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Two things went through my mind as I exited the movie theatre today. One: There is no way that this is a Steven Spielberg film. Two: I have just wasted two and a half hours of my life to watch what has to be one of the worst movies of the year. Stanley Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining) began developing A.I. back in 1983, but, just before his death, asked his friend Spielberg (Schindler's List, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Saving Private Ryan) to take over the direction. Spielberg wanted this film to be a tribute to Kubrick, which partly explains why A.I. doesn't have the Spielberg "magic touch", but it does not explain why it is so awful. I have enjoyed most of Kubrick's work, including 1999's controversial Eyes Wide Shut, but Spielberg's A.I. hardly respects Kubrick's style, although it does fit the dehumanization theme found in many of his movies. In case you don't know, the plot is centered around David (played by Haley Joel Osment), a child android that is not only equipped with artificial intelligence, but – for the first time – with real feelings, such as love. This innovation will force David to face many obstacles in his journey to be accepted as he sees himself: a real boy.
I was expecting to see a slow-paced but intelligent drama, with a bit of science-fiction imbedded – much like 2001: A Space Odyssey – since that was the style used in the teaser trailers. The first scenes of A.I. deliver exactly that, as we witness Professor Hobby, played by William Hurt (Smoke, The Big Chill, Kiss of the Spider Woman), challenge a team of scientists and engineers into building the first Mecha (mechanical being) capable of love. The following scenes, where David is introduced into a family whose only son is cryogenically frozen until he can be cured of his disease, are equally interesting. The movie then starts to take a completely different turn. An event (I don't want to reveal too much) forces David to leave his family and venture into the world, where a lot of Orgas (organic beings) distrust the Mechas and even seek to eliminate them. Sounds familiar? It's basically Blade Runner meets Bicentennial Man.
We are then introduced to Gigolo Joe, who is one of the most interesting characters in the movie. Joe, played amazingly by the talented Jude Law (Gattaca, Enemy at the Gates, The Talented Mr. Ripley), is an android prostitute who finds himself in a jam and consequently has to run from the police. Law really makes us believe that he is an android, partly due to his wonderful acting, but also due to the great work of the hair and makeup artists. Unfortunately, from the point when David meets Joe, we're no longer watching an intelligent dramatic film, but rather a pointless and sensationalistic in-your-face action/sci-fi movie that bears a strong resemblance to The Running Man (and I don't mean that as a compliment). We have to endure a myriad of violent and sadistic scenes where the Mechas are tortured and destroyed by the humans. While violence and cruelty can be essential to a story (such as Spielberg's own Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan), I don't believe that the director had to resort to these tactics to deliver his message. For instance, in Blade Runner, Ridley Scott clearly lets us know that replicants are not tolerated by society, but he does so in a completely different way. One of the big problems with A.I. is that the story is going in too many directions. It lacks a more focused story line. Some scenes just seem to drag on forever and don't advance the plot at all. Of course, the movie does have a few good points as well. The parallel between A.I. and Pinocchio is interesting, as is the moral dilemma that is put forward: even if a robot could learn to love humans, could humans learn to love a robot?
A.I. also features some strong acting performances. My favorite was Jude Law's, but I also appreciated Frances O'Connor's portrayal of Monica Swinton, David's "Mother". O'Connor, who played the lead in Mansfield Park as well as Brendan Fraser's object of affection in Bedazzled, is slowly rising her way through the ranks of Hollywood. Haley Joel Osment (The Sixth Sense, Pay It Forward) has also done a fine acting job as David in the lead role. I was particularly impressed by a scene where his "love" function is "activated", in which he virtually morphs from a robot to a boy in a fraction of a second.
Another positive aspect of the movie is the art direction and the set decoration. The scenes set in Rouge City (rouge meaning red, as in "red light district") are visually interesting, but unfortunately only serve as transitions. I was equally impressed by the "Moon Rising" scene, which is quite breathtaking. I should also congratulate the special effects team for its amazing work. The effects almost go unnoticed – even though they are probably present in every scene – because they are so well integrated. They are used to support the story rather than to upstage it.
In fact, one of the best effects is the animation of the Teddy character, a supertoy teddy bear that acts both as a friend and a protector to David. Incidentally, Teddy turned out to be one of the most interesting and lovable characters of the movie. I often cared more about him than I did about David. Overall, I'm sad to say that A.I. just doesn't do it for me, and, this time, it's NOT because I expected too much. The story line lacks direction, the pace is wrong and the some scenes are excessively boring and/or out of place. Still, I didn't hate the movie, but let's just say I tolerated it, at best. That's a sad statement for a Spielberg film, which makes me wonder if I would have felt the same way if Kubrick had been there to take the helm... Reviewed on June 30, 2001
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This page was last updated on: Sunday, 21-Mar-2004 16:23:03 CST © 1998-2004 Luc-Rock Paquin. All Rights Reserved. All movie images © by their respective owners. Used with permission. Before "borrowing" something from my site, please ask me. "Reel Canadian Movie Critic" logo by FranclyGraphic.com. 
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