This review contains spoilers.
With a star-studded cast, stellar soundtrack and a budget of $320 million, directors Anthony and Joe Russo’s 2025 film “The Electric State” had everything needed to become an instant hit. While the movie began with good dynamics and editing, it soon fell into the classic tropes of a familial science fiction movie, ultimately producing an overdone, reductive film.
Released on Netflix on March 14, “The Electric State” follows a high school student, Michelle (Millie Bobby Brown), in a post-war world. The war in question pertains to humanity being pitted in a battle against robots for its own survival. While offering an insightful dystopian portrait of the rise of technology, the film ultimately fails to drive its plot home.
In the movie, Michelle meets a cartoonish robot, Cosmo (Alan Tudyk), and teams up with Keats (Chris Pratt), a defector from the robot war and black market salesman and Keats’ robot friend, Herman (Anthony Mackie).
The film begins with Michelle’s younger brother Christopher (Woody Norman) furiously scratching on a piece of paper while taking an exam. Much to the proctor's shock, Christopher passes the test — one that took Albert Einstein three days to complete — in one sitting.
Later, Christopher explains the “state of electricity” to his sister, asserting that everyone is connected even if they are not physically close. The movie then makes a harsh transition to explaining the integration of robots into daily life and the subsequent war between humans and robots. The Russos use newscasts to contextualize the film: antagonist Ethan Skate (Stanley Tucci) created a neurocaster that linked the human mind to the body of a drone, allowing humans to win the war.
Skate created the neurocaster network to allow people’s minds to be in two places at once, something he describes as “escapism for the masses.” Michelle’s brother, previously presumed dead, was at the center of the neurocaster system, with his brain being the battery that keeps the system alive.
The idea of escapism calls forth fears that machines might soon take over the workforce — an ever-present question with today’s wave of artificial intelligence. The neurocaster even closely resembles modern virtual reality goggles, drawing an eerie connection to our contemporary world. While the imagery calls forth interesting associations with one’s everyday experience with technology, the absurd and ill-executed plot diminishes the film’s message.
Despite the questionable plot, the cinematography elevates the film ever so slightly. The Russo brothers employ color in their set design intentionally and effectively, especially during the first half of the film. In every flashback with Michelle and her brother, the screen is bright and vibrant. However, in the moments when Michelle believes her brother to be dead, almost all color has faded from the screen.
After meeting Cosmo for the first time, Michelle realizes the robot’s software includes part of her brother's consciousness. With that revelation, color slowly returns to the film. Yellow emerges in the billboards that the characters pass, the canoe that Cosmo pulls Michelle in, the sign inside the steakhouse they wait outside of and much more. The reintroduction of color is visually appealing and demonstrates how Michelle sees the world differently upon learning Christopher is alive.
But the visual aesthetics are not the only good part of the film, the soundtrack shines as well, adding a new, engaging layer to the movie. The film’s soundtrack is purely ’90s, beginning with Tom Petty’s “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” (1993) and featuring a beautiful instrumental version of Oasis’ “Wonderwall” (1995). The soundtrack not only elevates the film's aesthetic but also adds to each scene, making the film feel purely American, a sentiment echoed by the American West imagery utilized throughout most of the film.
Although the film starts out strong with dynamic chemistry between Keats and Herman and spunky banter between Keats and Michelle, both duos eventually lose their spark around halfway through. The dialogue goes from cute and funny to cheesy and awkward, and the final scenes feel forced and cliché. “The Electric State” initially leans into its family-friendly nature in a positive way, emphasizing the surprising but deep relationships the humans have with the robots. However, the film eventually falls victim to the family-friendly genre’s restraints, such as unnecessary final deaths only for the sake of character growth, ultimately decreasing their emotional resonance.
While the soundtrack and cinematography offer glimpses of a powerful film, the aesthetics were not able to carry the movie to success. Ultimately, “The Electric State” proves that style without substance leads to failure.
Amelia Bush (she/her) (28C) is majoring in English. She is from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and enjoys walking around their many lakes. Outside of the Wheel, you can find her reading, scrapbooking, or playing tennis.
