A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2002)BACK COVER SYNOPSIS: Director Steven Spielberg's A.I. propels you into a future of astounding technology and adventure beyond the human imagination in an extrordinary film the New York Observer hails as a "masterpiece" and Rolling Stone applauds as "unmistakably the work of a real filmmaker." In a future world of runaway global warming and awe-inspiring scientific advances, humans share every aspect of their lives with sophisticated companion robots called Mecchas. But when an advanced prototype robot child named David (Haley Joel Osment) is programmed to show unconditional love, his human family isn't prepared for the consequences. Suddenly, David is on his own in a strange and dangerous world. Befriended by a streetwise Meccha (Jude Law), David embarks on a spectacular quest to discover the startling secret of his own identity. Celebrated as a film "filled with visual wonders and astonishing special effects..." (Roger Ebert, Ebert & Roeper), A.I. Artificial Intelligence is a visionary motion picture triumph!
FILM REVIEW: "A.I. Artificial Intelligence" is in many ways a very bold film that tackles some big themes. It's wonderfully done, but at the same time, there's something a little odd about it; A.I. started life as a Stanley Kubrick film and his influences are evident throughout the film. However, he passed the baton to Steven Spielberg to make the film, a quest Spielberg was eager to pursue especially after Kubrick died as a tribute to his friend. So instead of getting a Kubrick film, you get a half-Kubrick-half-Spielberg film which makes for some puzzling viewing because their sensibilities seem diametrically opposed, a fact which is quite evident when watching A.I. You can almost see how far Kubrick would have gone in certain sequences, whereas with the same sequences Spielberg holds back, perhaps not as comfortable to go in those areas. Nevertheless, A.I. is an intriguing film whose themes and visuals will hold your interest throughout; however, if you don't like Spielberg sentimentality, you better not watch this film because although it's not as heaped on as some of his earlier works, he does manage to pour some of it on the material, especially in the last twenty minutes.
A.I. opens at the headquarters of Cybertronics, a leading maker of robots. The company's CEO, Professor Hobby (William Hurt), in a speech to his team, proposes to build a robot child that can love and dream. It is here that the first moral dilemma is posed and one that ultimately encompasses the entire film; if you can make a robot child to love, what is it's owner's responsibility to love it back? I'm not sure that this question is ever answered in the film; in Kubrick's world: probably not, in Spielberg's more fantasy-naive notions: yes. This is ultimately where A.I. becomes a little unstuck because there seems to be two different dialogues going through the film and one really can't be surprised by this because the film is ultimately the vision of two different directors. Spielberg in his attempt to maintain Kubrick's vision of the film has ultimately held the film back simply because he doesn't share the same sensibility as Kubrick. On the other hand, he has to be commended for actually bringing the film to the screen at all because despite this one obvious flaw, A.I. is compelling viewing and still manages to impart some strong ideas.
We are then introduced to David, played to perfection by Haley Joel Osmont. This genius kid actor got all of the robotic nuances down pat; one example is that he never blinks in the film (watch carefully!). He is placed with a couple whose child is terminally ill in a coma and over time he is accepted by them, particularly Monica (Frances O'Connor) whose feeling are torn between David and her son. Trouble starts when their son Martin (Jake Thomas) is miraculously revived. When he comes home, he begins a rivalry with David which ultimately leads to his expulsion from the family. In a heart-wrenching scene which is all Spielberg, Monica takes David out to a forest and dumps him there, leaving him to fend for himself. All of these sequences with the family are pure Spielberg and you can see here why Kubrick wanted him to make the film. It's extremely well done and highlights Spielberg's talents with kids. He has to be given points for the creation of the supertoy Teddy who becomes David's companion; a walking, talking teddy bear. He's very cute but never annoying and complements David very nicely. From this point on, David resolves to find the 'blue fairy', a magical being he heard from the Pinocchio story, in order for her to make a real boy so Monica will love him. From this point on, the Pinocchio analogies come in to full swing.
