Review: Lack of action keeps intriguing ‘Transcendence’ from excelling

Posted on April 25, 2014

As I was leaving the theater last weekend after seeing “Transcendence,” starring Johnny Depp (“Pirates of the Caribbean”), I thought of last year’s “Oblivion,” because I feel pretty confident that this will be another movie I enjoyed, but few others will.

I can see where director Wally Pfister was going with this movie, attempting to combine heady science fiction concepts into a mainstream blockbuster in the vein of “Inception.” Unfortunately, the balance is off too much to garner a widespread acceptance, but for myself, I enjoyed the debates and a story which provided a few unexpected turns that I’m sure would have sparked an interesting conversation if I hadn’t seen it by myself.

The film is rated PG-13 for sci-fi action and violence, some bloody images, brief strong language and sensuality.