Mars Express is a stylish, fast-paced animated sci-fi noir that combines riveting action with thoughtful questions about the moral implications of artificial intelligence in the future. The story follows two private eyes—human Aline Ruby, a cynical recovering alcoholic, and the android duplicate of her deceased partner Carlos Rivera, a cynical recovering human. While investigating a renegade hacker on the run and a missing college student, they stumble onto a plot that will affect the future of everyone—human and robot alike—on Mars. The trail of violence seems to lead to billionaire tech guru and former friend Chris Royjacker (voiced by Mathieu Amalric, in Sodankylä 2022), but he may or may not be the villain of the piece.
Mars Express is a splendid addition to the history of sci-fi dystopias—from Metropolis to Blade Runner—that speculate about the impact of robot technology on the human world. Ultimately, the film falls somewhere between the pessimistic Terminator and hopeful Her in its outlook on a world where humans coexist with A.I. But just as in the gloomy futuristic visions of Fahrenheit 451 and Children of Men, the film warns that cultural loss could reach a suicidal level if human narratives of progress fail to address longstanding abuses of wealth and power.
Jennifer Barker