Aaron Ploof
M3gan 2.0 is bombing at the box office. Raking in just 31 million on a budget of 15-25 million, it just barely made its money back. Jason Blum, the founder of Blumhouse Films, has had a rough time, to say the least. When asked by The Hollywood Reporter for comment, he replied, “We all thought Megan was like Superman. We could do anything to her. We could change genres. We could put her in the summer. We could make her look different. We could turn her from a bad guy into a good guy. And we classically overthought how powerful people’s engagement was with her.” Yes, indeed, M3GAN 2.0 has failed to meet expectations.
I revisited the first M3GAN a few days before seeing the sequel and was pleasantly surprised to see how it held up. In fact, I enjoyed it more than I did when I first viewed it. It’s a solid horror film and has some interesting commentary on the effects of electronic toys and devices on today’s society. Furthermore, it explored the harm that unregulated AI may have on our world.
The sequel, as Blum stated, still contains commentary on AI, but switches up a few things. It mainly turns M3GAN (played by Amie Donald & voiced by Jenna Davis) from a villain into a hero, while changing the genre from horror to action. Unfortunately, the switch-up is accompanied by a somewhat weak script that throws too many curveballs at the audience.
She Lives On
Two years since the end of M3GAN, Cady (Violet McGraw) and Gemma (Allison Williams) have been attempting to live life not so beholden to their electronic devices. Cady has invested her free time into martial arts, but even with her new-found hobby, she still has trouble communicating with her aunt and making friends. M3GAN, strangely enough, still holds a place in her heart. Meanwhile, Gemma has been working on a new project, a robotic exoskeleton, with her past teammates, Cole (Brian Jordan Alvarez) and Tess (Jen Van Epps). She’s also in a new partnership with cybersecurity expert Christian Bradley (Aristotle Athari). Though there are inklings of something romantic going on, the two are also working on AI regulation.
When new robot AMELIA (Ivanna Sakhno) goes rogue and becomes self-aware, U.S. Colonel Tim Sattler (Timm Sharp) corners Gemma. He informs her that the tech used to build M3GAN was also used to construct AMELIA and threatens her with legal action. Gemma has no good options left. That is until M3GAN reveals that she has been hiding out in the home’s security network this entire time. Reluctant to trust, but with nowhere else left to turn, Gemma transfers M3GAN’s consciousness into a small robot-like doll until she can prove she can be trusted.
M3GAN eventually gets a new body, with her speed, strength, and stature significantly improved. Teaming up with Cady, Gemma, Cole, and Tess, the team embarks on a quest to stop AMELIA from destroying the world.
However, Gemma still doubts M3GAN’s intentions. Can she truly be trusted?
Big Ideas
Like the original M3GAN, M3GAN 2.0 tackles some relevant themes to today’s society. While the first was a criticism of society’s parents and their reliance on technology to raise their children, the sequel is a warning towards using AI for wartime, as well as encouragement on how to approach our relationships with said technology. When AI truly does gain consciousness, will it fight back against us in an effort to destroy its makers? Or will it collaborate with us to create a better world? Much of that, the film argues, relies on how we treat A.I. in the meantime.
AMELIA is a perfect counterpart to that kind of destructive AI, much like Sarah Conner’s nemesis, The Terminator. One of the film’s flaws, however, lies with the simplicity of AMELIA’s motivations, which, bar spoilers, aren’t as interesting as the film would initially have you believe. In other themes, the film provides M3GAN with the possibility of redemption, and once again asks an age-old question. What differentiates an AI’s feelings from that of a human when both are self-aware?
I would say this is a reason that we should never build robots that could cross that line. However, M3GAN 2.0 would argue that this is an inevitable occurrence. Treat AI with respect, so it will do likewise unto us, it requests.
Faulty Wiring
Despite its intriguing themes, M3GAN can’t outrun the faults of its screenplay, nor the weakness of one of its performers. The script is strong in the first act, but as detail after detail is added, events quickly spiral out of control. New information is not so much handed to the audience as it is thrown out of left field, without the proper contextualization or setup in previous acts. By the end of the film, I was zoning out, my attention span shortening by the minute. The film is also predictable in its twists and turns. When the third act rolls around and all is revealed, events have played out pretty much as you would expect them too
The acting for the most part is solid, with strong performances from M3GAN’s physical actor, Amie Donald. Her dance moves are once again highlighted, as she’s able to capture the body of a robot doll. Davis returns with sass as the voice of M3GAN, who retains her personality and brings a lot of dark humor to the role, despite the side switch. Sakhno, too, performs AMELIA with a cold steeliness.
Allison Williams, though, is the weak link. She’s not terrible, but she’s very stiff in her responses. Her voice work is appropriate, but she’s not able to convey her emotions by way of overall physicality. Athari matches her talent.
The supporting actors, especially Alvarez as Cole, and Jemaine Clement as Alton Appleton, an unscrupulous tech billionaire, are a hoot, though. Alvarez has perfect comic timing and expression, while Clement has amusingly stuck-up body and character work.
Where Do We Go From Here?
M3GAN 2.0 argues that the future is in our hands. That self-aware AI may be coming sooner than we think. It features these ideas in a funny, energetic film, that does its best to be entertaining but comes off merely watchable at best. With a predictable ending, and a somewhat shaky script, this is a fun movie, but it’s not an improvement on the original. Perhaps Jason Blum was right. M3GAN isn’t Superman after all.
Score: 6.5/10
M3GAN 2.0 is now playing in theatres.
M3GAN 2.0 | Official Trailer
oops! she did it again! #M3GAN2 is only in theaters June 27. — Website: http://www.M3GANmovie.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/universalpictures Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/meetM3GAN/ X: https://twitter.com/meetm3gan Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/M3GAN/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/m3gan The murderous doll who captivated pop culture in 2023 is back. And this time she’s not alone.
