- THE ELECTRIC STATE
- Starring: Chris Pratt, Millie Bobby Brown
- Directed by: Anthony and Joe Russo
- Rating: PG-13
- Running Time: 2 hrs 5 mins
- Netflix
Our score: 1 out of 5
Let me state this clearly, there is nothing electrifying about the newish science fiction flick, “The Electric State”, now streaming on Netflix. Directed by brothers Anthony and Joe Russo, best known for helming 2018’s “Avengers: Infinity War” and 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame”, “The Electric State” fails to deliver on multiple levels. While visually it is fun to watch, the story is a discombobulated mess with dialogue that comes across as stilted and acting that is barely watchable. It is, in fact, so mediocre that it becomes forgettable. It’s also emblematic of what’s wrong with cinema today. Although it is based upon a 2018 science fiction novel by Swedish artist Simon Stalenhag, “The Electric State” comes across as a mish mash amalgamation of other sci-fi films like “I Robot”.
In brief, the story does a quick montage of past events to show us that in 1990, a war between humans and robots erupted after the latter, who had been used as slave labor for decades, began thinking for themselves. Protests by the robots led to conflict with humans on the losing side until Neurocaster Technology was created by CEO Ethan Skate (Stanley Tucci, “Captain America: The First Avenger”), which allowed humans to use stronger robots to defeat the other robots. Afterwards, the defeated, led by Mr. Peanut (voiced by Woody Harrelson, “Venom”), were all sent to a fortified exclusion zone in the desert.
Flash forward to the present where nearly everyone has become addicted to using Neurocasters, which means huge profits for Skate. Michelle Greene (Millie Bobby Brown, “Stranger Things”) struggles to make it through each day with the memory of her parents and brother dying in a car crash. However, when an old robot finds her, she learns that her younger brother is alive via a life support device developed by Skate that enables him to use her brother’s brain to keep his Neurocaster business going. Michelle ends up enlisting the help a former soldier (Chris Pratt, “Guardians of the Galaxy”) to rally the robots in the exclusion zone and bring down the villainous Skate and save her brother.
There is more to the story, of course, but it’s too painful to write about because it is just so bad. Well, maybe not as bad as the new “Snow White” movie, which had a worse score than “Human Centipede 2”. Anyway, “The Electric State” is another misfire for Brown after dismal “Damsel” flick while Pratt plays his character as if he is a slightly smarter Star Lord. The action sequences are boring, the story is predictable, and it lacks any real emotions. Someone should have pulled the plug on this project before it ever got off the ground.
“The Electric State” receives ★ out of five.