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It’s not easy being a Russo brothers fan. On the one hand, the venerable filmmakers are not only responsible for directing some of the best Marvel movies ever made but also for helming two of the top three most-profitable films of all time in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
The siblings have struggled to replicate that success outside of the Marvel sandbox, though. Yes, there have been notable wins in a producing capacity, such as 2024’s multi-award-winning Everything Everywhere All at Once; but the critical and/or commercial failure of the other projects they’re attached to, including Citadel on Prime Video, Cherry on Apple TV+, and The Gray Man on Netflix, outweigh those triumphs.
It’s on the last of those streaming services that The Electric State will attempt to arrest that slide. Unfortunately, Netflix’s latest sci-fi spectacle is another generic, narratively dull flick that adds more weight to the argument that it’s Marvel or bust for Joe and Anthony Russo.
Rise (and fall) of the robots
It’s 1994. On an alternate-reality planet Earth, two years have passed since the Human-Robot War ended. That conflict, started by the Worldwide Robot Rebellion led by the Robot Equality Coalition’s de-facto leader Mr. Peanut (voiced by Woody Harrelson), drew to a close after Sentre Technologies CEO Ethan Skate’s (Stanley Tucci) Neurocaster invention turned the tide in humanity’s favor.
In the present, these devices have been repurposed for consumer and educational means to allow Neural Bifurcation, which lets a person’s mind be in two places at once. Picture a clunkier version of any real virtual reality (VR) device, such as the Meta Quest 3S or Apple Vision Pro, and you’ll get the idea.
Netflix’s adaptation frustratingly casts aside the book’s biggest strengths
Some haven’t become addicted to Skate’s creation, though – including headstrong and cynical orphan Michelle (Millie Bobby Brown). A technophobe at heart, Michelle’s isolated life is turned upside down when a robot version of Kid Cosmo – the android hero of a cartoon that Michelle watched with her genius younger brother before he died – suddenly shows up and convinces Michelle that he’s her brother. Thus begins a cross-country road trip as Michelle and her new robot companion try to track down her human sibling.
Narratively, The Electric State‘s setup isn’t dissimilar to the graphic novel it’s based on. Its literary namesake, written and illustrated by Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag, also tells the tale of a teenager who, with the aid of a sentient robot, searches for her lost brother in a technologically ravaged United States.
Disappointingly, that’s where the commonalities end. Stålenhag’s original work is as profound as it is gorgeous; its stunning imagery belying its thematic exploration of artificial intelligence (AI). This topic is not only particularly timely, but also permeates the graphic novel’s understated, introspective, and mystery-filled story.
Netflix’s adaptation frustratingly casts aside the book’s biggest strengths. Instead of letting The Electric State‘s important ideas percolate, the streaming giant prioritizes a brash, big-budget spectacle that, while it’ll appeal to a wider audience, is all style and little substance.
There are world-building aspects that pleased me. The individual designs of the robot ensemble are creatively satisfying, and the care taken to perfectly and precisely capture the art that inhabits The Electric State‘s pages is wonderful to see. It’s just a pity that the rest of Stålenhag’s novel wasn’t afforded the same luxury.
Playing the part
That lack of substance applies to the characters who populate one of March’s new Netflix movies.
I won’t say Brown has been typecast as Michelle. However, while The Electric State‘s human protagonist plays to her strengths as an actor, it’s yet another role that tasks her with playing a teenage rebel. Brown’s acting back catalog already includes characters of that ilk, such as Strangers Things‘ Eleven, the eponymous hero of the Enola Holmes film franchise, and Elodie in Damsel, so it’s dissatisfying to see that she isn’t given a different or more expansive role to sink her teeth into.
Michelle is yet another role that tasks Brown with playing a teenage rebel
Brown isn’t the only actor who fits the archetypal character mold. As army sergeant-turned-black marker smuggler John Keats, Chris Pratt finetunes his acting paradigm as a wisecracking, lovable buffoon-style individual. Giancarlo Esposito’s Colonel Bradbury, a so-called hero of the Human-Robot War, is equally at home as he tackles his latest complex villain role. Bradbury is tasked with tracking down Michelle and her automated bestie by Skate, the movie’s secondary antagonist.
