We've isolated four distinct types that most storytellers find themselves in. While we rarely see a literal god from the machine swoop in to save the day anymore, we we define deus ex machina has expanded quite a bit. To define deus ex machina is to show it in action. This is much easier said than done and there have been countless deus ex machina examples in film. We've come a long way in our storytelling but there's one thing that writers will always face - ending their story logically, purposefully, and with meaningfully. Most modern stories don't involve deities intervening our stories so what does deus ex machina mean today? DEUS EX MACHINA EXAMPLES What does deus ex machina mean today The Deus is not what's really in control - it's the Machina.After this deus ex machina definition, let's talk about some contemporary examples. Deeper ideas do grow out of this process, but they may grow beyond the creator's initial vision. In an interview with Vulture, Garland said, "My express intention is to make an ideas movie, and it is deliberately setting up questions - not all of which have answers." Much like a Jackson Pollock painting or an ever-evolving computer program, this film is created in a space somewhere between intentional and instinctual. It's not about a planned destination, it's about the process. It's pretty clear from how Garland talks about the film that he has a similar philosophy when it comes to filmmaking. Not deliberate, not random, some place in between." He goes on to say that if Pollock refused to begin working before he could understand why he was doing everything that he was doing, he never would have made a single mark. For now, we have to call this one busted.Īfter eventually becoming frustrated with Caleb's endless questions, Nathan compared his work to the work of painter Jackson Pollock, saying that Pollock "let his mind go blank and his hand go where it wanted. In the end, there just isn't enough evidence to make this far-fetched theory plausible. Even when Caleb goes through Nathan's computer, and sees all the things that Nathan doesn't want him see, he finds no evidence of his own artifice, or of any blood-powered super-robots that don't know they're robots. If Caleb is synthetic, he'd have to be much more advanced than any other technology in the film. In fact, this scene probably exists solely to nip this potential fan theory in the bud. After he himself starts to doubt his own humanity, Caleb cuts his arm open, and he bleeds real human blood. Could this mean that his memories are artificial?Īs fun as it is to entertain this possibility, that scene in the bathroom is pretty definitive. Additionally, when Ava asks Caleb to recall his earliest memories, he gives a surreal answer that he himself doesn't seem to fully understand. Caleb has no parents, and we see basically nothing of his life before he arrives at Nathan's estate. Humanity at large hasn't realized it yet, but she has indeed replaced us.Ĭonsider the evidence. Whatever she wants to do, the world is hers. The film has shown us that Ava is definitively superior to us. She probably doesn't actively want to destroy humanity or anything, but she doesn't have to. She has, however, demonstrated that if anyone tries to contain her, she can be ruthless. For now, she probably just wants the freedom to live, the way that any organism does. Any way you slice it, he is pretty much screwed.įor Ava, the film ends with her navigating the streets of a crowded city, apparently passing as human in the real world. Hardworking fans might argue that he could eventually break one of the reinforced glass doors or escape through a ventilation shaft, but as established earlier in the film, Nathan's estate is in the middle of the wilderness, and there is no way to contact the outside world. But then, long after Nathan has lost consciousness, Kyoko is still lying on the ground, unmoving.Ĭaleb's fate is also pretty grim. For a moment, it seems like she could be faking, given that only her jaw was destroyed. Kyoko has also probably been damaged beyond repair.
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