The Electric State rides the talents of its cast while boasting impressive visuals that fully captures the imagination and scale of the post-apocalyptic world of the film, even if the narrative never fully develops and remains in the shadows of far superior and similar stories within the science fiction genre.

 

Anthony and Joe Russo have directed two of the most expensive movies ever made with Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, so it only checks out that their latest film is not only the most expensive Netflix film ever made, but its budget is very close to their two Avengers films. And having seen The Electric State, it’s easy to see where their budget went. Not only does the film have a massive cast of actors getting their pay up front thanks to the lack of a back end within the streaming model, but its a visual marvel mixing practical effects and set design with CGI elements to bring to life this post apocalyptic version of the 1990s. Even if the story does not do anything audiences haven’t seen before in the science fiction or family adventure genres, the film has an undeniable heart that when combined with a decent cast and outstanding visuals, will make a streaming film that families with younger children will no doubt find being a major hit for their next movie night at home.

 

With a budget of $320 million for a science fiction action adventure film, expectations are high as to how the film is going to look visually, and it’s clear that the Russo Brothers and their special and visual effects teams put that money to good use. In a world where robots have grown sentient, nearly every scene of the film features non-human characters, and the line between visual and computer generated effects is at hard times to tell. The robots look phenomenal, each with their own unique personality derived from their purpose, movements, design and facial expressions. Bringing them to life through a mixture of animation and motion capture performances, they don’t feel like digital creations but fully rounded characters within the film that viewers are going to feel for (even more than some of the human characters in the film). Combined with strong set design capturing the post-apocalyptic wasteland left after the robot and human war and strong cinematography that truly makes the film pop on the big screen, it’s spectacle filmmaking through and through, which is the Russos bread and butter. Bolstering all of this is Alan Silversti’s grand musical score which captures the scope of the story’s adventure and the heart of the relationship between Michelle and Cosmo, even if it feels like a good portion of the score is recycled from his work on Avengers: Endgame and Ready Player One. 

 

Inspired by the illustrated novel of the same name by Simon Stålenhag, and much like their projects within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the Russo Brothers approach their adaptation with a respect for the source material while wanting to tell their own original story. Though, it is not entirely all that original. Trying to evoke that Spielbergian magic of the films of Amblin Entertainment while taking ideas from many science fiction classics, you can see what the Russos are aiming for with their story, with screenwriters Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely trying to tie the ideas together in the screenplay. A post-apocalyptic world, a road trip to reunite a young girl with the brother she thought dead while bonding with the robot her brother’s mind is inhabiting, a corrupt technology company trying to hide its dark secrets, and the toll the technological advancements have taken on society. These are all the major plot elements of the story, and you can tie each of them to another science fiction story easily as it does emulate the stories that came before it. But, with the heartfelt bond between Michelle and Cosmo at the centre of the film’s story, it's hard not to be entertained as while it’s not doing anything new, it's a competently told greatest hits of the genre that the entire family can enjoy. Never for a second is the story bad, it does its job of taking the audience on the journey alongside Michelle and Cosmo, but it is not a story that you are going to remember long after finishing the film.