A.I. Artificial Intelligence

Review by Jason Donner

A.I. Artificial Intelligence has many things going for it out of the gate.  Haley Joel Osmet is in it and I think this kid is awesome. It's directed by Steven Spielberg who, despite a few slip ups over the last few years, is still one of Hollywood's best directors. Finally, it was nurtured by movie master Stanley Kubrik before that bastard we all know as death laid claim to him.

Simply put, A.I. is a movie that grabs you at the beginning and holds your attention to the end with it's high-tech re-telling of Pinocchio and theme: To be truly alive, you must be loved. This is one of those life-affirming movies that just makes you feel good.

Osmet's great. Damn, this kid is awesome. The entire weight of the movie is hefted on his little shoulders and he carries it like a seasoned professional. I would love to see what this guy's going to be doing in a few years. When you watching this movie, check out the kid's eyes... he never blinks! Ever! It's creepy, but it really adds to the illusion that he's a robot.

A.I. definitely feels more like a Kubrick movie than a Spielberg movie, even if you can feel Spielberg's goody-goody touch on things.   Still, A.I. accomplishes what it set out to do and that was to question what it is to love and be loved... what it is to find our place in the world and what it is to want something so badly, that it consumes your every thought.

I've got to give credit where credit is due. Spielberg is a genius. The ad campaign for A.I. is more brilliant than the campaign for The Blair Witch Project or Batman, with its clues and payoffs hidden in print ads and the commercials and trailers... all while keeping the movie itself a secret! God bless you, Steven Spielberg! You are the man!

As far as the movie itself goes, I don't think that it ever reaches it's true potential, but all of that doesn't matter in the long run since it's captivating, haunting, and thought provoking. I think that A.I. accomplishes what it set out to do and that was to question what it is to love and be loved... what it is to find our place in the world and what it is to want something so badly, that it consumes your every thought.