i'll be over here with popcorn and soda along with the vast majority of the moviegoing population. give the people what they want. i want nightmares, not just thoughtful reflection.

as it is, the ending is weak. and after 90 minutes of slow burn-- no matter how good-- there has to be a payoff, either storywise (plot twist) or visually. plot twist is out the door, fine. we all knew ava would escape at some point and there would likely be unintended consequences. okay, in that case, shock us visually. drive home the cautionary tale by sticking an icepick in our brain.

would it fit with the tone of the rest of the movie? no, but that's what makes it effective and memorable. we're watching a nice little movie about a woman who decides to embezzle money from her work and make a break for it out of town. she stops for the night at a motel, takes a shower, then suddenly... it's a classic. it works precisely because it doesn't fit.

ex machina needed that ending. it needed that visual gut punch to go from a thoughtful conversation piece that kicks up a little dust on the festival circuit to a MOVIE. great flick, one of the best of the year, but they didn't stick the landing.