Alex Garland’s new limited series Devs asks some big questions. What is life? Do we really have free will? Do our choices in any way alter our destiny? It’s heavy stuff and as with his other work – 2015’s Ex-Machina and 2018’s Annihilation – Garland approaches it in a realistic, grounded way; choosing to ask these questions and analyse the results through strong, well rounded characters and a central story which slowly weaves its central mystery with high concept science-fiction until something truly special has taken shape. The format of television allows Garland to really flex his storytelling talents – building tension and creating a slow burn mystery that nails the payoff (in my opinion) – as well as showcasing all the usual hallmarks of his work on a grander scale: phenomenal sound design, an epic, haunting score from Geoff Barrow and Ben Salisbury and a unique visual aesthetic that looks more akin to a feature film than a television series. Combine that with outstanding performances from the entire cast including relative newcomer Sonoya Mizuno and a transformative Nick Offerman, who leaves his Parks and Recreation character of Ron Swanson in the rearview mirror, and you have a wholly unique 8 hours of television that feels completely unlike anything else around.
We begin our trip down the rabbit hole following Lily Chan (Sonoya Mizuno), an expert coder who, along with boyfriend Sergei (Karl Glusman), works for major tech company Amaya under the command of the enigmatic and mysterious Forest (Nick Offerman) – a dishevelled, bearded hippy version of Steve Jobs. When Sergei is selected to join the Devs team – working on a secret project with ramifications that could change the world – he gets a chance to meet and interact with the team closest to Forest, including the methodical and cunning second-in-command Katie (Alison Pill) and friendlier yet no less conceited developers Lyndon (Cailee Spaeny) and Stewart (Stephen McKinley Henderson). After Sergei mysteriously disappears, Lily launches an investigation of her own, determined to uncover what Sergei was working on before he disappeared, roping in ex-boyfriend Jamie (Jin Ha) for help. Her journey leads her down a twisting, ever changing path involving ex-FBI hitmen, corporate espionage and more secrets than she knows what to do with as Lily narrows in on the Devs program and their work, destroying her perceptions about herself and the world around her as she knew them along the way.
The choice to present the show as what amounts to an 8 hour film rather than a traditional 2 hour feature does wonders for the story here, allowing Garland to really flesh out his characters and dig deep into what makes them tick. This is most evident in the character of Forest, whose slow demystification throughout the series reveals a beaten down shell of a man who has experienced terrible tragedy and whose mental state in running a company, and more specifically the Devs project, should be called into question. Offerman takes Forest from this cold, unlikeable billionaire who seems completely removed from reality due to his high status and makes the audience really feel for him, to the point that he often steals the spotlight from Sonoya Minuzo, despite her great work. It’s a far more layered, nuanced role than his career defining Ron Swanson and a welcome change of pace, allowing Offerman to really showcase his range, from calm and withdrawn to fully unhinged, and its the kind of role I wish we saw more of from him. Right up there with Offerman is Alison Pill, who completely commands the screen in her own right as Katie. What begins as a stereotypical gruff second-in-command who sucks up to the boss quickly defies expectations as Katie develops into one of the shows most interesting and complex characters, constantly battling between her love for Forest as this god-like figure and her belief and adherence to the laws of nature and science that he is breaking. Its Pill’s best role to date and her scenes with Offerman are electric and, at times, heartbreaking, as she struggles with her feelings for this man who has given her so much.
That’s all not to say that the rest of the cast isn’t phenomenal, with Sonoya Minuzo approaching the character of Lily with a quiet calm that slowly unravels as she finds her understanding of the world around her lessening and the reality of the situation hits her. Minuzo plays the character as very introverted, skirting the line of the stereotypical quiet “computer person” and while some may find this a boring choice and struggle to latch onto her character, I found that Lily actually felt like a real person, with real human responses to the unfolding insanity. Similarly, Jin Ha plays the character of Jamie, Lily’s ex-boyfriend, in much the same calm way, albeit with more internal conflict between his desire to help Lily and his fear of being rejected again. The pair have a great chemistry that slowly builds as the boundaries between them crumble and they make a compelling on-screen pair thanks to their down-to-earth, calculated approach to the overwhelming odds facing them.
All of Garland’s work so far has mixed very high-concept science fiction with relatable human emotions and stories. Just look at Ex-Machina: an exploration of AI and the potential for it to overtake and subsume the human race combined with a somewhat familiar story of a man falling for a woman in a relationship with another man; albeit a deeply unhealthy relationship between creator and creation. Working within the medium of a standard feature film, Garland is forced to condense his ideas and subsequent exploration of them into the standard two hours, and he does this incredibly well; crafting a tense, deeply engrossing story that you should see if you haven’t already. Devs gives him the chance to really go wild and explore his interests here as far as this high concept sci-fi goes. In the broadest strokes Devs examines human will and free choice or the illusion of it; the possibility that each moment in all of our histories are pre-determined and cannot be changed. It’s lofty stuff that, in all honesty, I’m not sure I’ve quite fully grasped and will probably require a second viewing to really understand. Yet I’m totally fine with doing so as the human story at play is so engrossing and the mystery so enticing; an old fashioned corporate espionage narrative that understands its characters and never relies on tropes of the genre to get by. Your satisfaction with how it all wraps up may vary, I for one was satisfied but could have done with just a bit more to give things some finality, but it’s the journey, not the destination that matters and in that regard Devs absolutely delivers.
It’s also an astounding show from a technical perspective. I can’t remember the last time I was so enamoured with the sound of a show before, with the booming synths and gargled electronic sounds of the score cutting through the sterile almost computer generated silence of scenes, as if the sound is a glitch tied to Lily’s discoveries and the threat posed to Amaya. This almost computer-generated quality extends to the visuals, which look spectacular, the closest a show has come to resembling a theatrical film since Game of Thrones. The basic sets and locations are all incredibly aesthetically pleasing and well kept; from Lily’s perfectly manicured apartment to the Google-like grandeur of the Amaya campus. It’s the Devs building, though, that really impresses: a building from well into the future that inspires both awe and a feeling of foreboding; coloured completely bright, vivid gold with the central building suspended by electromagnets, it is a glimpse at the power that Amaya commands and the resources they have at their disposal – an immovable force that Lily finds herself up against.
Devs might just be Alex Garland’s best work to date. Drawing from all the strengths of his earlier projects, Garland has crafted a near-perfect slow burn show that allows him to explore the science fiction concepts he so clearly loves on a larger scale, combining it with an addictive human narrative and fully fleshed out characters that I couldn’t wait to check in with each week. Whilst the ending may be dissatisfying to some, the journey towards it is anything but boring, reeling you in and exposing you to concepts and ideas that make you think beyond the story of the show. With terrific performances across the board, particularly Nick Offerman, who delivers his best, most layered work yet, there really isn’t an excuse for you not to check out Devs as soon as you can.
Devs stars Sonoya Mizuno, Nick Offerman, Alison Pill, Jin Ha, Karl Glusman, Cailee Spaeny & Stephen McKinley Henderson – available to stream now on Foxtel in Australia and on Hulu in America.