This weekend, I watched The Electric State, Netflix’s most expensive movie to date. Overall, I enjoyed the film; having no knowledge of the film save for the gorgeous images I’d seen of the graphic novel, I feel like the movie accomplished what it set out to do.
Aside from the likeable characters and impressive special effects (please give Anthony Mackie and Jenny Slate more voice acting work), I think what drew me in to The Electric State was the elegant simplicity of the story. The movie does a great job at following standard story structure.
Here is a breakdown of The Electric State in two ways: The Hero’s Journey, and Save the Cat (SPOILERS):
THE HERO’S JOURNEY
The Ordinary World.
Michelle lives in a world where humans are warring with sentient robots. Meanwhile, her genius kid brother Chris is going to college.
The Call of Adventure. (aka the “Inciting Incident”)
A car accident occurs, and only Michelle survives. She becomes a ward of the state, raised by an uncaring foster dad.
Refusal of the Call.
One day, a Kid Cosmo robot appears, claiming to be Michelle’s brother and asking her to join him on an adventure to the EX – the Exclusionary Zone in New Mexico for exiled robots. She initially says no, but agrees once her foster dad discovers the robot and threatens to call the police.
Meeting the Mentor.
In their journey to find the person who has access to the EX, Michelle and the Kid Cosmo robot find Keats and HERM, and they sneak into his truck and follow him to his hideout.
Crossing the First Threshold.
When Marshall Bradbury, aka the butcher of Schenectady, tracks them down to the hideout, Michelle and Keats are forced to escape. They cave in the hideout and wind up trapped within the EX.
Tests, Allies, Enemies.
Along the way, Michelle, Keats, HERM, and the Kid Cosmo robot, find themselves at Blue Sky Acres, an abandoned mall located in the EX which serves as an oasis of sort for sentient robots who wish to live in peace and find a purpose outside of what they were created for. It’s here we meet some new characters: the leader, Mr. Peanut, a baseball bot named Popfly, and a mailbot named Penny. It’s Penny that delivers a letter from the scientist that Michelle and the Kid Cosmo Robot are trying to track down.
Approach to the Inmost Cave.
Michelle, Keats, Herm, the Kid Cosmo Robot are joined by Mr. Peanut, Popfly, and Penny to brave the deadly scavenger bots of the EX to travel to the hideout of the scientist. It is here they discover how Sentre was created and how Michelle’s brother’s mind wound up inside the Kid Cosmo robot.
The Ordeal.
The heroes are tracked down by Marshall and other Sentre bots. A fight ensues; Dr. Clark Amherst is killed by Sentre founder Ethan Skate and the Kid Cosmo bot is taking away.
The Road Back.
The heroes return back to Blue Sky Acres to see that Sentre had destroyed it and most of the robots inside. Despite the odds stacked against them, they decide to make the trip to Seattle.
Resurrection.
In Seattle, a battle ensues between Sentre and the survivng robots. Marshall does a face turn and helps the heroes. Michelle finds her brother and speaks to him via Senter’s Neurocaster, something she was never willing to do before. Chris is upset by what his brain had created and asks Michelle to unplug him, affectively killing him and destroying Sentre.
Return with the Elixir.
Michelle sends a tape to CNN, announcing what Sentre had been doing to her brother, and urges society unplug from technology and to connect with the people once again.
SAVE THE CAT
Beat #1: Opening Image (0-1%)
Michelle is with her brother Chris as he aces a test which grants him admission in to college.
Beat #2: Theme Stated (5%)
Michelle and Chris talk about how even when apart, particles that are together retain their electricity and are thus always connected
Beat #3: Setup (1% – 10%)
Michelle and Chris live in an alternate reality of the U.S. where humanity is fighting sentient robots.
Beat #4: Catalyst (10%)
After a tragic car accident, Michelle is left in foster care in a post-robot war U.S., where everyone is connected to their Neurocaster devices but disconnected from reality and each other.
