Eva (2011 film)

Did You Know?

• The film combines computer generated imagery of robots and retro clothing and props like a Saab 900 car.
• Shooting locations included the province of Barcelona, Panticosa in Huesca, La Chaux-de-Fonds in Switzerland, and Tenerife.
• Eva was nominated for sixteen Gaudí Awards, winning five.

Plot

In the year 2043, where humans and advanced machines live side by side, cybernetic engineer Álex Garel comes back to his snow-covered hometown, Santa Irene, after being away for ten years. His former mentor, Julia, who now leads the Robotic Faculty, brings him in to finish the SI-9 project: building a lifelike child robot that can imitate human emotions. This job forces Álex to face old conflicts with his estranged family, especially his brother David and his ex-lover Lana, who is now married to David. At the university lab, Álex watches Julia’s students test robots and objects when a malfunctioning robotic horse is “killed” by a phrase that wipes its emotional memory—a process Álex calls destroying its soul. He looks at footage of children to find a model for the SI-9 but finds none impressive. Later, while watching kids in town, he meets a sharp-witted girl named Eva, who teases him. Captivated by her unpredictability, he asks her to model for the robot, but she says no. When David insists Álex come to dinner, he learns Eva is Lana’s daughter—his own niece. Eva starts visiting his lab, helping him program the SI-9’s emotions, and their connection deepens as she shows complex behavior, like lying about her parents splitting up. Lana warns Álex to keep Eva out of the project, and David confronts him about still having feelings for Lana. As Álex puts Eva’s traits into the SI-9, the robot becomes just as volatile, attacking when teased. After it nearly hurts him, Álex uses the kill phrase to erase its memory and stop the work. At a faculty party, a slow dance with Lana rekindles their old spark; David sees them kiss, and a violent argument erupts.

Release

Eva made its debut out of competition at the 68th Venice International Film Festival on 7 September 2011. It then kicked off the Sitges Film Festival on 6 October 2011. The movie’s first French showing took place at the Angers European First Film Festival on 24 January 2012. Three days later, on 27 January, it earned the Audience Award at the Gérardmer Film Festival. Paramount Pictures brought it to Spanish theaters on 28 October 2011, while Wild Bunch Distribution handled the French release on 21 March 2012. In the United States, The Weinstein Company gave it a limited theatrical run starting 13 March 2015.

Reception

Eva received generally positive reviews from critics. Miguel Juan Payán of Acción Cine described the film as a brave science fiction exercise, comparing it to classics such as Frankenstein, Metropolis, Blade Runner and A.I. Artificial Intelligence, and awarded it five out of five points, praising the cast performances. Ignacio Lasierra of Cine para leer called it a strong and beautiful film with robots. Critics Cinema gave Eva 4.5 out of five stars, calling it an intelligent film with notable effects and interesting emotional stories. Olivier Bachelard of Abus de ciné felt the tension builds gradually but without reaching its summit, remaining politically correct and generating little suspense, describing it as a little sci-fi targeting families. Carlos Fernández Castro of Bandeja de Plata gave the film 4.5 points out of five, praising Claudia Vega's portrayal of Eva, but found Daniel Brühl's performance odd and Marta Etura's character shallow.