There are plenty of movies about artificial intelligence, though it’s Alex Garland’s Ex Machina that comes to mind first when watching The Artifice Girl. Written and directed by Franklin Ritch, the film is a nuanced look at AI over the years, how we interact with it, the way in which it develops, and the ethics surrounding it. The action unfolds in only two rooms for the entirety of its runtime, which can be suffocating at times, but The Artifice Girl is engaging and compelling, bolstered by stellar performances from its cast, and exceeds where other AI-focused stories might falter.
The film opens in a small room. Gareth (Ritch, pulling triple duty) believes he is being interviewed for a grant he applied for, but it isn’t long before Deena (Sinda Nichols) and Amos (David Girard) reveal their true intentions. Initially believing Gareth is an online predator soliciting children, Deena and Amos learn that he’s actually behind Cherry (Tatum Matthews), an AI with the physical appearance of a little girl that he created to find predators. Thereafter, the film follows the three of them through the years as they utilize Cherry while also wondering about the morally gray area surrounding its use, especially with the AI’s enhancements.
The Artifice Girl is able to maintain the tension, and that’s miraculous considering the film primarily takes place in one room. The first act is especially intense, and the actors do a fantastic job reacting to one another, employing certain ticks and other forms of body language and intonation to maintain the electricity as the mystery surrounding their meeting unravels. The story unfolds like a well-oiled stage play, limited in its location, but carried by its focused and generally sharp writing. You’ll never be bored watching it, and the discussions — largely ethical in nature — are especially prudent considering the rise of AI use.
Ritch’s script and characters are morally complex. There are layers upon layers that are itching to be peeled back. We’re privy to new information, secrets that are hidden coming into the light, as the film progresses, breaking down the barriers between the human and the artificially intelligent girl who is at the whim of her creator. The Artifice Girl engages with debates about consciousness, what it means to have emotions and to operate by using them, the inherent biases that are ultimately programmed into AI by way of the humans who created them, and whether the ends justify the means for such advanced technology, which walks a morally ambiguous line. The film doesn’t have the answers, but it leaves room for us to engage with such topics after watching.
The film is dialogue-heavy, driven by characters having thought-provoking, electrifying conversations. In anyone else’s hands, The Artifice Girl might have failed in delivering such a rich, nuanced story, but Ritch understands that the pacing is everything. None of the story’s chapters linger longer than needed, and the following acts only build on what came before without retreading the same ground. Considering that each act is set several years after the last, it would have been easy for the dialogue to become repetitive, or even dull; the same goes for the setting and character dynamics. But Ritch finds fresh and exciting angles for the story to progress, and it makes for an intriguing watch.
While The Artifice Girl loses some steam by its final act, holding on to one of the biggest questions posed at the start of the film for a bit too long, the film as a whole is excellent. There is some great character work, layered debates that will fascinate, and tension that ebbs and flows but never lets up. Ritch has a winner on his hands. As we look to the future and AI’s place in it — what it can do for us, and the terrifying, often unaddressed ethical ambiguity it brings — The Artifice Girl provides a thorough, nuanced exploration that manages to be just as captivating as it is intense.
The Artifice Girl releases in theaters, on demand, and digital Thursday, April 27. The film is 93 minutes long and not yet rated.
