The Flipcritic

What a fascinating film A.I. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE is. An interesting chemistry of two very distinct styles. This movie was 15-year project by my favorite director the great Stanley Kubrick (2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY). Whenever Kubrick tells a story, he tells it from a very focused cold point of view, sort of saying that if you don't see it his way, to hell with what you think. Yet his ideas and his vision are probably far beyond that of any director (yes, even Spielberg and Kurosawa). His films always see its themes from very unique, philosophical angles, with an assuredness that is unshakeable (even pretentious at times). His films force you think and never take time to explain what ideas he wishes to impart.

I would've loved to see how he might have directed this film. But even before he died two years ago, he had already asked his good friend Steven Spielberg to direct A.I. for him. Spielberg has admitted in numerous interviews that he felt he couldn't do it properly, but Kubrick told him that the film's subject and story where closer to Spielberg's sensibilities. Spielberg's style of filmmaking is almost the exact opposite of Kubrick's. He's one of the greatest manipulators of emotion in cinema (don't tell me you won't cry at E.T., SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, and SCHINDLER'S LIST, won't be in awe of CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND, and the INDIANA JONES series, and won't be frightened in JAWS). Spielberg is an artist of great yet smart sentimentality. He tugs at your emotions, while Kubrick tugs at your intellect.

After seeing A.I. I have to agree with Kubrick's decision, at least in the commercial aspect of the film. People would've never gone to see a profound storytelling style for this movie (many people just saw Kubrick's EYES WIDE SHUT for Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, or the sex scenes). Spielberg injects just the right sense of wonder for this modern day fairy tale, and pays homage to Kubrick by maintaining a sense of dread and uncertainty during certain sequences. Certainly when you see a Steven Spielberg film, you'll want to be in awe, and this film will deliver. There are several sequences in this film of pure vision. Notably the "Flesh Fair", "Rouge City", and the partly submerged "Manhattan" (especially near the end).

A.I. tells the story of a robot boy named David (Haley Joel Osment whom we all know for his splendid performance in THE SIXTH SENSE), who has been given the unique characteristic of replicating genuine human emotion. His creator Professor Hobby (William Hurt of ONE TRUE THING) assigns him to the couple of Monica and Henry Swinton (Frances O' Connor and Sam Robards respectively) who have a dying son. The couple after taking to David gets their real son back, which causes complications for the family. This causes David to be abandoned and discovered by a "love mecha" named Gigolo Joe (Jude Law of THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY), who hellps him seek what he wants.

Forget what you saw in THE SIXTH SENSE. Haley Joel Osment gives a totally different but much more convincing performance as a loving robot. What he does in this movie is so difficult for most actors, and must be even more difficult for a boy of his age. He finds the correct nuances to act out, making his character seem like a real boy, but not quite. Jude Law is equally marvelous as Gigolo Joe. His movements and stares are so precise and focused, we believe he's artificial. And at the same time, he exudes this charm that never quite spills into sensuality, making us like him even more. William Hurt is perfect as always as Professor Hobby. Somebody ought to give him some kind of award fast for always being believable.

Those who will see this movie will immediately see parallels to PINOCCHIO. Spielberg expertly weaves his creativity into making this picture a somewhat dark but insightful fairy tale. But the best thing about this movie is the questions that it raises. "What responsibility does a human have to a robot that genuinely loves?" is the core query. The Chicago Sun Times critic Roger Ebert concludes there is none, because "A robot does not genuinely love. It genuinely only seems to love. We are expert at projecting human emotions into non-human subjects, from animals to clouds to computer games, but the emotions reside only in our minds."

I can understand his viewpoint on this subject, and agree with him to a certain extent. But it isn't as simple as that when we create a tool (robot/computer or whatever you want to call it) that evolves to the extent of simulating human emotion and logic. Ebert argues that whatever emotion and logic a robot may have, it is just an extension of what we value and what makes sense to us. But I believe that despite that, robots will become our better halves, becoming better beings than humans could ever be since they truly abide by the rules of our logic and emotions. Robots I believe will become much more human than we ever could be, by becoming vessels of our best qualities, if not our consciousness. Humanity is not defined by flesh and blood, but by our sentience.

Despite the profound questions that abound in A.I., the film never really tackles them straight on. It concentrates more on the emotional aspect rather than its gist. It dwells more on David's quest than on the deep ethical questions that the film's title inspires. To be fair, this is Spielberg's film and not Kubrick's, but I wish the film would try to give insights to issues that it brings up, and it's not prepared to. It would rather explain it's own ending than itself (which I found somewhat insulting to the audience and to Kubrick). The film misses this opportunity and goes for sentiment. It works somewhat, but it keeps the film from being tougher and truly great (At least Robert Zemeckis' CONTACT tried to answer its own questions).

Nevertheless, A.I. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE is ambitious, awesome, constantly watchable, and moving. It's not as deep as most of Kubrick's films, but it's hell of a lot more intelligent and involving than most other pictures that have come out this year (and past years at that). Some may view the film as having a pessimistic outlook of where we people are going. But consider this, robots are our creations, using our logic, and may be soon using our feelings. They may not carry the human race where it wants to go, but they may carry the best of what humanity had to offer. That may be the underlying point Kubrick was trying to make. And it's a hell of a point to make with Spielberg's storytelling strokes.

Note: I won't reveal the ending or anything leading to it, because I thought it was special. But if you see this movie, let me know what you thought David's examiners were in the ending. Knowing this will give you a better appreciation of the movie's theme.

Posted by FLIPCRITIC at August 24, 2001 12:00 AM