Maid Droid

I myself was skeptical, as Maid Droid seems on the surface to fall into the erotica category where we are going to get a runaway train of spank shows connected by a rickety narrative track. Not so. Yes, there is a heaping helping of nudity and simulated sex, but they are used as integral parts of a moving story that is much more thematically intricate than you would expect. Yes, Virginia, you, too, will get interested in the plot and become emotionally engaged with a sex robot picture. And yes, this restraint against gratuitous titillation makes the whole thing even more sexy cause there is a real story for all the spice to make it savory.

Mallery manipulates the S&M elements of the maid fantasy to comment on and play with the power dynamics. Roles are defined, then reversed, then twisted into leather pretzels. While there are scenes of light torture that some may warm their stove to, the domination presented is mostly oppressive and frightening. This atmosphere darkens considerably with the help of the bent sinister synth score. It is genius that the filmmaker develops this to the point where the story starts rebelling against the objectification that it seemingly perpetuates.

“…comment[s] on and play[s] with the power dynamics.”

By writing several dimensions into his robotic lead, Mallery allows West to really shine. Her performance kept reminding me of the mermaid in Splash, a movie directly referenced and an obvious influence. The actor puts a tone of complicated emotions into her programmed responses, mainly through tiny detailed facial movements that convey contradictions to the ready-to-please attitude. While West’s background seems to be modeling, she is ready to rip in the acting arena. The dark depths she portrays feeling and repressing simultaneously are so real they shriek.

Maid Droid is an engrossing sci-fi spin for those who like their futures dark. It was built at the factory to surpass all expectations. Surprises like this keep renewing my faith in the unpredictable blasts of brilliance that will always geyser up out of the big indie lake of fire.