And therein lies the biggest issue I had with The Electric State‘s casting. The aforementioned trio, along with Tucci’s latest turn as an arrogant and unlikable evil-doer, aren’t terrible choices for the characters they play. Their performances aren’t unwatchable, either – apart from being lukewarm to Michelle and John’s undercooked dynamic, I’d say all of them deliver mid-tier to solid performances. Heck, I’ll even admit I was entertained by Keats’ odd-couple dynamic with his own robot bestie Herman (voiced by Anthony Mackie). Sure, the MCU veterans occasionally ham it up, but the dysfunctional levity and occasional heartfelt moments they bring to the table are worth mentioning.
The dysfunctional levity and occasional heartfelt moments Pratt and Mackie bring to the table are worth mentioning
Nevertheless, I would’ve preferred to see Brown and company flex their acting muscles in roles they’re not used to portraying. Nobody expected Malcolm in the Middle‘s Bryan Cranston, who played the sitcom’s well-meaning but inept father, Hal, to deliver one of the most compelling anti-hero performances of all time as Walter White in Breaking Bad. To that end, I would’ve enjoyed The Electric State far more if, say, Pratt had played someone like Skate and Esposito was given the chance to break his own acting mold as Keats.
Crossed wires
Given its retro-futuristic and dystopian sci-fi vibes, not to mention its explicit sociopolitical commentary on AI and autonomous robots, it would be easy to compare The Electric State to similar genre fare, such as the Terminator and The Matrix franchises.
The Electric State lacks the childlike wonder and awe that perfuse those classic Steven Spielberg-directed features
It was The Electric State‘s clear homage to fan-favorite Amblin movies from the 80s, though, that I immediately picked up on. It doesn’t mask its respect for those classic flicks, either – indeed, that much is obvious by its not-so-subtle tribute to E.T: The Extra Terrestrial upon Kid Cosmo’s introduction.
That said, The Electric State‘s attempts to reproduce the magic those timeless Amblin movies capture are substandard at best. It lacks the childlike wonder and awe that perfuse those fantastical Steven Spielberg-directed features. While Star Wars: Skeleton Crew didn’t perform as well as I expected on Disney+, the latest small-screen adventure set in the Star Wars universe did a better job of recreating that unmistakable Amblin aura.
But there’s one comparison above all others that cements my overall dislike for The Electric State‘s movie adaptation, and that’s with Tales of the Loop. (TftL).
Amazon‘s criminally underrated anthology series of another of Stålenhag’s eye-catching works did right by its source material. Its depiction of TftL‘s ‘new weird’ setting, disquieting tonality, stunning cinematography, and beguiling individual stories that are not only loosely linked but also richly rewarding in their exploration of human connection and curiosity, was as enthralling as it was heart-breaking. To say I was enraptured by TftL would be an understatement
The Electric State is sorely lacking in all of those departments. Would it have harmed its creative vision if, say, it had been shot like movies of yesteryear to elicit an 80s or 90s film-grain aesthetic? This style is used, briefly, during the film’s prologue sequence, so why not use it throughout to evoke that nostalgic moviemaking feeling and present Stålenhag’s world in a creative light?
As for the aforementioned prelude: sometimes it’s better not to spell out everything for your audience. The beauty of Stålenhag’s works is that he leaves things open to readers’ interpretation to let their imaginations run wild. The Electric State‘s extensive, expository preamble robs us of the opportunity to wonder why the robots rebelled in the first place, how the war shook out, and more. Sometimes, less is just better.
My verdict
Even though I wasn’t sure what to make of it when its first-look images dropped, I really wanted to like The Electric State. But, as this review suggests, it’s a fault-riddled flick that doesn’t justify its expensive assembly. Its genre wires get crossed too often, it lacks emotional weight, its pacing is incredibly jarring (the middle act is an absolute drag), and – worst of all – it rehashes classic storytelling tropes that have been done better elsewhere. Suffice it to say, it won’t be joining our best Netflix movies guide.
I’m sure the Russo brothers will come good with a non-MCU project. That won’t happen for a while, though, as the pair prepare to helm two more Marvel films in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. For now, unfortunately, this is not the robot odyssey everyone’s been waiting for.
The Electric State releases exclusively on Netflix on Friday, March 14.
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tom.power@futurenet.com (Tom Power)
