"A.I." -- Ambitious Yet Ambiguous by Homer Yen (c) 2001
In a movie season when most audiences show a propensity to see light-hearted or action-packed fare, a film like "A.I." is a puzzling offering. The Steven Spielberg/Stanley Kubrick collaboration about a sophisticated robot boy programmed to love is an intellectually demanding film that requires far more brain power than most summer moviegoers want to muster. Stately paced, it is an incredibly ambitious effort that inspires discussion over its message, contemplation over its perplexities, and debate over its cryptic ending.
"A.I." is a triptych of curiosity, wonderment, and ultimately, ambiguity. It is a futuristic story about a 'mecha' named David (Haley Joel Osment who impressively strikes a balance between robotic woodenness and human neediness). Mechas are highly sophisticated androids that resemble humans in both appearance and emotion. However, none had ever been programmed to love -- until now.
The production of David creates a fascinating quandary. For, even if he could love a family, would the family love him back? And would this technology somehow threaten the frail structure upon which humanity currently sits? This intriguing question, however, is only explored to a certain degree.
"A.I." veers during its second act, becoming an adventure film. David is ultimately rejected by his family. However, the adoptive mother (Frances O'Connor) does not return David to his creators for destruction, but instead sets him free. David, who still loves and may now even dream, sets off on a personal quest that borrows elements from Pinocchio and The Wizard of Oz.
The journey is absolutely wondrous. He meets boon friend, Gigolo Joe (Jude Law), a sleek-looking mecha (thanks to aggressive makeup) that oozes with lusty optimism. He possesses a sultry charm and his performance is balletic and memorable. And the places they travel to are jaw-droppingly stunning from the carnal Rouge City and its festive air of hedonism to the post-apocalyptic landscape of a now-submerged Manhattan in which skyscrapers jut up like reeds in a swamp.
In the final act, however, the audience may feel as confused as they are awed by the spectacular visualizations of the future. It is in this final segment that David tries to find that elusive bridge between machine and humanity. But the film doesn't offer any concrete resolutions. Perhaps this is because in science fiction, much of what's seen is a product of the filmmaker's imagination, and so too are we left to conjure an interpretation of the final scenes. What any of us eventually come up with will surely be debatable.
Yet, a sense of wonderment may have been the entire purpose of this film. There are dozens of scenes that emphasize hand-holding. This may remind you of when you were young and your parent took you for a walk to the zoo or some other exotic location (at least by a 10-year old's standards). You would look around in amazement although you frequently didn't understand where you were. But your parent would continue to point things out to your delight. And it seems that the filmmaker's are perhaps doing something similar but on a much grander scale. It challenges you to look at the incredible sights, to look and try to see the meaning of it all, and to look and formulate your own thoughts.
After emerging from this film, you'll feel the fuzzy sensation that you had seen something thought-provoking. "A.I." is undeniably audacious and technically brilliant. Yet, it should have engaged us more meaningfully, given us more answers, and been more moving. What it did was to only spark our curiosity, burden us with unanswered questions, and leave us in a trance.
Grade: B-
S: 1 out of 3 L: 0 out of 3 V: 2 out of 3
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