A.I. Rising (2018) User Reviews

Bland and derivative

[vorlovic · 4/10 · 26 February 2018]

I'll try to be as objective as possible, therefore even though I am from Serbia I won't give this movie a pass "just because it's ours" or because of its' small budget. Also, no spoilers.

At first I was very surprised by the visuals - the movie started and it looked genuinely good...at first, before you realize that the filmmakers had only 2, maybe 3 small sets and that the film is visually very repetitive (even some of the same shots are used multiple times). That in itself isn't such a huge issue, seeing how there are plenty of films that take place in a single location but they compensate for their visual simplicity with an interesting story and engaging performances, something that's very much lacking here. As for the visual effects, they are ok by early 2000s standards.

The music was good and well implemented. The standout piece for me is Arvo Part's "My Heart's in the Highlands" which was also used in "The Great Beauty" (a good film worth checking out if you're not into conventional films or if you're a fan of Fellini).

The performances are not great. Sebastian Cavazza's performance as the astronaut Milutin is either bad or at best mediocre (I don't know if I can blame him, the director or the poor script for that). Milutin has no real depth and I struggle to describe his personality beyond saying that he's an astronaut with a gruff voice who swears a lot and is horny (oh, and a bit sad, I guess). At one point in the movie we are told that he's severely depressed and if it weren't for that line I would have never guessed that that's where he's at emotionally, you just can't feel it. The few times Cavazza tries to convey emotions that aren't anger and frustration his performance is borderline laughable. Stoya, who plays the part of Nimani, did her job...ok. She plays the part of an emotionless android with a few preprogrammed emotional settings well enough, nothing noteworthy though.

The story is very derivative. If you've seen a film that deals with AI than there's nothing here that you haven't seen before and done way better. The plot is bare bones and shallow with plenty of meandering (albeit aesthetically pleasing) shots of the same 2 (or 3) sets of the ship or of Nimani standing/sleeping/levitating around the ship - shots that don't progress the plot in any way or give any information to the viewer - they're just there to stretch the runtime of the movie. The questions this film raises are raised in other, better movies/TV shows (most notably "Her", "Ex Machina", both "Blade Runner" movies and "Westworld") and done so with more nuance. If you're someone who just wants to watch a movie to pass the time you'll probably find this movie boring and bland, on the other hand if you're someone who wants to experience a deep and meaningful film you'll find it lacking as well.

Get an android they said. It will be fun they said. Sci-Fi + Soft-Porn = Sci-Porn?

[Top_Dawg_Critic · 4/10 · 15 March 2019]

Two words: huh & ytho (yes, you have the right image in your head)

85 mins was waaaay too long for this screenplay. I will say the visuals (although 75% repetitive and irrelevant) and the sound/score were the best features of this film. Lastly, it was the awesome directing (his first major film) by novice director Lazar Bodroza, and outstanding cinematography by Kosta Glusica, that offered some redemption for the terrible writing/screenplay by (apparently) seasoned writer Dimitrije Vojnov .

The writing/screenplay had many issues and flawed this film drastically. This was pretty much a Sci-Fi + Soft-Porn = Sci-Porn? Perhaps a good new genre, but not from this film. Then, a spaceship so huge with large empty spaces and basically a computer center in the middle? Unconvincing. Add to the misery completely irrelevant graphic/CGI shots, cheesy command computer dialogue, and consistent high-school puppy love drama. I understand it was a low budget international film, and even moreso for that reason it should have been a short film 20-30 mins long, instead of the slowly paced dragged out long and repetitive sex and boring irrelevant dialogue scenes that made it an unbearable 85 mins. I feel the 'message(s)' this film was trying to tell would have been more effective and obvious as a short, and probably should have been re-made/cut/edited-down as such, seeing this film is based on Zoran Neskovic's 1980's short story.

The acting was between decent and bland, both by Sebastian Cavazza and porn star (yes, you read that right) Stoya.

Would I recommend it? Only if played on a big screen muted with your favorite playlist during a party - only for the visuals. Would I see it again? See previous answer.

