Join this week’s guest Meta Ronin author of the Metapocalypse Substack and I on the fifteenth episode of In Kino Veritās — a podcast where the guest picks a film, we both watch, and discuss.

We don’t simply review films but dive deep into their themes, characters and cultural context. In this episode Meta Ronin and I explore two relatively different sci-fi films. One, a AGI feminist film — the other, the pinnacle of 90s angst.

Where you can stream Ex Machina & Dark City

(Use your local library to get a physical copy for free)

Main Points

* In Kino Veritās’ first double feature: Ex Machina and Dark City

* Similarities b/w 90’s films Dark City and The Matrix

* Meta Ronin’s Rewatch Perspective on Ex Machina

* Caleb's Apprehension and the Turing Test

* Evolutionary Basis for Human Apprehension toward AI

* The Question of Man's Purpose

* Ex Machina as an Expression of Liberal Order Anxiety

* Caleb and Nathan’s Motives

* Pygmalion Metaphor and AI Motivation

* The Problem of Full Sentience

* Meta Ronin’s Experience with Custom AI

* Ex Machina as a Feminist Film

* AI Loyalty & the Absence of Ego

* Consciousness and Emergent Properties

* Nathan's Actions and Moral Ambiguity

* Simulation vs. Sentience

* Materialism, Animism, and Emergent Properties

* Biblical Allusions in Ex Machina

* The Tech Bro Archetype in 2014

* Performance of Masculinity in Tech Billionaires

* The "Joe Roganification Effect" and Societal Appeal

* Discussion of the Faustian Journey and Dark City

* Connecting the Faustian Spirit to Job Stacking

* The Nature of Reality and Humanity in Dark City

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ultimatum.substack.com/subscribe