The film then changes dramatically; we are introduced to Gigolo Joe (Jude Law), a pleasure robot who is trying to make his latest female client feel at ease before getting 'down to the business'. This is where you feel the Kubrick influence, to the point where you can imagine he would have filmed them having sex, but Spielberg holds back, cutting at the very moment this would have happened. The film becomes progressively darker when it moves to the flesh fare sequences of angry humans destroying robots, thus fuelling their hatred for all things mechanical. The film is now totally different, and seems very Kubrick like and to Spielberg's credit he does manage to keep most of that darkness on screen.
David and Joe then proceed to Rouge City, a spectacular visual triumph made by the special effects team. The shot where they drive through big fish like structures is absolutely spectacular, as is the rendering of the city itself. Here they talk to Dr Know (voiced by Robin Williams) who informs them to go the ends of the Earth to find the Blue Fairy. The ends of the Earth turn out to be a submerged Manhattan (again, another absolutely spectacular visual). David reunites with Professor Hobby but is dismayed when he finds out that he will be mass-produced for other families, thus not making him unique any more.
David eventually goes to the depths of the ocean in a helicopter and finds what he thinks is the blue fairy, but in doing so, gets trapped there, seemingly forever. If it were Kubrick, he probably would have ended the film there, given its downbeat tone, not to mention it taps in to that human condition of aspiring to things we ultimately cannot realise. However, Spielberg has tacked on an extra twenty minutes which are purely his own. 2,000 years pass and the world is in a new ice age and humans are extinct; aliens studying Earth pull David out from the ice and begin to converse with him about humans. They learn of his desire to gain Monica's love and in a warm moment, they manage to recreate her for one day, and David finally gets her love. He then goes to sleep forever, his quest fulfilled. This ending ultimately gives a very sweet and uplifting ending that Spielberg has to take credit for and is probably opposite to what Kubrick would have done. Whether you like it or not is up to you, but the sentiment is poured on here.
A.I. is an absolute visual feast. Every single shot in this film is beautiful to look at, from the more intimate moments between the characters to the big special effects shots; all of it gels together brilliantly making for one of the most unique visual feasts you're likely to experience. On this point alone the film is worth watching. However, unlike a lot of special effects films, A.I. does impart a level of intelligence rarely found in such films, as we go on David's journey to gain Monica's love and in the process find out a little bit about what makes humans behave the way they do.
The only problem with A.I. as I've already mentioned is that it's representative of two directors' visions. If you like Kubrick, you won't like Spielberg's take on the material. If you like Spielberg, you won't like the Kubrick influences. This culminates in a film that doesn't really sit in either world, but if you're willing to look past that then you will be in for an intriguing experience.
A.I. is a memorable film; it won't be to everyone's tastes, but it's definitely a worthwhile viewing experience.
TECHNICAL REVIEW: The transfer of this film is first rate in every department. The picture is very rich and colourful, and clean. There is notable film grain but anyone who knows how Spielberg shoots will let you know that that's the way he likes it so if you see grainy spots in the picture, that's not the fault of the transfer. Over time though you don't really notice this little quirk. The audio transfer is excellent, making full use of the surround sound system, from the pounding moments in the flesh fare sequences, to the more eerie and magical qualities displayed later in the film when David encounters the aliens who are trying to piece together humanity's existence. Overall, it's a fabulous transfer.
EXTRAS REVIEW: Steven Spielberg doesn't like doing audio commentaries on his DVDs, which is a shame because it would be great to here how a legendary filmmaker puts his films together. Nevertheless, we still get a great extras package which is broadly broken up in to a number of making-of featurettes. Perhaps the most fascinating is the "Bringing AI to the screen" featurette where Spielberg discusses his relationship to Kubrick and how Kubrick always had a vested interest in bringing Spielberg on as a director for the film. Other featurettes focus on acting (with a great overview of Haley Joel Osment), music, sound, special effects, and other behind the scenes footage. There are also trailers, storyboards, drawings, and production photos, all of which add nicely to the mix. A very nice collection of extras.
BOTTOM LINE: Worth having in the collection.
FILM RATING: 8/10 -- EXTRAS RATING: 7.5/10 -- OVERALL DVD RATING: 8/10
Todd Murphy <br />
http://www.allaboutmovies.net
Last updated: 2010-02-08 21:11:39 by user01
