THE ELECTRIC STATE

In THE ELECTRIC STATE on Netflix, Michelle (Millie Bobby Brown) searches for her family in an alternate history of the 1997 United States. After a devastating war between robots and humanity in which humans harnessed robotic tech to win, the government has sequestered remaining robots in “100 thousand square miles of the American southwest“. The “exclusion zone“ was built and controlled by Ethan Skate, founder of SENTRE Technologies, and is known as “the electric state.“

Michelle’s quest starts when a robot, a four-foot version of the cartoon character Kid Cosmo, shows up at her foster home and tells her that her brother, long believed dead, is alive but in trouble inside “the electric state.” In the face of this revelation, Michelle embarks on an odyssey into this off-limits part of the country with Cosmo to discover the truth about her brother. When a slick smuggler and his robotic sidekick become keys to completing her quest, what lengths will Michelle go to in her search for the truth?

THE ELECTRIC STATE has very high production values, with excellent acting from leads Pratt and Brown. The pairing of American and British talent elevates every scene they share. The voice acting also stands out, with the unparalleled talents of Alan Tudyk, who brings Kid Cosmo to life, and those of Anthony Mackie and Woody Harrelson, who infuse life into Herman and Mr. Peanut in a very convincing way.

The movie’s impressive special effects are noteworthy in how well they capture the nostalgia of the late 1990s. Yet, the setting pushes creates a reimagined world that more easily connect with the decade of the 2090s. Bringing such an elaborate alternative future of the United States to life is an impressive accomplishment. For example, the movie changes the distinctive American landscapes and locations significantly while still retaining their unique geographic flavor.

THE ELECTRIC STATE also tells a gripping dystopian tale of technocracy that combines some of the best warnings of a WALL-E future with the cyber-sensitivity of works such as Orson Scott Card’s Ender novels. As the nightmare of SENTRE and its technocratic machinations with a child prodigy are slowly revealed, the protagonist’s mission becomes ever more compelling, leading to a heartfelt reunion with her brother, which may hold the answer to the Electric State itself.

THE ELETRIC STATE has a mixed worldview, however. It vividly shows the undesirable, bitter and often sad drawbacks of the villain’s virtual technology. It couples this with a fight-the-system theme where people and robots join together against the evil villain’s tyranny. As one of the characters says about the villain, “I finally met someone less human than a robot.”

Thus, the filmmakers show it’s possible to become so inhuman that a person loses contact with what makes them human. This is a meaning that many science fiction stories hold for readers and viewers. THE ELECTRIC STATE views the original intelligence given human beings directly by God and the artificial intelligence sub-created by human beings are both superior to the destructive void created by the movie’s satanic villain. As such, THE ELECTRIC STATE condemns the virtual world of today’s society.

Sadly, however, THE ELECTRIC STATE has too much foul language and a mixed worldview where euthanasia solves a plot problem at the end. So, MOVIEGUIDE® rates this movie excessive and unacceptable.

THE EECTRIC STATE is based on a novel, but it reportedly changes the story significantly.