DVD Review HTF REVIEW: "A.I. Artificial Intelligence" (1 Viewer)

[BrentPollard]

quote:
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So, why in a society so waste concious, would we see dump trucks just emptying their cargo in the middle of some forest?
Because humanity hates mechas. Sure, they rely on mechas, but they still hate them.
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It may also have been bait to lure the mechas into one area to be captured for the circus.

 

[Richard Kim]

Then of course there is the father, who seems to go out of his way to hate david, in spite of it being his bright idea in the first place

It's the old adage: sometimes wanting something is better than getting it.

Well, Henry's dislike of David is intended to bring home the point of the Oedipal theme that prevades the film; The son who develops intimacy with his mother and competes with the father for her affections. Also, Henry only starts to mistrust David when his actions put Monica and Martin's lives in jeopardy (although it wasn't entirely his fault).

 

[Geoffrey_A]

I always thought the dumptrucks dumping mecha parts were run by the flesh fair promoters, dumping parts as bait to capture renegade mechas for their shows.
These parts were what was left of mechas destroyed in previous shows, and this was probably not the ordinary way typical outmoded models were disposed of.
Note that the arrival of the fleshfair "mechanappers" seemed to coincide with the dumping.

Now that makes sense. I hadn't consider that, thanks for the insight

 

[wally]

If you had an easy life, you'll probably see it as a boring movie that "sucks".

Come on Aurel, a little sanctimonious don’t you think?
I do like your sig file pic and HT though

 

[Kwang Suh]

Quote:

So do you think it makes more sense that a waste-conscious society would make something like that then? Going by your logic, the towers in Signapore shouldn't exist because absolutely no-one on Earth is ever going to build a mega-tower again.
I find it somewhat odd that you can't accept the empirical evidence in the movie. You must accept the actions of the characters. You must accept the imagery that was shown to you. You can't say "I can't believe city planners going for a design like that, therefore I will not accept the gigantic face in the movie". That's like saying "I can't believe people eat so much they become land whales, therefore they cannot exist".
Let me give you another example of something a lot of us hate but almost all of us use: Microsoft Windows. We say one thing, but do another, right?
Now if you didn't like the movie because it just didn't work for you, that's great.

 

[Geoffrey_A]

Now if you didn't like the movie because it just didn't work for you, that's great.

I didn't like the movie for a number of reasons, one being that it didn't work for me. I just feel the whole project was poorly executed. The script needed a lot of work, and Spielberg needed to think much harder about how he was going to make it. Trying to emulate Kubrick has not worked for him. I've given my evidence to support my views of the film. You don't have to agree with me about the film. You can overlook the problems that I see in the film. But to deny the problems are there, well, your perogative I guess.

 

[Patrick Sun]

This film works better when you watch it allegorically, not literally.

This was a mecha fable for other mechas. The narration is done from the point of view of one of the advanced mechas.

Any gaps in storyline were interpolated by the mechas when re-telling this story of the last link to their creators.

 

[Ken_McAlinden]

David,
Here is the TV movie you mentioned (Prototype):
Link Removed
Regards,

 

[Dave H]

I finally got around to renting this tonight. While the movie and concept had potential, I didn't think the movie succeeded to being something I would watch again. I kept watching, waiting for it to "take off" and it never did. But, I did kind of like the concept of it all.

On a different note, this is one of the worst transfers I have seen on a new film.

 

[Tim RH]

Oh, the ignorance of others... :frowning:

 

[Dave H]

Oh, the ignorance of others...

Oh, yes, I am so ignorant. I apologize for myself and the countless others who didn't like this film and who disagree with your OPINION.

I suggest you read the rules of the forum before trying to insult an individual and trying to "soften" it with a sad face.

 

[DarrenA]

DaveH,

This is what he was referring to...

On a different note, this is one of the worst transfers I have seen on a new film.

Actually it is a great transfer of a film that theatrically exhibited a ton of film grain and had an extremely high contrast level. For those of us who saw this film in the theater, this DVD is just about as good as it can be to replicating the same look.

 

[Jim A. Banville]

Okay, how about designs? What's with the mouths leading to Rouge City. Again, in a society so waste concious, why would they build giant arthouse, x-rated heads with roads running into their mouths? What purpose does it serve? What city planner or council would decide this was worth taxpayer money?

Rouge City was most likely built and managed with "private money". Ever been to Disney World?

 

[BobH]

Great movies make it easy for one to suspend disbelief so that the primary ideas can be presented in dialogue. In my opinion, Spielberg did a great job of allowing me to suspend disbelief so that Kubrick's ideas could be presented for me to think about. This movie will be long cherished after most others are forgotten. The details discussed here won't even come up because they aren't at the heart of the movie or the point of what Kubrick and Spielberg presented.

 

[Lou Sytsma]

This film works better when you watch it allegorically, not literally. This was a mecha fable for other mechas. The narration is done from the point of view of one of the advanced mechas.

Unfortunately the audience for this movie was not mechas but people.

IMHO a better approach would have been for a human character to tag along with Osmont. As it was done with Gigolo Joe - another mecha - there was never a human viewpoint present for a frame of reference for the audience.

 

[Ken_McAlinden]

Unfortunately the audience for this movie was not mechas but people.
IMHO a better approach would have been for a human character to tag along with Osmont. As it was done with Gigolo Joe - another mecha - there was never a human viewpoint present for a frame of reference for the audience.

I happen to disagree to with both the quote cited by Lou and his rebuttal. The film can "work" well on a variety of levels which is what makes it difficult but rewarding, and the human viewpoint is present in the storytelling. One example: By investing machines with a desire to understand their creators as well as an ability to love "perfectly", the audience is put in the position of looking into a mirror of humanity in an interestingly subjective, although perhaps uncomfortable, way.
To borrow the song title from the post-Smokey Robinson Miracles, David and Gigolo Joe are both "love machines", and as such are interesting sides to the same coin.
Regards,

 

[Eric_E]

I'm digging out this thread in the hopes that someone might be able to explain something to me about the DVD release of A.I. I was thinking of ordering this from Columbia House (for $9.98), but their website isn't very specific about the details of the DVD they're offering for sale. It says:

"Standard & Widescreen, Special Edition, Closed Caption, Enhanced, Trailer"

I was under the impression that the standard and widescreen were two separate releases, each with their own two-disc version. There's also no mention of the DVD for sale by Columbia House being two discs. Does anybody know whether Columbia House sells different versions of DVDs than the usual retail outlets? I don't want to get something less than I'm expecting here. Thanks for any input anyone has to offer.

 

[Adam_Garris]

Eric Eickhorst,
As far as I know, there were seperate releases. I'm not sure about Columbia House; however, for around the same price you can get it from here for $9.35 w/free shipping.

 

[Eric_E]

Thanks, Adam, I'd done a little bit of looking around at prices for it online but somehow forgot to check DDD. I'd much rather order it from them and be sure I'm getting exactly what I want.