A disappointing and underwhelming 4/10 from me

Vague Theme+No Plot+Repetitive Unessesary Scenes= Nice movie lull you to sleep

[tdwillis-26273 · 4/10 · 3 March 2019]

I TRIED to like this movie. And I watched it all the way thru but I had to make myself. I was confused for most of the movie what the theme was. The very beginning introduction about capitalism and socialism did not make much sense and was never explained or brought up again. The story is VERY vague. There is little input to allow us into the thoughts of the characters and very little conversation. I never knew what they were thinking. Every other scene was a sex scene. And in between those scenes the same scene of the android standing naked with lights moving about her was repeated over and over as well.. I suppose she was being charged? The acting was barely ok. The serbian accents made it difficult to understand what they were saying. I would of preferred the actors spoke in their native language, and provided subtitles.... maybe it would of felt more genuine. The setting was a space ship that appeared to have 2 rooms? The corporation that was financing the trip could afford an android, but the ship looked old and dark? This movie never came together for me. At the end I was bored to tears. No action. No plot. No theme. No story. No reason. Vague Vague Vague.

Lots of robot sex but little else

[rjwiebe-34870 · 1/10 · 7 March 2019]

OK, so if you think robot sex makes a good film you will like this movie. Otherwise, if you think a story makes a good film, you will hate this movie. Especially the final act. Without spoiling it, it makes absolutely no sense. Everything the male lead does is just plain dumb. Anyone with half a brain can see that what he is trying to do could be done easily and with little damage but he is so stupid that there is lots of damage. And that means that what he "accomplishes" becomes meaningless. So does the robot sex make it worth watching? In my opinion no.

Wooden acting, boring story

[easymonet · 2/10 · 6 March 2019]

The actors have no charisma, at no stage did I feel anything for either of the two main characters. The male lead has a thick accent that made some of his dialogue unintelligible, but it didn't matter much because I didn't care what he was saying. The female lead plays a robot who supposedly develops feelings, but she was not convincing as a robot and was not likable as a human. The story meanders towards it's boring conclusion at a snails pace, I really wanted to skip forward 10 minutes at most points in the movie. The cinematography was pretty good which is a nice way of saying that the best thing about this movie are the scenes in the background. Don't waste your time.

Soft Robot Porn, but even so, you can find better.

[MajorMAlice · 1/10 · 10 March 2019]

From the beginning of the film where the really bad and annoying voice over literally begins to spell out that the robot's breasts must protrude ever so slightly and that her voice and face must vaguely resemble that of the male's mother, I knew I should turn this off. Like a bad car accident one happens to chance upon though, and has to stay and watch, you just feel 'less-than' afterwards.

I can think of no greater insult to movie-goers than a derivative film where the people who made it think that their target audience is so embarrassingly dumb, that they have to explain everything. This film does just that. Then, add cardinal film-making sin number two: resort to gratuitous sex in order to fill in film time. I guess you can't blame them though. Judging by the film's score (a laughable, bloated 7), there must be some who just enjoy that very thing. I can't understand why though. If you're looking for soft porn and bad voice overs, you can find better across the internet.

---------------

Non-Spoiler Review.

old school scifi

[calvinw · 7/10 · 20 March 2019]

I can see why people review this movie poorly. There is little action, No galactic battle.No grand cgi.

This is scifi from when I was a kid reading stories by Heinlein, Herbert and Asimov; watching Night Gallery and Twilight Zone. Where science and the future is used to ask questions about the human experience.

This a story about free will and consent. A man is alone on a spaceship with a female android he can use and control. Is that satisfying? What happens if the android gains free will?

If you like the old psychological sci fi and you're not a prude , you might enjoy this one. If sex and nudity offend you or you crave alot action, this isn't the movie for you..

Perfect for when you need a nap

[virtualjupiter · 2/10 · 2 March 2019]

If you like softcore porn, you might like this, because that's pretty much all this film has going for it. Even then the sex scenes are boring. This film is PAINFULLY SLOW. There are many, many long scenes in which nothing is happening, you just stare at the robot while it recharges. But this is great if you want to take a nap. Here's mankind, going out into space, gotta big job to do and well, dying in space because you went off course would suck... but not for this guy. Because the newly formed Russian space program would give over a huge ship with an important payload to some jack off who would happily take that risk for a robot he raped. Yeah, the premise for almost every action in this is super dumb, why not just let the robot pilot the ship and do everything? Obviously it's advanced enough that this would've made more sense than what is portrayed. And honestly, if the ship had only robots, this story might've actually been more interesting. What is the point of having the dude there at all? So dumb. The only reason it got two stars was because this wasn't shot in someone's mom's basement.

