Blu-ray review: ‘Ex Machina’

Writer Alex (“28 Days Later”) Garland’s directorial debut gave movie audiences an entertaining and thought-provoking, science-fiction thriller starring some timely issues and slick computer-generated effects.

Blu-ray owners can now appreciate Ex Machina (Lionsgate Home Entertainment, Rated R, $24.99) and its tale of an innovative, billionaire leader of a popular search-engine company calling upon one of his employees to spend a week testing the awareness of his latest creation, an advanced android named Ava.

The “Frankenstein”-style plot will leave home theater audiences mired in discussions on the impact of building a robot infused with human-level consciousness. Can this being with potentially an indefinite lifespan evolve to exhibit emotion, love and paranoia, and what are those implications to the rest of the human race?

Actor Oscar Isaac is devilishly entertaining as the egomaniacal CEO while Alicia Vikander does a fantastic job as his complex invention.

A digital transfer highlights stunning outdoor scenes of a Norway landscape above the research compound and exposes the equally fine details of the android’s complex internal mechanics — cleverly revealed through mesh surrounding her neck, torso and appendages.

Also, the disk debuts with a DTS X soundtrack mix, a competitor to Dolby Atmos, giving sound technophiles that latest option in an immersive aural experience.

Additionally, the over 2 hours worth of extras absolutely cement the purchase of the movie.

They include a 40-minute overview of the production with interviews from cast and crew, covering initial concepts, set design, casting choices, cinematography, visual effects; and plenty of words from the director.

Better of all, a serious, one-hour discussion from a South By Southwest 2015 panel featuring the director, Mr. Issac, and director of photography, Rob Hardy, that delves into themes such as the god complex, artificial intelligence, self-aware machines and the extinction of humanity.