The Electric State review: "Although this may be their most visually stunning movie yet, it looks like the Russos are yet to find their footing outside of the MCU"

Set in an alternate version of the ‘90s after a robot war leaves America a post-apocalyptic war-torn nation, The Electric State is ultimately a tale about the dangers of technology and the need for human interaction and understanding. As director duo Anthony and Joe Russo step away from Marvel, this Netflix movie is the pair’s most attractive VFX project yet. However, with a rushed storyline and not enough time to get to know core characters, it seems like the Russos are still yet to find their footing outside of the MCU.

The movie opens with bright-eyed preteen Michelle (Millie Bobby Brown) and her brother living in a time before the war sent all robots to live behind the American border. But after tragedy rips her family from her, Michelle’s world is turned upside down as she becomes orphaned, bearing similarities to Brown’s Stranger Things character. Years pass and the US has been taken over by tech mogul Ethan Skate (Stanley Tucci), who controls all tech and has distributed his VR helmet-like telecasters to all humans after their previous robot gadgets were banished.

However, Michelle’s unhappy living situation is soon shaken up when a possibly charming robot named Cosmo breaks into her room and convinces her that he is possessed by the spirit of her brother Christopher, insisting that he is very much alive. With the help of Chris Pratt’s comic relief Keats and his robot sidekick Herman (voiced by Captain America: Brave New World’s Anthony Mackie), who are like a bickering Bad Boys duo, the four set out on a journey to the other side of the wall to find Christopher.

The movie is based on the bleak graphic novel of the same name by Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag, but swaps out the gloomy and brutal themes for a bright and fun journey fit for family viewing under a PG-13 rating. Although this might upset fans of Stålenhag’s novel, the Russos alongside writers Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, have created a film that can be enjoyed by all ages, and most importantly, feels very empathetic to the current state of our world.

Welcome to the post-apocalyptic '90s

Right from the get-go we can see our own world reflected in The Electric State. Themes like separation and division as a product of war and prejudice are cleverly threaded throughout the movie, creating a political commentary that is not so much in the audience's faces, but a constant reminder of the issues we face in our world. We see humans talking down to robots, such as a business owner responding to the request for basic rights: "They deserve the right to work for me when I plug them in." And Michelle’s patronizing foster father asking "Hey robot, do you speak human?" to a machine much more intelligent than he is. But to lighten the load, Mackie’s Herman has fun with this, making jokes about how humans believe all robots are the same.

But it’s not just war and division that mimic our own reality, as the flick plays on our obsession with social media and AI, with humans being sucked into Skate’s telecasters that leave them in a trance like state. Unlike many techy tales such as The Black Mirror and The Terminator, the Russos haven't relied on the usual ‘all tech is bad’ trope, instead showing how gadgets can live harmoniously alongside the human race unless they are abused by the very hands that made them.

Who is behind all this carnage? None other than Tucci’s turtle neck wearing menacing villain. The character's God complex really comes into play when Skate meets Giancarlo Esposito ex-soldier ‘The Butcher’ and presents himself in the middle of a lake walking on water. Well played Russos. However, with so much packed into the under two hour run time, audiences might finish the film wanting more from Tucci’s layered villain.

The rise of the robots

But even Tucci’s tech mogul can't outshine the real stars of the film, the robots. There is no doubt that The Electric State is the Russos’ most visually stunning project yet, and that all comes down to the fantastic VFX work on display. It’s clear that so much time and care has been put into the robots’ designs, especially when it comes to Cosmo, who audiences will surely connect to even more than central characters.

The inclusion of retro gadgets as robots, such as a baseball pitching machine and a salon chair robot, adds to the ‘90s aesthetic, along with the soundtrack boasting such tunes as I Fought The Law by The Clash, and a beautiful instrumental rendition of Wonderwall by Oasis (yes, that's right). The Russos have left out a few treats for Marvel fans too, just see if you can spot the Avengers comic being enjoyed by a robot.

However, this massively outshines Brown and Pratt’s lead characters, whose storylines feel severely underdeveloped with little backstory. Pratt isn't given much to do aside from cracking jokes, which is a real shame as Keats and Herman’s relationship has so much potential. With this in mind, it seems that the Russos’ return to Marvel cannot come soon enough where they can play with characters that already have a rich history behind them.

With The Electric State being based on such a layered piece of work that shares lore with the artist's other novels, the source material is just too vast for a movie format. The Electric State would have been far better suited as a series, or rather a film explored in two parts, like Netflix’s last sci-fi adventure Rebel Moon. The movie crams in too many interesting characters played by a hugely talented cast, including Woody Harrelson, Ke Huy Quan, and Brian Cox, that go without a proper introduction to the viewer, leaving us wanting more. The time constraints of the adaptation being a movie also means the final battle is ultimately rushed, with the end credits hitting the screen before we know it.

All in all, The Electric State serves as a satisfactory sci-fi adventure perfect for a family movie night, but viewers wanting a deeper look into Stålenhag’s novel with fully fleshed out characters might feel short changed. However, you can certainly take away one thing from The Electric State, a strong message celebrating our differences and the fact that despite the technological advancements our world faces every day, nothing will ever replace human connection.

The Electric State hits Netflix on March 14. For more, check out our list of the best Netflix movies, or keep up with upcoming movies heading your way.