Predictable plot with a wasted premise that is compensated for by amazing atmosphere for a low budget sci fi

[sagniknath · 7/10 · 7 March 2019]

A Serbian Film (no not THAT one) about a man on an isolated spaceship, his only companion a female Android. Right off the bat, I have to admit there are specifically two points this SF feature got right: lighting and sound design. These two things genuinely enhanced the atmosphere of the movie and made you engaged in the universe it created. So many big budget SF movies Hollywood pukes out these days just fail to realize the importance of these two attributes in the genre. The premise, coming from a Socialist country, seems a bit .. of a stretch. Apparently , Capitalism is a plague in the future that has even infected whole galaxies and it is up to the ever righteous Ederlezi Corporation to send social engineers to these space colonies to restore normalcy the socialist way. That being said, I really wouldn't have had a problem of they actually fleshed out this premise even more. Instead, the film chooses to mainly concentrate on the chemistry between the cosmonaut and his robot sex partner. Which I guess wasn't bad on its own.

The robot is played by an actual pornographic actress, the beautiful and enchanting Stoya, so there is absolutely no body double or vfx used during the sex scenes. Also, she is naked most of the time even when the script didn't call for a sex scene. However, I admire that her particular athletic,not voluptuous, figure and the incredible lighting actually transcends any sleaziness and gives her a more sublime aura. It helps amplify the other worldliness instead of just being gratuitous nudity.

All in all, considering the low budget, I am very impressed. We genuinely need more atmospheric sci fi instead of another season of Star Trek Discovery.

If you like art-house Abstraction, okay. Science-fiction, not so much.

[S_Soma · 3/10 · 3 March 2019]

"The year 2148. Every corner of Earth has been exploited by capitalism. Socialist controls are instated to bring about balance for the human condition. The largest corporations begin to look beyond the planet. Ederlezi Corporation expands its deep space colonization program to Alpha Centauri."

The above lines are the opening scene text to A.I. RISING (a.k.a. EDERLEZI RISING). In the next few moments, the male lead of the movie, astronaut Milutin, is informed that he is being sent on a mission to, and I quote here, "install an ideology" on a planet in Alpha Centauri. What. Ever. That. Means. The name of the ideology to be "installed" was unfamiliar to me so it wasn't clear what the benefit to a corporation would be in mounting an expensive mission to "install" it.

Next, Milutin is informed that, unlike his previous space voyages, he'll be taking along a female android to help meet his various, ahem, "needs", and keep him focused on his duties on the mission. I know. It sounds like a bad set up for a terrible porno flick, and, somehow conveniently, the android is played by Jessica Stoya Stoyadinovich, a well-known pornographic actress more commonly known by her professional name, "Stoya".

The balance of the film plays out on the spaceship on its journey to Alpha Centauri. Ostensibly, the movie "explores" the elements and issues that might complicate theoretically possible near-future human-artificial intelligence relationships.

On the positive side, A.I. RISING certainly makes some bold stylistic statements, bravely ignoring the fact that they may not make any sense given the context. A.I. RISING has its own, strong sense of production design and, as rather peculiar as some of the set pieces may be, they're clearly deliberate and consistent. The movie has its own ideas and commits to them wholeheartedly.

Again, the primary setting of the movie is that of a spaceship traveling in space. Consequently there are more than a few images of the ship moving through space in the context of planets, stellar dust, nebulae and other cosmic phenomena. These effects are executed more than competently and in some circumstances are quite beautiful.

Whether you're going to enjoy this movie depends I think on whether you like your "science fiction" mixed with an art-house style that likes to obsessively contemplate its own navel. The movie is far more concerned with its art-house style and making exaggerated statements about controlling, toxic masculinity. Anything vaguely related to "science" is completely subordinated to the movie's "art". The 2 human characters we see are stereotyped well past the point of caricature and the only reason we can't say that about the android is none of us have ever met an android so we don't know if they're being caricatured.

