The first trailer for 'Transcendence' has landed -- which stars Johnny Depp and is directed by Wally Pfister -- and it's familiar but fascinating. The film is a thriller about the possible dangers of the singularity, or at least the singularity fronted by Johnny Depp.

As any sci-fi fan will tell you, this story has been told repeatedly -- though usually those stories are about machine's achieving sentience sans the soul of a human. 'Colossus: The Forbin Project,' 'The Terminator,' 'War Games' and more have toyed with the idea of a computer becoming all powerful and then either taking over or wiping out humanity. But what's notable here, besides the impressive cast that includes Depp, Paul Bettany, Rebecca Hall, and Morgan Freeman, is the striking visual design. But it's no surprise that a film directed by Christopher Nolan's regular cinematographer looks gorgeous.

Here's the official synopsis:

Dr. Will Caster (Johnny Depp) is the foremost researcher in the field of Artificial Intelligence, working to create a sentient machine that combines the collective intelligence of everything ever known with the full range of human emotions. His highly controversial experiments have made him famous, but they have also made him the prime target of anti-technology extremists who will do whatever it takes to stop him. However, in their attempt to destroy Will, they inadvertently become the catalyst for him to succeed—to be a participant in his own transcendence. For his wife Evelyn (Rebecca Hall) and best friend Max Waters (Paul Bettany), both fellow researchers, the question is not if they can…but if they should. Their worst fears are realized as Will’s thirst for knowledge evolves into a seemingly omnipresent quest for power, to what end is unknown. The only thing that is becoming terrifyingly clear is there may be no way to stop him.

‘Transcendence’ hits theaters April 18, 2014.

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