Johnny Depp in Transcendence
2014 Movie ReviewsMovies

Movie Review: Transcendence

Evan Crean

Johnny Depp in Transcendence
Transcendence © Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All rights reserved

After years of lending visual flair to Christopher Nolan’s heady films, cinematographer Wally Pfister finally makes his directorial debut with the sci-fi drama Transcendence. Like Nolan’s efforts, Pfister’s picture has narrative ambition, along with familiar actors (like Cillian Murphy and Morgan Freeman), although it fails to fulfill grand promises made by its screenwriter Jack Paglen. Transcendence introduces several controversial scientific topics begging for commentary such as artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, regeneration, and cloning—yet none of them receive the depth that they deserve.

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Evan Crean

Hello! My name is Evan Crean. By day I work for a marketing agency, but by night, I’m a film critic based in Boston, MA. Since 2009, I have written hundreds of movie reviews and celebrity interviews for Starpulse.com. I have also contributed pieces to NewEnglandFilm.com and to The Independent, as a writer and editor. I maintain an active Letterboxd account too. In addition to publishing short form work, I am a co-author of the book Your ’80s Movie Guide to Better Living, which is available on CreateSpace and Amazon. The book is the first in a series of lighthearted self-help books for film fans, which distills advice from ’80s movies on how to tackle many of life’s challenges. On top of writing, I co-host and edit the weekly film podcast Spoilerpiece Theatre with two other Boston film critics. I’m a founding member and the current treasurer for the Boston Online Film Critics Association as well. This site, Reel Recon.com, is a one-stop-shop where you can find links to all of my past and present work. Have any questions or comments after checking it out? Please feel free to email me (Evan Crean) at: ecrean AT reelrecon DOT COM .