The android spends most of "her" time naked. To remind us that she's an android while she's naked, there is a collection of black tattooed characters beneath the curve of her left breast. Because, you know, that's what androids have. And because if she didn't she'd just be another naked chick in the movies. Most of the time we see her naked it's for no apparent reason. Or maybe it's because art. I don't know.

The interior of the spaceship is depicted as consisting largely of giant empty voids, which spaceships simply do not have because of the fact that such voids exponentially increase the cost of operating the ship.

As long as you view A.I. RISING as an art-house exercise that is not science-fiction and simply has a spaceship as a set piece for no particular reason, A.I. RISING will be more palatable. Genuinely, it's a sort of psychosexual masturbation piece that ports the notion of toxic male/female relationships to toxic male/AI relationships.

I rank movies on a relativistic scale. A movie is taken relative to whether the movie was what it intended to be and how well it ranks against other movies of its kind. I gave A.I. RISING a relatively low score because it intended to be a visually stunning art-house movie. While it had A FEW impressive scenes in it, it wasted so much time lingering interminably on unchanging images that the overall effect was visual stagnation. For example, there are scenes where the android is standing in a sort of alcove set into a wall as lights go up and down in the alcove; this is supposed to be a sort of charging station for the android. We seem to stare incessantly at these lights-going-up-and-down each time we see a scene like this and it was many times. The director apparently fell in love with some of his own visuals and wished the audience to stare at them relative to how much he loved them.

A.I. RISING was directed by Lazar Bodroza who originally made a name for himself as a visual artist. If he's going to be successful as a director he's going to need to get past some of his gosh-I-love-my-own-images tendencies.

And there you have it.

Good old school European Scifi, R-rated for sex, not violence

[siderite · 8/10 · 5 April 2019]

When I was a child I was reading Asimov and Van Vogt and Russian Sci-fi and it was all about the human condition when faced with the unexpected. Not about big fights, not about the boy saving the girl, not about superheroes. This film is like that, a Serbian film based on the short story of a Serbian writer from 1980 and played by two actors (and two extras) who are Slovenian and American-Serbian pornstar. Don't worry, it is spoken in English, only slightly accented. The space situation is actually bogus, a trip to Alpha Centauri that doesn't stand to any examination, but the interesting part is the personal dynamic between the two actors.

First of all (that that damn Anglo puritans) Stoya, the girl, is naked almost the entire film (and quite beautiful) and the two leads have sex quite often. It's not frivolous, though, and certainly not pornographic. Second, the story looks deeply into what our motivations as people are and what would we do when alone with a programmable machine that looks like a pornstar and can learn from experience. Yes, sex, of course, but what about after that? What about feelings that develop? I can easily compare this film with Her (which I hated) and I quite liked A.I. Rising. Or maybe it's closer to Zoe. Anyway, the exotic setting is used only as a pretext to examine what makes us tick, and that is what sci-fi is all about.

The acting is good, without being spectacular, the visuals are very artsy, nicely done, but sometimes pointless. The science is nonexistent and technology is used only to advance the plot. There are a lot of holes in said plot, but I advise you to skip them and continue watching, because attention was spent on the important things and the rest is just prop. The pacing is slow, which might annoy some people, but the original material was a short story after all. And yes, the title is horrendous :)

Bottom line: give it a try, especially if you are looking for something else than Hollywood action-fantasy or if you enjoyed old school sci-fi as a kid.

You have to know beforehand what you are going to watch

[cosmocramer-79113 · 6/10 · 18 March 2019]

Before watching this movie you need to know what to expect, otherwise you will be disappointed. If you are in the mood for soft-erotic sci-fi, low-budget, abstract films, then you can tolerate this.

Overall, I liked the movie and could be entertained, however, it has a very slow pace. The sound editing and the visuals are correctly done for a low budget. The plot and overall narrative of the film leave a lot of holes and questions unanswered but probably deliberately, not to create suspense but because it probably lacked priority for the writers. Also, the movie does not explore the subject of A.I. nor does it seems to want to discuss it deeply, however it does introduces the idea of "authenticity of the A.I personally" developed upon on the interaction with humans. Is A.I. capable of developing an authentic personality when let loose? Will mankind accept this personality as authentic, human?