Beat #5: Debate (10%-20%)
Michelle is confronted by a Kid Cosmo robot who breaks into her house, claiming to be her brother, who she thought had died in the accident. Michelle’s foster dad threatens to call the cops on both of them, so they flee, looking for a way into the EX to Tabletop Mountain, where a doctor in glasses is supposed to be hiding.
Beat #6: Break Into 2 (20%)
Michelle and the Kid Cosmo robot travel to New Mexico to find the person who has access to the Exclusionary Zone, the EX.
Beat #7: B Story (22%)
Michelle meets Keats and HERM, a construction robot.
Beat #8: Fun and Games (20% -50%)
While stuck in the EX, Michelle and Keats are attacked by sentient robots hiding out in a mall called Blue Sky Acres. Once apprehended, they meet with the leader, a Mr. Peanut robot, who says they thought they were scavenger bots. Here we see that robots want the same thing that humans have: freedom. Blue Sky Acres was created as a place for robots to “evolve”, to find a purpose outside of their intended creation. We see a lot of interaction and camaraderie between humans and robots, but also a lot of distrust and biases.
Beat #9: Midpoint (50%)
Mr. Peanut reveals that the doctor they were looking for was at the mall, but they forced him out. This upsets Michelle, but later that night, a mailbot named Penny delivers a letter which tells them how to find the doctor. The heroes leave to search for the doctor, braving the nighttime threat of scavenger bots.
Beat #10: Bad Guys Close In (50 to 75%)
The heroes find the doctor, but are ambushed by Sentre and Marshall Bradbury.
Beat #11: All Is Lost (75%)
The doctor Michelle and Co. were searching for is killed by the leader of Sentre, Ethan Skate. Michelle’s brother is taken away.
Beat #12: Dark Night of the Soul (75% – 80%)
The heroes return to Blue Sky Acres to find it destroyed. There Michelle and Keats have a heart to heart, and with the help of the deceased doctor’s sentient PC, decide to storm the Sentre facility in Seattle and rescue Chris.
Beat #13: The Break Into Three (80%)
While in Seattle, a battle ensues. Michelle overcomes her distrust of the Neurocaster and puts one on to communicate with her comatose brother. Chris realizes that in order to stop the fight, they have to destroy Sentre, which means him sacrificing himself.
Beat #14: The Finale (80%-99%)
Michelle’s brother dies, essentially destroying Sentre and exposing the company’s dark side. Ethan Skate is arrested.
Beat #15: Final Image (99%-100%)
Michelle sends a tape to CNN explaining who she is and why she took down Sentre. In the final shot, the Kid Cosmo robot can be seen walking, loosely implying that the consciousness of Michelle’s brother may have survived after all, mirroring their conversation about particles and connection.
The Electric State – Verdict
The Electric State adheres strongly to the conventions of story structure for both The Hero’s Journey and Save the Cat. In fact, the film especially hits a solid “Dark Night of the Soul” beat at the end of Act 2; if you seen movies like Space Jam, 2016’s The Suicide Squad and Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, then you’ve seen this beat play out time and time again. The heroes have suffered a great loss (courtesy of the preceding “All is Lost” beat) and are down and out. Then someone – be it the main character, the mentor, or disgraced athlete Lance Armstrong – comes out and gives an inspiring speech or pep talk that rallies the troops for one last hurrah in the finale.
I’ve seen the overall discourse online on The Electric State, and a lot of people have been really critical of the movie’s plot, citing it as generic and mediocre. I think these critics are missing the point.
Is the movie unique and groundbreaking in its storytelling? No – in fact, it’s quite rote. But I feel the need to defend The Electric State because not every movie needs to re-invent the wheel. The source material may be considered high art, but this is a straightforward and fun movie that a family can enjoy – I know my family did. So regardless of your opinions on the overall quality of The Electric State, at least respect that it does a serviceable job at following proper story structure, and in the end, if you can get that right, then that’s all that really matters.
What do you think? Do you agree? Did you enjoy The Electric State? Did you feel it was lacking? And most importantly: did you not love Stanley Tucci as the tech boss antagonist? Just give me a movie of him evilly making a negroni cocktail – I would be set for life!
