Though its plot and premise are pure science fiction, "Transcendence" goes pleasingly against the genre grain. 
 
 A story of the possible perils and pleasures of artificial intelligence that stars Johnny Depp, "Transcendence's" ideas are at least as involving as its images, if not more so. And as written by Jack Paglen and directed by Wally Pfister, this film is intent on not limiting itself to simplistic questions of pure good and evil. 
 
 As "Transcendence's" narrative of the battle between pro and anti-technology forces unfolds, justice is done to the complicated factors at play here. Determining with certainty whom the heroes and villains of this narrative are is not so easily done. 
 
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 Though Pfister is well-known as Christopher Nolan's longtime cinematographer (nominated for four Oscars, a winner for "Inception"), both he and screenwriter Paglen are first-timers in their respective chairs, and there are times when that shows. "Transcendence's" exposition is not always sharp, emotional connections (with the exception of Depp's outstanding costar, Rebecca Hall) are not its strength, and it does not make memorable use of its Imax format. 
 
 But because the underlying ideas are involving, those problems fade from view, leaving us with an ambitious and provocative piece of work that is intriguingly balanced between being a warning and a celebration. 
 
 Certainly the boon-or-bane question of artificial intelligence has been a movie staple at least since the days of HAL 9000 in Stanley Kubrick's "2001." (In fact, a purely negative example of some of this film's ideas appears in the current "Captain America: Winter Soldier.") 
 
 "Transcendence" begins in the near future, maybe as close as tomorrow. Narrator Max Waters (an excellent Paul Bettany) walks through the streets of a Berkeley patrolled by armed soldiers. The city —- and every other city, we soon learn — is in the grip of some kind of worldwide power blackout. 
 
 Max walks to a classic wood shingle Berkeley house, now in ruins but once the home of Dr. Will Caster (Depp) and his wife, Evelyn (Hall). Max knew them better than anyone, he says, and he is prepared to vouch for the fact that they wanted nothing but the best for humanity. 
 
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 Back we go five years, to the bulk of "Transcendence's" story. Depp's Will is a brilliant scientist, distracted in a Disney Gyro Gearloose kind of way but enough of a celebrated futurist to have people asking for signatures on his Wired magazine cover story. 
 
 Evelyn is the more focused half of the couple, eager to raise money for the practical applications of Will's ideas, which means attendance at an Evolve the Future conference where the good doctor talks about the lure of what he calls transcendence. 
 
 "Once online, a sentient machine will quickly overcome the limits of biology," he says. "Its analytical power will be greater than the collective intelligence of every person born in the history of the world. Imagine such an entity with the full range of emotions, even self-awareness." 
 
 For some people in the audience, that is not a dream but a nightmare. These are the members of RIFT (Revolutionary Independence From Technology, if you must know), "Unplug" tattoos on their forearms and anarchic mayhem in their hearts. In fact their leader, Bree (Kate Mara), looks so clearly deranged it's amazing she was even allowed in the auditorium. 
 
 RIFT soon does its worst, and as an end result Will ends up with only a few weeks to live. Though the couple's best friend, Max, expresses doubts, Rebecca sees only one way out, a scenario that involves yet another acronym, PINN. 
 
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 That would be the Physically Independent Neural Network artificial intelligence system Will has created. Rebecca decides to upload her husband's mind to PINN's core. "We can save him," she insists to Max's dismay, and though the experiment appears to succeed, the much more complex question becomes: at what cost to humanity. 
 
 Once Will is fully inside the machine, "Transcendence's" main action begins and the film becomes more involving. Because Depp's mechanical performance is nothing to write home about, the film counts on Hall's great ability to join intelligence with empathy. (Those who haven't seen her and "Spider-Man" Andrew Garfield co-star in the first part of 2009's "Red Riding Trilogy" should catch up now.) 
 
 Initially, what we see is all the things this smartest-entity-ever puts into motion, how it keeps itself alive and how it works to increase its range and power. Just as interesting, however, are the conflicts, doubts and fears that Will's transformation causes, not the least of them being Max's worry about whether that it is really Will inside the machine and not some bizarre iteration with a mind of its own. 
 
 Most pointed is the resistance many of "Transcendence's" characters feel to Will's evolution into what they call "an unnatural abomination and a threat to humanity." Are their qualms justified, or is it a question that, as someone says, "people fear what they don't understand." These are very difficult questions, and the best thing about "Transcendence" is that it refuses to pretend otherwise. 
 
 kenneth.turan@latimes.com 
 
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 'Transcendence' 
 
 MPAA rating: PG-13 for sci-fi action and violence, some blood images, brief strong language and sensuality 
 
 Running time: 1 hour, 59 minutes 
 
 Playing: In general release 

 'Transcendence' review: Brain uploaded, logic goes out door Artificial-intelligence expert breaks boundary - plot defies logic, but you'll never be bored 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Photo: Peter Mountain, Warner Bros. Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close Image 1 of 4 Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) is a Berkeley artificial intelligence scientist who is attacked by revolutionaries. Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) is a Berkeley artificial intelligence scientist who is attacked by revolutionaries. Photo: Peter Mountain, Warner Bros. Image 2 of 4 Bree (Kate Mara) leads an antitechnology group in "Transcendence." Bree (Kate Mara) leads an antitechnology group in "Transcendence." Photo: Peter Mountain, Warner Bros. Image 3 of 4 After Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) comes under attack, his science partner and wife, Evelyn (Rebecca Hall, right), must make some tough calls in the sci-fi thriller "Transcendence." After Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) comes under attack, his science partner and wife, Evelyn (Rebecca Hall, right), must make some tough calls in the sci-fi thriller "Transcendence." Photo: Peter Mountain, Warner Bros. Image 4 of 4 Morgan Freeman (left), Cillian Murphy and Rebecca Hall co-star in "Transcendence," a film by Wally Pfister. Morgan Freeman (left), Cillian Murphy and Rebecca Hall co-star in "Transcendence," a film by Wally Pfister. Photo: Peter Mountain, Warner Bros. 'Transcendence' review: Brain uploaded, logic goes out door 1 / 4 Back to Gallery 
 
 In most horror movies, the victims can be forgiven for their lack of sense. It's within the realm of possibility that a hormone-charged slightly dense 17-year-old might open the wrong door, utter the forbidden words or ignore the obvious warnings to get off the mountain. 
 