Sebastian Cavazza´s acting does leaves you wanting a bit more for it falls flat, probably also do to lack of script. Stoya´s, however, is satisfactory, considering her stepping out of pure erotic film-making. I am just a personal fan and had to enjoy her completely.

A movie than can be watched if time and patience are available.

Garbage

[Chryspie1102 · 1/10 · 3 March 2019]

Not sure what else to say. Complete trash. Acting terrible. No real plot. Just angry sex. Not even good sex. I tried to watch it but every 3 minutes a bad sex scene. If that is what you are looking for, this is great. If you are looking for an actual movie that has actual content that is going in a direction of some sort...you may want to pass.

First twenty minutes were pretty good

[danfurtado-11221 · 4/10 · 16 March 2019]

So this movie was okay... but it could have been so much more. The only reason I didn't turn it off right away is because it set a really good atmosphere with some of the shots and good sound.

Then it kind of devolves into a bland movie with bland acting, could of been really good but it just lost me after 30 mins probably would of excelled as a short film.

125mins of Pure Trash - Read for the Truth (no super spoily spoilers)

[guerrillagreg · 1/10 · 3 March 2019]

Man goes on a solo space mission to Alpha Centauri and gets to bring a robot sex slave with him. The first hour of this movie is the man having sex with the robot over and over and over again, then he finds a way to give her sentience, and with her new sentience she decides to stop having sex with him, he gets depressed about that, then the sex robot gets sad about the man being depressed, so she kills herself, end of movie. No real plot, low budget, poor set construction, poor casting, plot holes and inconsistencies galore, and an utterly misleading title. 1/10 DO NOT WATCH! Thank you for reading.

Glossy rubbish

[bigfatbikeride · 1/10 · 12 March 2019]

I created an account just to rate this movie..... And what a waste of time it was. Poor story (could have been told in a low budget 20 minute show) same story as ever, man falls for android, android gets human feelings and shuns man, man risks life to save android, android falls for man... blah blah...... What a waste of 85 minutes and i forced myself to watch as home sick. Should have gone to work.... Special effects are good (but so are low budget TV shows now) Acting was more mechanical than the android itself, story runs painfully slowly and no emotions in delivery of the dialogue. 1/10 and only because I couldn't give it a minus score. Don't waste your time, no action, no story line, no love affair, no happy ending (in fact no ending at all!) spaceship made from old bits of plastic with no real design, so i can onlyn presume this was made as a tax write off.... Overall Poor

Difficult questions. Sexy android.

[jim-man · 7/10 · 14 January 2021]

Following on the success of Ex Machina (2014) and Her (2013), this is an Eastern European version. Done on a very modest budget, the movie had surprising good production values.

The cinematography was artistic, sets were futuristic, and lighting was set for effect.

The movie's bleak tone is similar to Kubrick's 2001. An astronaut grappling with loneliness, with only artificial intelligences for companions.

This plot takes the premise a step further. What about his sexual needs? What kind of social dynamics govern a relationship with an android? Out in space, they are alone.

What would the viewer do if placed in the situation of the protagonist?

The surprise was the casting of pornstar Stoya who turned in a good performance as lover, submissive and sex toy. No blonde bimbo. She has a pretty face and lean body, like the girl next door. Definitely sexy.

IMO, worth a second screening.

Tedious to watch.

[boggie4758 · 5/10 · 1 March 2019]

I was thinking this was going to be a pretty good sci fi....It started out well but became tedious to watch very quickly. This could have been a really good movie about a pilot and the A.I. but because a soft pornographic movie. It evolved around sex between the two, maybe that was the point but it was just repetitive to me to watch. I stayed until the end but came away with nothing. I know it was a low budget movie, and that is ok with me. Only 4 different actors including the voice of the computer..and that was ok also. I like those kind of movies and they can be done really well but, this was just not one of them. The story and the performances just were not good enough. I gave it a 5 for some of the visuals which I did like even though there were only 4 or 5 sets in the whole movie. Sorry I just didn't like this one.

No action but interesting

[Hotepsekhemwy · 6/10 · 28 March 2019]

Low budget film, with a small amateur cast. Editing is pretty good. Sound quality and FX is good. The plot is slow. A pilot becomes lonely in space but has a robot for companionship. He decide to do a hard reset to make her human. This movie is nothing to get excited about. The score of the movie coincide with certain scenes.

