The Machine

Set against a second Cold War between Britain and China, The Machine follows Vincent McCarthy, a scientist working for the Ministry of Defence on brain implants meant to give soldiers an edge. His research leads to a humanoid cyborg with exceptional physical capabilities, but a programming fault turns the prototype violently against the laboratory. McCarthy continues his work away from official oversight, and his collaboration with Ava, an artificial intelligence specialist, moves the project toward a machine that appears capable of thought and conscience.

Caradog W. James directed and wrote the film, his first feature, followed by Don't Knock Twice in 2017. Caity Lotz plays Ava, with Toby Stephens as Vincent McCarthy, Denis Lawson as Thomson, Sam Hazeldine as James, and Pooneh Hajimohammadi and Jonathan Byrne among the credited cast of twenty-six. John Giwa-Amu produced for Red & Black Films, and the British production was made for about 2 million USD.

The film holds a 6.3/10 critics' rating from thirty-three reviews, broadly in line with its audience scores: 6/10 on IMDb from roughly 33,000 votes and 5.9/10 on TMDB from fewer than a thousand. Those figures suggest a modest independent science-fiction thriller that drew a small but steady audience rather than a wide one, with critics and viewers landing in much the same place.