Film Review: A. I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
When an expensive and ambitious science fiction film is made by a film maker known as a giant of the genre and originally developed by another giant of the genre, science fiction fans tend to have their expectations quite high. What could possibly go wrong? A plenty, if we are to judge by A. I. Artificial Intelligence, 2001 film directed by Steven Spielberg.
The film is based on “Supertoys Last All Summer Long”, 1969 short story by Brian W. Aldiss. The plot is set in relatively near future, when the global warming cause Earth’s ice caps to melt and raise sea levels, flooding most of the coastal cities, including New York. Due to loss of arable lands, governments have introduced tight population control and massive use of robots in order to humans that spend too much resources. In time, robots have advanced to the levels that they can work the most complex tasks, and the Cybertronics Corporation, led by Professor Allen Hobby (played by William Hurt), have developed a human-looking robots that are going to be used by childless couples. Henry Swinton (played by Sam Robards) and his wife Monica (played by Frances O’Connor) are one such couple; their son Martin (played by Jake Thomas) suffers from incurable disease and is kept in suspended animation. They reluctantly agree to receive one of Cybertronics products – David (played by Haley Joel Osment), robot that looks a boy and is programmed to love his “mother”. At first his life in the family is idyllic, but when Martin gets miraculously cured and brought back to his family, Swintons prefer their biological child to robot. After series of incidents Monica decides to get rid of David, but doesn’t have the heart to return it to corporation that would destroy it. David is instead left in the woods. There he begins his quest back to the mother in a hope that she would return his feelings. On this difficult and, at times, apocalyptic journey, David receives help from Gigolo Joe (played by Jude Law), robot specialised for providing sexual services to women.
Work on A. I. was started more than decade earlier by Stanley Kubrick, director famous for 2001: A Space Odyssey and A Clockwork Orange, two science fiction classics. Partly because of his perfectionism and partly because special effects, even with newly introduced CGI technology, weren’t up to his high standards, Kubrick in late 1990s switched his attention to less demanding Eyes Wide Shut. In the meantime, Kubrick was discussing the project with his friend Spielberg and two film makers ultimately concluded that Spielberg was more suitable for the project. In the end, this doomed the film, making it into ultimately unsatisfying compromise between two very different artistic visions. Kubrick’s cold and misanthropic view of the world was difficult to reconcile with Spielberg’s infantile sentimentalism. Opposing creative imperatives made A. I. look distorted and confusing, although there are some sections of the film that are better than others. The first third of the film, that takes place in Swinton’s home is the most Kubrickian, most consistent and most effective. But as soon we leave the world in which robotic love confronts human imperfection and insensitivity, we are faced with combination of Pinocchio story and “political correctness” brought to audience with subtlety of a bull in china shop. The worst is the finale in which Spielberg delivers confusing and unconvincing deus ex machina ending that would leave many in the audience disappointed.
Some of the structural issues of the film are somewhat compensated with good work by diverse cast. Australian actress Frances O’Connor delivers much stronger performance than Osment and Law playing robots. A. I. is attractive in strictly visual sense, with images of futuristic Rogue City being clearly inspired by Blade Runner. Even more impressive is flooded New York City, although Spielberg had terrible misfortune of include images of still-standing WTC Towers in a film released few months before 9/11, making his film obsolete almost instantly. Although A. I. asked some interesting ethics questions about nature and limits of humanity, Spielberg apparently wasn’t the right person to answer them.
RATING: 4/10 (+)
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