By: Jamie Steinberg
I was expecting a full-fledged horror movie going into M3GAN 2.0, but what I got was more of a comedy slash sci-fi thriller. I had read reviews of the original and expected it to be startling but was something a lot more enjoyable. With a new killer bot on the loose, M3GAN is recruited to take out a new form of AI – AMELIA – that has its eyes set on world domination. Come for the famed dancing murdering robot and stay for the upgraded murdering robot with a message.
We pick up with a now angsty twelve year old Cady (Violet McGraw) and Gemma (Allison Williams) has become an outspoken proponent against the advancement of AI and technology. However, Gemma is being pressured to build a new bot by British billionaire Alton Appleton (Jemaine Clement), who offers her a hefty sum. Gemma remains uninterested…until AMELIA (Ivana Sakhno) emerges from the Iran-Turkish border – an elevated version of M3GAN whose purpose is to be used as a government weapon. When AMELIA learns of her true purpose, she kills her way out of incarceration intent on gaining control of all of America’s artificial intelligence. With limited options, Gemma learns that M3GAN (Amie Donald/Jenna Davis) has been dormant this entire time with her programming having been kept alive in the cloud. Thus, it becomes AMELIA vs. M3GAN 2.0.
Director Gerard Johnstone has crafted a funny, intentionally unserious film. It’s got much less bloodshed and sloughs off its horror roots yet takes an appreciative jab at its predecessor while still warning of the hazards of letting AI and technology have too much advancement and used recklessly. My only qualm really was that it didn’t truly need a runtime of two hours with a bit too many campy elements for my taste.
M3GAN 2.0 seems more focused on laughs than slays so if you were looking for a film that brought you a premise of “AI getting back at the overlords that built it,” that is not this movie. However, it is the sassy android back in theaters intent on taking down those who seek to use AI for profit and war – something that is quite timely at the moment. Grab a ticket to see this if you’re looking for a campy redemption arc or simply something to get you out of the summer sun.