Missed opportunity

[eqxtra · 2/10 · 14 April 2019]

4 years before this movie came out, I had seen "Ex-Machina" and loved it. Perhaps that's why I was so disappointed in this, which seems to be inspired by Ex-Machina. Even the cover picture is remarkably similar and looks more like the actress in Ex-Machina than in A.I. Rising. I appreciate that this is most likely a really low budget movie, but even so, it seem it had all the props the be a really good movie, and even the concept of the movie had much potential, but the emphasis on sex was so much that it drowned the whole idea behind it. Human relationships aren't just about sex. It was an extremely shallow interaction that did not feel human to me at all. It felt like a sex doll. In ex-machina there was also this element, but in the right way and dosage. This movie however felt like a cheap erotic movie while the whole AI thing was like the pizza delivery boy story in a porn movie. And then there was the acting, which was horrible. The protagonist guy was very unlikable as he behaved very disrespectful and sexist. And tried to look like a bad-ass like the guy from the video game DOOM, but was too girly to speak with such a heavy voice. But I give it 2 instead of 1 star because I assume it's very low budget and it really did have potential, the setting, the concept. Most non-hollywood movies have low budgets for special effects and such so they depend more on engaging stories and great acting. This movie seems to have spent all its money on the special effects, and saved on everything else. Watch Ex-Machine to see how this knock-off should've been made 20 years before ex-machina, not 4 years after.

Sexy and disturbing space journey

[tiresija · 8/10 · 15 March 2019]

I liked it. A lot. It's a low buget film, but very well made. I loved the visuals and directing, as well as adult star Stoya in the lead female part. She is great as a sex robot, a real joy to watch. Her body language is superb, as I was very suprised by her acting skills. An art film set in space and filled with sex.

more indie drama romance in sci fi setting

[italia76 · 7/10 · 17 March 2019]

I gave it 7 since its interesting film with good music, sound, setting, photography and I liked the actress. story-line could be better but the film is more indie drama in space then your ordinary sci fi film, and that is why for me its a 7. could not give it more because of the male actor and story-line .

Monotone acting and clinical camera-work lets down a decent script and solid visuals

[dospamme · 5/10 · 2 March 2019]

This movie might easily be viewed as Ex Machina set in space, and it is similar in enough aspects that it is inevitable that many viewers interpret A.I. Rising as a simple re-telling.

Actually there is much more in the concept for this movie (which is really about the risk of a stilted and limited relationship between a man and woman), but the wooden performance of the male lead (at least while working in English) and the lack of exposition about the company or the mission goals means the viewer has no reason to vest interest in any aspect.

The evolution of the female android is intended to tell us more about how a woman may act in such a situation, but the camera merely observes the action and does not show the people or the moments, so we don't see or feel each moment - only deduce its intent.

The result is a bland clinical relationship movie, set in space, but with no drama or insight.

If the leads and cinematographer of Solaris (2002) were to make this movie, there would be less sex, but much much more sizzle.

Irritating. Poor attention to detail. Too many errors and inconistencies.

[djbaxter-980-742507 · 1/10 · 15 March 2019]

To start with, they are traveling to Alpha Centauri. But is the human in cryosleep? Nope. Fully awake. On the AI control panel, they didn't even bother to spell check. "Intellectual" is spelled "Intelectual". At one point, the AI is floating in zero gravity but her hair falls down toward the floor. Just three examples. The movie is slow moving, presumably in an attempt nto generate atmosphere or suspense; it fails miserably in that respect. Ultimately, it is just boring and it lacks credibility or anything to hold the viewer's attention even for just 85 minutes. I gave up after about 30, maybe less.

This one time when sex is not a good thing

[mnadias · 5/10 · 20 January 2021]

This movie is a wasted potential, could have been much more. It is exciting when you are NOT watching erotic scenes(which account for about 70% of the movie) and you think finally some action... but not.. ,once again you are forced into 10-20 slow minutes of trance and robot/human copulation. Another blunder is the android that is basically a human actor without any computer lay-over, which takes a bit to convince you that she is actually a robot.