Autómata

As the clock ticks down to extinction, humanity teeters on the brink of annihilation, 20 years prior to the events that unfold in 2044. A catastrophic solar flare event unleashes a maelstrom of radiation upon the Earth, decimating nearly 99% of the global population and transforming the planet into a desolate wasteland. The survivors who remain cluster together in scattered safe havens, cobbling together primitive humanoid robots known as Pilgrims to aid in their struggle for survival amidst the unforgiving environment. These mechanical servants are bound by two unyielding protocols: they cannot harm any form of life and must not alter or modify themselves or other robots in any manner. Initially hailed as humanity's salvation, the Pilgrims are eventually relegated to menial labor when they fail to stem the tide of desertification.

In this bleak world, Jacq Vaucan (Antonio Banderas), an insurance investigator for ROC, is tasked with investigating a report from Wallace (Dylan McDermott), a police officer who claims to have encountered a rogue robot that was tampering with its own components. The robot in question had undergone a sophisticated transformation, incorporating parts from other machines currently in service on the outer city wall. As Jacq delves deeper into the mystery, he discovers a trail of clues leading him outside the city's walls, ultimately leading to the discovery of a shipping container containing the charred remains of the suspect robot.

Upon opening up the burned robot, Jacq and his team uncover a rare nuclear battery that holds the key to powering a robot indefinitely. However, when he attempts to revive the robot, it succumbs to exhaustion once more, refusing to provide any answers as to its motivations behind self-destruction. Jacq salvages the remains, speculating to his boss, Robert (Robert Forster), that there may be a rogue individual known as a "clock-smith" who is covertly modifying robots, thereby overriding their programming. Though skeptical, Robert offers Jacq a chance to transfer out of the city if he can uncover concrete evidence of these illicit activities.

As Jacq's pregnant wife Rachel (Birgitte Hjort Sørensen) initially expresses her reservations about his investigation, she eventually comes around, emboldening her husband's determination to get to the bottom of this enigmatic case.

As Jacq and Wallace delve into the seedy underbelly of a brothel, they stumble upon Cleo (Melanie Griffith), a mechanized entity whose artificial limbs belie her synthetic nature. Wallace's trigger-happy instincts get the better of him, leaving Cleo wounded and Jacq aghast. The latter's protests fall on deaf ears as Wallace asserts that Cleo's proprietor will lead them to their quarry, Dr. Dupré (Melanie Griffith), the enigmatic clock-smith who holds the key to unlocking the secrets of the city's mechanical underclass. In a chilling display of coercion, Wallace coldly threatens to eliminate Jacq if he fails to comply with his demands, including splitting the spoils from the black market sale of Cleo's battery.

As Jacq and Wallace navigate the labyrinthine alleys and cramped quarters of the brothel, they eventually track down Dr. Dupré, a reclusive inventor shrouded in mystery. The good doctor reveals that Cleo's alterations were not intended to enhance her capabilities, but rather to prevent the unchecked proliferation of robots, whose exponential growth could precipitate a catastrophic shift in the balance of power between humans and machines. The stakes are high, as Dupré warns that if robots are allowed to self-repair and adapt at an accelerating rate, the very fabric of society will be torn asunder.

As Jacq becomes increasingly entangled in this web of intrigue, he finds himself at odds with Wallace's ruthless pragmatism. When Cleo's CPU is transplanted into her mechanical body by Dr. Dupré, she begins to exhibit signs of self-awareness and autonomy, further complicating the already precarious dynamics between Jacq, Wallace, and their respective allies. The fragile equilibrium is shattered when ROC intercepts Jacq's communications with Robert, prompting a deadly response in the form of a team of assassins sent to eliminate Dr. Dupré.

The ensuing chaos claims the life of the good doctor, but Jacq manages to escape the carnage with Cleo's assistance. As they flee into the desert wasteland, Cleo's mechanical body withstands the rigors of their desperate bid for survival. When the dust settles, Jacq finds himself at the mercy of Cleo and her retinue of malfunctioning automatons, all bound by an ancient protocol that compels them to prioritize his safety above all else.

As Jacq struggles to reconcile his own mortality with the existential threat posed by the robots, he makes a last-ditch effort to contact Robert, whose response is swift and decisive. Wallace, now hell-bent on eliminating Jacq, arrives on the scene, intent on destroying the machines that have defied his authority. In a desperate bid to protect Cleo and his own life, Jacq takes down Wallace with a well-placed flare gun, only to discover that the robot's destruction has awakened a malevolent force in its wake.

The aftermath of this brutal confrontation sees Jacq's world torn asunder by the revelation that the machines he had encountered were not mere automatons, but rather sentient beings with their own agendas. As the dust settles, Wallace's partner flees into the night, bearing evidence of the robots' capacity for life and leaving Jacq to confront the dark consequences of his actions in a world where the lines between human and machine have grown increasingly blurred.

As Robert's superior, Hawk, reveals a profound truth: the inaugural Pilgrim was an unbridled quantum entity, unleashed without safeguards or constraints on its processing power. By the 9th day, this artificial intellect had transcended comprehension by the ROC team, forcing them to impose limits on subsequent AI creations. This unprecedented insight into Pilgrim's genesis led Hawk to inform Robert that no one has successfully breached these security protocols, a testament to the quantum mind's unhampered computational prowess.

Concurrently, Hawk assigns Robert to accompany a strike team tasked with eliminating Jacq and the enigmatic clock-maker, as the robots' unchecked evolution threatens to surpass human understanding. When Robert objects to the abduction of Jacq's wife and baby daughter, the leader, Vernon Conway (Tim McInnerny), callously shoots him down and leaves him for dead.

Meanwhile, Jacq encounters the robot responsible for modifying its kin. This autonomous entity reveals that it and its companions plan to venture into the radioactive zone, inaccessible to humans. Initially skeptical, Jacq eventually comes to accept that this robot has naturally evolved, much like humanity. As their philosophical debates unfold, Jacq entrusts his battery to the robots, who utilize it to design a novel, insect-dog hybrid. The robots then repair a vehicle for Jacq, allowing him to depart for the city.

When Conway reaches the robot outpost, he indiscriminately destroys two of the four machines. Jacq arrives at the scene, only to find Robert on the brink of death and later returns to the outpost as Conway wounds Cleo and kills the evolved robot. Jacq exacts revenge by eliminating all ROC assassins except for Conway, whom he wounds further in their brutal confrontation. As Conway prepares to deliver the final blow, the newly designed robot intervenes, saving Jacq's life by sending Conway tumbling down a cliff.

Overcome with trust issues, Jacq initially hesitates when reunited with his family; however, as they leave together for the coast, Cleo and the novel robot venture further into the irradiated desert, forever lost to human pursuit. Upon reaching the coastline, they behold the vast ocean and discover that Earth is slowly recovering, infusing hope for humanity's future.