Sadly, Nick’s hospitalized wife Maggie desperately needs a transplant, because she is fading fast. He could also use a hand with their elementary school aged daughter Isla and nine- or ten-month-old son. Apparently, even a construction foreman can afford a SIM servant in the future, but rather unwisely, he buys one that looks like Megan Fox rather than Mrs. Doubtfire. Nevertheless, she seems to handle Isla well.
Soon, Alice also offers Nick her full services. He tries to resist, but her ability to mimic Maggie’s voice breaks down his resistance. Unfortunately, her programming is a little wonky, which allows Allice to take questionable initiatives. As her prime user, Alice is hard-wired to protect Nick, but she starts interpreting his best interests for him.
Obviously, Subservience follows relatively closely on the heels of M3gan, but it manages to develop some original themes. To a considerable degree, the chaos that erupts is partially Maggie’s fault, when she instructs Alice to hide Nick’s liquor, even though he will not like it, because sometimes we know better than other people what is best for them. As always, that is a very dangerous proposition. Sure enough, like so many horrific socialist regimes, Alice uses her judgment of what Nick needs to justify murder.
Subservience is no Terminator, but it taps into similar anxieties. It aptly reminds us, the more we empower AI (or anything else) to protect us, the greater the risk of horrible unintended consequences. Worth considering to eventually stream for free or at a low promo-price, Subservience releases tomorrow (9/13) on VOD (EST in the UK).