 In "Transcendence," the obtuse adults opening the wrong door are some of the world's greatest scientific minds. 
 
 Real scientists are going to hate this film. It suggests they are oblivious dimwits who dive headlong into potential catastrophe with no safeguards, and little consideration of the morals or consequences. And then, when catastrophe is surrounding them, they make a nice chicken piccata, sip wine and argue about their feelings. 
 
 The directorial debut for ace cinematographer Wally Pfister is always watchable, but the narrative flaws and logical leaps sabotage sustained enjoyment. "Transcendence" looks and sounds like a Christopher Nolan film that got attacked by malware. 
 
 One huge positive for "Transcendence": It's never boring. The film has the fascinating vibe that happens when very talented people with a large amount of resources are making something unique. Nolan is the executive producer, and Pfister's movie has that "Inception"/"Memento" ambience, where audiences feel as if they're on a ride that could take them anywhere. This ride just isn't quite as much fun. 
 
 Johnny Depp stars as Dr. Will Caster, a Berkeley artificial intelligence scientist whose partners have figured out how to upload a primate's consciousness onto a computer. Caster and his wife/scientific partner Evelyn (Rebecca Hall) have also been working on a sentient machine, which would never be made by anyone who has seen "2001: A Space Odyssey" or "WarGames." When revolutionaries seriously wound Caster, Evelyn and colleague Max (Paul Bettany) hole up in an abandoned gymnasium and perform surgery, hoping to upload Caster's consciousness before he dies. 
 
 Story problem No. 1: We'll assume it's even remotely possible that this Berkeley gym wouldn't already be inhabited by 47 squatters. And we'll assume it still somehow has the working electricity to power a bank of supercomputers. Are we supposed to believe that a pair of academics would be capable of performing an on-the-fly intracranial neurosurgery procedure? 
 
 From there, "Transcendence" presents itself as a smart movie, while it bombards the viewer with confusing plot turns, huge lapses in logic, protagonists who act against their own interest and smart characters who are slow to realize the obvious. For every really good story idea, there are two more problems that will make you shake your head. 
 
 Story problem No. 2: The government, which would have 20 agents assigned to follow Caster's every move in the real world, appears to assign one mid-level investigator to the case after a terrorism-related tragedy. The revolutionaries are gaining strength? The same investigator is in charge. The fate of mankind hangs in the balance? OK, we'll let the single FBI agent order around a dozen soldiers too. But don't wake up the president ... 
 
 So now you have the bad news. While it fails as an airtight sci-fi thriller, "Transcendence" is still a decent "Twilight Zone" episode. The off-putting moments are reminiscent of the science-experiment-gone-wrong themes in the underrated "Splice," or a good David Cronenberg creep-out. The problems seem to rest more with the edits than with the work of "Transcendence" screenwriter Jack Paglen, whose overly serious yet detail-oriented script yields some fun surprises. 
 
 And Depp embraces the many complications of being a warped version of humanity, pulling off subtle emotional changes along with one or two bizarro turns. Depp critics can complain that he's been uploading all of his performances since 1997. But you wouldn't want anyone else in this role. (OK, maybe Nicolas Cage ...) 
 
 Cinema is a better place when filmmakers like Pfister and Nolan and Alfonso Cuarón and Neill Blomkamp can explore new ideas and original scripts, instead of squeezing out the 47th "Spider-Man" reboot for Sony Pictures. The finished product may be messy with "Transcendence," but at least it's not like everything else. 
 
 One more note for Bay Area residents: While it appears that much of the film was shot outside the Bay Area, "Transcendence" does have the best use of San Pablo Avenue in a film since Pixar's "The Incredibles." The Broadway of the East Bay is immortalized once again ...
– Transcendence, starring Johnny Depp and Rebecca Hall, tells the story of a dying scientist whose wife uploads his brain onto a computer. Wally Pfister's directorial debut (he's been Christopher Nolan's longtime cinematographer) raises worthwhile questions about technology, identity, and good and evil, critics say—but they're not entirely won over: "Transcendence looks and sounds like a Christopher Nolan film that got attacked by malware," writes Peter Hartlaub in the San Francisco Chronicle. It's definitely not boring, but its "narrative flaws and logical leaps sabotage sustained enjoyment." Meanwhile, it paints scientists as "oblivious dimwits who dive headlong into potential catastrophe with no safeguards." The movie "explores its ideas with sincerity, curiosity, and terrifying beauty. This makes its failures all the more depressing," notes Matt Zoller Seitz at RogerEbert.com. "Too often ... the movie doesn't feel ambiguous or complicated, merely muddled and wishy-washy." In the Los Angeles Times, however, Kenneth Turan does see ambiguity: "Justice is done to the complicated factors at play here. Determining with certainty whom the heroes and villains of this narrative are is not so easily done." Sure, it's not perfect, but it's "an ambitious and provocative piece of work that is intriguingly balanced between being a warning and a celebration." In the New York Times, Manohla Dargis sees "modest pleasures" in the movie. "However predictable and ridiculous, the film raises the question of what—as the machines rise—makes us human and why, which certainly gives you more to chew on at the multiplex than is customary these days."