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Re: A.I. (obviously no OTR)


Ok,

   I was going to let this go, but this discussion seems to have expanded a 
great deal from the point when I said that I was going to let it go.

I recently saw AI with a whole mess of camp kids that I've been tramping 
around with all summer.  First of all, I was amazed that they sat all the way 
through it, as it is not real the fare that 10-15yo boys enjoy.  That aside, 
I thought the film has a lot of potential but realizes almost none of it.  
The whole beginning 30-40 minute was very intriguing, except for William 
Hurt's exposition laden monologue.  I loved the fear and joy that was mixed 
in the reactions of David's new "parents."  I loved how David struggle to fit 
in.  Then when their real son came back, I couldn't wait to see what would 
happen next.  Then the movie began to see-saw its way down hill.  The scene 
where David is left in the woods chilled me to the bone, and effectively tore 
the audience, even my boys noticed it, between their knowledge that David is 
a "thing" and his ability to love and his desire to be loved.  Then Jude 
Law's character seemed to have something to add to the whole thing, but I'm 
very uncertain as to whether Spielberg really knew what to do with him.  I 
feel that Kubrick knew exactly what he wanted, but I don't think this was it. 
 Nor did I like the Chris Rock/Robin Williams cameos.  It just seemed out of 
place and distracting.  Rather than really think about the meaning of the 
flesh fair, my kids were stuck on how hilarious it was that Chris Rock blew 
up.  prior to this, they kept looking up at the screen in increasing fright 
as the robots were destroyed.  Then after his escape and discovery of a 
further mission to the doctor who can make him real Spielberg has multiple 
opportunities to end the film with a true punch causing the audience to sit 
back and really think.  Opportunity one, David destroys himself, is ushered 
into the office and is faced with the realization that he is just one of soon 
to be millions.  End film on shot of him looking down line upon line of 
David's.  Opportunity two, David's suicide.  Another depressing option David 
jumps off of building and sinks to the bottom.  It provides a great parallel 
with the David at the bottom of the pool after "trying to kill" the real son. 
 Opportunity Three, and the best choice in my opinion, is ending after he is 
trapped under water.  It leaves the audience with the knowledge that David is 
indeed alone, but there is some solace in the fact that he has found his 
fairy.  Ending here would wliminate the need for the voice over which I feel 
really jerks the audience out of the pseudo-reality that the entire film has 
built up and leaves us in a fairy tale.  It would also eliminate the 
confusing and needless ending half-hour.  I believe they are aliens as that 
is how Spielberg referred to them in an interview in Premier or Entertainment 
Weekly, I don't remember which.  The main problem with the ending is the 
total inconsistancy of charact in David.  Throughout the entire first part, 
David is lost and confused with only two playthings as guides.  Then suddenly 
in this last section, he has somehow gained the maturity to see the value of 
even this one day spent with his mother.  BTW I think the whole Teddy picking 
up hair blah blah blah was so predictible.  The minute I saw the shot with 
Teddy picking up the hair, I said that it would be important later.  This was 
supported by the kids in the row behind me that said, "The hair that Teddy 
has."  As soon as the alien was giving the speech about if they only had a 
piece of DNA yadda yadda.  I mean, if a ten year-old can see it coming, then 
I'm not sure if spielberg can really surprise us anymore.  All in all, I 
thought that it touched on some good issues, but they were never fleshed out 
in addition to emerging from the confused jumble of Spielbrick.

I'm sure that I'll get a ton of e-mails telling me about how mean I am, etc, 
but I'm just calling 'em like I see 'em.

Steve Swanson

P.S.  I really loved the use of light in the beginning half of the film as a 
separating force.  Specifically the shot when they are eating dinner, and we 
see the parents on the right and left and David is only in the middle of  
that ring shaped light.  Later at some point, Spielberg changes the meaning 
of light to a positive/illuminating force.
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