I first tried watching this on Hulu shortly after it released, but not right away. it did not have audio description, nor did it through Hulu on Disney Plus. Months later, I finally was able to watch this film with the wonderful description done by Deluxe and William Michael Redmond. I avoided really reviewing the film the first time, because I had a feeling I was enjoying the film, I just couldn’t understand it. Man, I was missing a lot.

the creator stars John David Washington as a man caught in a futuristic war where countries look very different, AI is prevalent, and humans are fighting for survival. His whole world is blown up as he works as a spy behind enemy lines, looking for the ultimate weapon being developed by the other side. When that weapon turns out to be a child, albeit AI, it becomes a little like watching The Last Of us, and he has to keep her alive.

There’s a lot of imagination here, and director Gareth Edward’s is really putting his best foot forward. I haven’t been this impressed by a film of his since Monsters, where he had very little to work with and delivered a very solid film. I understand the budget on this was actually quite conservative, which is nice. I hated the bloated Godzilla remake he made. Loud, dark, and bleak. Here, this is much more palatable, though a lot of critics are dismissing this.

It’s not perfect, and I wish the pacing was a little tighter, but having some really well done audio description from Redman is letting me feel this world. This is not your typical dystopian future, and it has something to say not just about the rise of AI, but also our interpretation and reaction to it. This jumped really quickly out of my unwatchable list, and right up the grades.

I was right. This was worth trying to find the audio description track for. I’m really enjoying the trajectory of John David Washington’s career, and having him anchor this film is helping that profile. Gemma Chan and Allison Janney give memorable supporting turns, but Washington steals the show.

Final Grade: B+