A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001): Thoughts! Questions!
What does it mean to be a “real” boy?
We live in the post-ChatGPT era. Artificial intelligence no longer looms on the horizon, but rather immediately infiltrates and complicates what we once (like, 1.5 years ago) would have viewed as uniquely human processes and interactions. The Turing test – in short, an assessment of whether a robot can pass as a person – might no longer be relevant. Once far-out questions for scholars and writers are now mundane: What is artificial intelligence? And how should I use it?
Let this story provide a space to imagine, think, and feel your way through these questions and more.
Anyway, hello, welcome, and thank you for stopping by. For new visitors, here’s what this situation is all about:
With Savor the View, we’ll watch, think, and talk about movies and the things that matter. A special welcome and thanks to our regular crew!
Each Monday, I share brief, spoiler-free remarks and questions to frame viewing a movie on our own.
Each Thursday, I share post-viewing questions to poke at the issues, ideas, quandaries, inspirations...whatever...that movie might have summoned (spoilers, ahoy!).
Paid subscribers can talk it all out in a weekly Discussion Thread.
General thoughts?
The universal/general
What is “real” and what is “artificial?” How do we know? What are the boundaries between the two categories?
Do human beings ever owe anything to their mechanical creations? If so, what? And if so, when does this obligation kick-in?
How does commodification (for example, the ability to sell an artificial being to a human being) affect or complicate these kinds of ethical questions?
The specific/unique
What do we think of the mecha in this movie? Are they portrayed coherently and consistently? What does it mean to be mecha?
What do we think of the human beings in this movie? What does it mean to be human?
How weird is it for Martin (Jake Thomas) to come home to his parents, only to find he has a robot-pseudo-brother? Is there a scenario in which this can be considered not-weird?
The viewer is always present
What do you make of the ending? Or perhaps parse out the stages of the ending – from arrival at Cybertronics headquarters to the final scene – and consider them each on their own terms?
When David (Haley Joel Osment – impeccable performance) laments, “My brain is falling out,” all I could think was “Same.” I mean, am I right?
Worthwhile Reads
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/11189723/AI-revisited-a-misunderstood-classic.html
https://www.avclub.com/in-a-i-steven-spielberg-and-stanley-kubrick-turned-1823639106
Next Week’s Movie?
For May – the month of “Thresholds and Horizons” – Blade Runner (1982)
Why subscribe?
Paid subscribers can gather round their screens and share their thoughts on each week's Discussion Thread and get full access to the publication archives.
Subscribe any which way to get full access to the newsletter.