After Bicentennial Man premiered in 1999, America has had a love/fear relationship with the idea of artificial intelligence and Robin Williams. Now, the new film Transcendence hopes to shake our faith in technology once more. Johnny Depp plays Dr. Will Caster, a researcher in the field of A.I. who’s left in critical condition after an assassination attempt. With his research on the line, Will’s wife must find a way to keep him alive, even if that means losing his human form and taking on a new one as a computer, or an iPad, or something. Transcendence hits theaters April 18, but The A.V. Club has a chance for you to attend and early screening in Chicago on April 15, at 7:00 p.m. The first 50 participants to click this link here and enter the code AVCLUBCG64 will receive passes good for two. Remember, seating is limited to arrive early! A full synopsis and trailer for the film can be found below.
“Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) is the foremost researcher in the field of Artificial Intelligence, working to create a sentient machine that combines the collective intelligence of everything ever known with the full range of human emotions. His highly controversial experiments have made him famous, but they have also made him the prime target of anti-technology extremists who will do whatever it takes to stop him. However, in their attempt to destroy Will, they inadvertently become the catalyst for him to succeed—to be a participant in his own transcendence. For his wife Evelyn (Rebecca Hall) and best friend Max Waters (Paul Bettany), both fellow researchers, the question is not if they can…but if they should. Their worst fears are realized as Will’s thirst for knowledge evolves into a seemingly omnipresent quest for power, to what end is unknown. The only thing that is becoming terrifyingly clear is there may be no way to stop him.”