The Electric State officially landed on Netflix last week, with users in a state of shock as the Russo Brothers’ $320 million project brings the Simon Stålenhag sci-fi graphic novel to life. Following Michelle (Millie Bobby Brown), a teenage orphan who travels up the American West with a strange robot named Cosmo (Alan Tudyk), a smuggler named Keats (Chris Pratt), and his wisecracking sidekick, Herman (Anthony Mackie), to find her long-lost brother, Christopher (Woody Norman). As the four join forces and make their trip into the Exclusion Zone, where sentient robots are living on their own in exile after a failed uprising, they will come face to face with retro-futuristic animatronics and uncover the evil truth behind Christopher’s disappearance.
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The action-packed film dives into the development of artificial intelligence, a mixture of war and technology, societal injustices, and humanity. To add to this devastating mixture, the cast also includes some Marvel actors to tell the daring story including Ke Huy Quan, Giancarlo Esposito, Woody Harrelson, and Brian Cox. With its expansive world-building, sci-fi indulgent story, and a slew of colorful robotic animatronics, there aren’t many films that have taken this creative blend of qualities and provided an entertaining experience. With that being said, five movies have perfected their realm of sci-fi and/or action-adventure storytelling that will send a shockwave through your system. Here are five films to watch after The Electric State.
The Tomorrow War
Chris Pratt isn’t a stranger to the realm of sci-fi action films, with Prime Video’s The Tomorrow War being a great example of his expertise. Directed by Chris McKay, the film follows Dan Forester (Pratt), a family man, biology teacher, and former Green Beret First Sergent, who gets drafted into a future war where an alien race causes humanity’s extinction. Alongside a team of time-traveling soldiers, the fate of the world lies in their hands as humanity lives on borrowed time. With Forester’s experience in warfare and biology, they must find a way to defeat the aliens and save the world for good. Featuring J.K. Simmons, Betty Gilpin, Sam Richardson, and Yvonne Strahovski, there isn’t a better way to see Pratt in his element.
The Tomorrow War is available on Prime Video.
The Mitchells vs. the Machines
While The Electric Slate is live-action, the art of sci-fi storytelling transcends all types of mediums, including animation. Sony Pictures Animation’s The Mitchells vs. the Machines follows a dysfunctional family who embark on a road trip to drop their aspiring filmmaker, Katie (Abbi Jacobson), at film school. Just when they thought that they were in for a simple trip, they find themselves caught in a robot apocalypse orchestrated by a rogue AI virtual assistant named PAL (Olivia Colman). Artificial intelligence is a prevalent topic in The Electric State, which is a pretty daunting area to understand, The Mitchells vs. the Machines hits the right cords when dealing with such a predicament, balancing its themes of technology, AI development consequences, and family.
The Mitchells vs. the Machines is available on Netflix.
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Alita: Battle Angel
Set centuries in a near-dystopian future, Alita: Battle Angel follows the story of a cyber-doctor named Dr. Ido (Christoph Waltz) who awakens an amnesia-ridden cyborg named Alita (Rosa Salazar), who has no memory of her past. Alita must explore the dangerous world that awaits her in Iron City to uncover her past and unlock her hidden abilities, which could help her find her place within the world. As with The Electric State, the idea of AI being restricted and brought down due to its untapped capabilities is prevalent. Directed by Robert Rodriguez and featuring the likes of Jennifer Connelly, Mahershala Ali, Ed Skrien, and Eiza González, Alita: Battle Angel is based on the popular manga series from Yukito Kishiro, which provides a solid base for an action-packed sci-fi epic that begs to be seen.
Alita: Battle Angel is available on Hulu.
Finch
Stories told with a dystopian timeline can be depicted in many ways, with some aiming for a revolution of AI taking over or working alongside AI. Apple TV+ delivered a post-apocalyptic survival film featuring Tom Hanks and Caleb Landry Jones that hits the nail on the head when it comes to cooperating with robots to continue caring for what is left. Finch follows an aging robotics engineer named Finch, whose time on the almost inhabitable Earth is coming to an end, so to take care of his dog after he passes, he creates a robot companion named Jeff (Landry Jones). While there isn’t much action within this title, we get a chance to see how robots can work together with humans to continue the efforts that humanity has been striving to accomplish for centuries: survival.
Finch is available on Apple TV+.
The Creator
There is no better example of sci-fi and action being brought together in recent memory than Gareth Edwards’ The Creator. Set in 2070, years after AI nuked Los Angeles, starting a war of humans versus AI, ex-special forces agent Joshua (John David Washington) is sent to kill the “Creator.” With this entity having created a mysterious weapon with the power to end the war, Joshua and his team discover that this weapon is in the form of a young child named Alphie (Madeleine Yuna Voyles). Exploring the ethical considerations of AI resembling humans in all aspects, the movie delves into the conflicting potential of peaceful coexistence amid a divided world. The Electric State strives to curate a world with this in mind, which is why The Creator perfectly exemplifies the ideas of AI working alongside humans rather than budding against each other. Featuring Gemma Chan, Allison Janney, and Ken Watanabe, the ensemble lifts this project with their incredible performances and in-depth storytelling.
The Creator is available on Prime Video.
What are your favorite sci-fi action movies like The Electric State? Are there any recommendations you want to add? Let us know in the comments below!
