waters
    Kate Mara
    Kate Mara
    • Breeas Bree
    Cole Hauser
    Cole Hauser
    • Colonel Stevensas Colonel Stevens
    Clifton Collins Jr.
    Clifton Collins Jr.
    • Martinas Martin
    Cory Hardrict
    Cory Hardrict
    • Joel Edmundas Joel Edmund
    Falk Hentschel
    Falk Hentschel
    • Bobas Bob
    Josh Stewart
    Josh Stewart
    • Paulas Paul
    Luce Rains
    Luce Rains
    • Rogeras Roger
    Fernando Chien
    Fernando Chien
    • Hengas Heng
    Steven Liu
    • Chiuas Chiu
    Xander Berkeley
    Xander Berkeley
    • Dr. Thomas Caseyas Dr. Thomas Casey
    Lukas Haas
    Lukas Haas
    • James Thomasas James Thomas
    Wallace Langham
    Wallace Langham
    • Dr. Straussas Dr. Strauss
    James Burnett
    • Meth Head #1as Meth Head #1
    • Director
      • Wally Pfister
    • Writer
      • Jack Paglen
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Christopher Nolan had eyed the project for some time while finishing up The Dark Knight Rises (2012) before taking on Interstellar (2014), believing Transcendence was "perfect" for Wally Pfister's debut as a director.
    • Goofs
      Will Caster is killed by the highly toxic radio-active element, Polonium (the same one used to murder Alexander Litvinenko in true-life in 2006). Despite its toxicity (scientists estimate that 1 gram could kill 50 million people), his wife and friends are allowed to remain with him in close proximity until his death. Whilst intact skin is actually a barrier to the passage of alpha radiation particles to a nearby person (so we could let them off this goof), we later see Caster's cremated ashes being tossed into the breeze above a river for all to breath in. These are hardly actions that any homeland security or radiation expert would conceivably have allowed to happen.
    • Quotes

      Will Caster: For 130,000 years, our capacity to reason has remained unchanged. The combined intellect of the neuroscientists, mathematicians and... hackers... in this auditoirum pales in comparison to the most basic A.I. Once online, a sentient machine will quickly overcome the limits of biology. And in a short time, its analytic power will become greater than the collective intelligence of every person born in the history of the world. So imagine such an entity with a full range of human emotion. Even self-awareness. Some scientists refer to this as "the Singularity." I call it "Transcendence."

    • Connections
      Featured in Half in the Bag: Transcendence and the Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
    • Soundtracks
      Genesis
      Written by Jorma Kaukonen

      Performed by Jorma Kaukonen

      Courtesy of RCA Records

      By Arrangement with Sony Music Licensing

    User reviews596

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    A Good Effort from Pfister That's Sadly Underdeveloped
    Transcendence is Wally Pfister's directorial debut about Dr. Will Caster, who has his mind transferred into the largest supercomputer on the face of the planet after he is shot by an anti-AI activist at a conference. But, as Will begins to grow and expand, can his wife Evelyn and Will's friends stop him before the Will they knew is completely gone?

    I find it truly pathetic how many people are hating on this movie, and for some of the wrong reasons. I did go into this movie with high expectations and was disappointed, but there was still a lot to salvage from that was good. But first thing's first: the bad. Transcendence has a fantastic story and great concepts, but the way it was delivered and structured was incredibly poor and muddled. If you split the film in half instead of thirds, the second half of the film is incredible and ends how it should, but the first half suffers from time gaps, some left out character development and poor pacing. But, this is really all that's bad.

    The decent but disappointing aspects of the film are the ideas. The film pitches grand and epic thoughts that grow, but the ideas it preaches are never fully realized, at least the majority of them. Then, the script by Jack Paglen suffered from inconsistencies and random plot elements that did not really need to be there, or should have been examined further (like RIFT).

    Now, the good and great. Wally's direction was superb; he really knew what he was doing after working with Christopher Nolan for so long. Pfister's style and unique eye helped save this movie from being a total disaster, especially when it came to the action, the way the camera moved with the scene and the characters or just the environment itself. The acting was great, too, especially Paul Bettany in the supporting role as Max, Will and Evelyn Caster's friend and fellow scientist. He brought heart and emotion from the other side of the spectrum, having an objective and subjective eye on the situation, with the other (completely subjective) side being from Evelyn's point of view. Rebecca Hall was great as Evelyn, a researcher clouded by her love for Will, and challenged in deciding whether or not the thing Will says he is, is actually Will or not. Johnny Depp was good, but it wasn't until the end of the film when the audience feels emotionally attached to him, as he's usually an emotionless AI, projected on screens and glass. The visual effects were top-notch and some of the best of the year hands-down, and the musical score by Mychael Danna was haunting, beautiful and intense when it needed to be.

    Transcendence is an actually good movie that deserves more credit than the immense crap it's getting. And to those who keep comparing it to the B-movie "Lawnmower Man," it's different. Sure, there are brief similarities (melding man with machine), but that's it. It's an original take on the "technology-will-destroy-humanity" cautionary tale, and it's a disturbing one that does have some hopeful (and resonating) humanity after the mayhem and chaos has settled. I hope Wally Pfister gets to tackle another big sci-fi film, but one with a different, more experienced writer.
    helpful•161
    100
    • alanclarke714
    • Apr 17, 2014

    FAQ3

    • What does the last garden scene represent?
    • How did Max upload virus in Evelyn? Did he have access to Nano Technology?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • April 18, 2014 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United Kingdom
      • China
      • United States
    • Official sites
      • Official Facebook
      • Warner Bros. (United States)
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Trí Tuệ Siêu Việt
    • Filming locations
      • Belen, New Mexico, USA
    • Production companies
      • Alcon Entertainment
      • DMG Entertainment
      • Straight Up Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $100,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $23,022,309
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $10,886,386
      • Apr 20, 2014
    • Gross worldwide
      • $103,039,258
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 59 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • SDDS
      • Datasat
      • Dolby Digital
      • Dolby Atmos
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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