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Wednesday, 26 September, 2001, 13:47 GMT 14:47 UK
AI: Your views
Director Steven Spielberg's much anticipated sci-fi movie AI: Artificial Intelligence has finally hit cinema screens in the UK.Disclaimer: The BBC will put up as many of your comments as possible but we cannot guarantee that all e-mails will be published. The BBC reserves the right to edit comments that are published.
Originally the project of film-maker Stanley Kubrick, Spielberg took on the ambitious project of showing a view of the future when Kubrick died.
The movie boasts the best of modern movie-making technology, a strong cast and what should be a strong story involving life-like robots and questions about what it means to be human.
BBC News Online's Keily Oakes says: "The special effects are fantastic and the film as a concept is truly amazing but it seems to have lost something in the translation to the big screen as it tries to capture audiences of all tastes. "
But what do you think? Was AI worth the wait? Is the Kubrick/Spielberg partnership a happy one? Is this an overly romantic view of the future?
How Spielberg manages to wreck every film he makes with over-sentimentality I will never know. And those saying the twin towers should be edited out are as bad as those that say footballers should foul.
AI is a wonderful fairy tale about a young boy's quest to be loved by his adopted mother. The film follows his journey through weird and wonderful visions of society, culminating in one of the most daring endings I have seen in a film.
The last 20 minutes was a very personal journey for David, in his quest to be loved by his "mother". I have never cried so much during a film, and this is a sad, tear-jerking film.
What a truly great film that will stand the test of time and will be appreciated more in the future, like Bladerunner. 10/10
The first 3/4 of the movie, although not as bad as normal bluckbusters like Moulin Rouge, was a painstaking average all-the-family movie. Only in the end it tends to get a bit surrealistic.
Bad, bad, bad! Did not expect this from one of the greatest directors of the 20th Century.
AI is a film with vision, opinion, sincere emotion, intellect and a strong cinematic personality. These characteristics, once common even in mainstream films, are now becoming rarities in contemporary cinema. AI is not a perfect film - but I've never seen perfection. Even Citizen Kane isn't "perfect".
I find it sad and frightening that audiences prefer incomprehensible, throw-away ephemera like The Matrix or Planet of the Apes (2001) to the cinema of ideas.
I had big expectations for AI, and to an extent, it fufilled them: the special effects were breathtaking and the plot both disturbing and compelling.
While I thought the characterisation was superficial and the script stunted and scrappy, it would have been a pretty decent film, had it not been for its ending, the biggest pile of pap that I've ever seen on screen.
People in the audience were positively squirming with embarassment on Spielberg's behalf: what was he thinking when he welded on that load of nonsense?
When the movie ended, I wasn't the only one laughing, a response by which I'm sure Kubrick would have been devastated. The last 20 minutes of that film are 20 minutes of my life that I want back.
Blade Runner meets ET.
This was probably the worst film I've ever seen. In fact, it was at least three of the worst films I've ever seen: with three completely different stories incompetently squashed into one far too long movie.
By the time it was over, most of my cinema were laughing out loud and I could scarcely see through tears of despair.
I think that walking out of this film, you can be forgiven for writing it up as diabolical, however, until they started poncing around with aliens it was actually very, very good. Definitely the end should have been when Law goes, and David is with the fairy, if that had been the case then this film could have been a masterpeice.
Thank God for Steven Spielberg! What a pity, though, that the world's greatest director couldn't influence any of the other "masterpieces" of the world's most overrated director.
The usual cold and unengaging Kubrickian style that is so popular with the pseudo-intellectuals is clearly evident here, but mercifully diluted by Spielberg's authentic genius.
With his usual directorial flourish he has successfully created the 21st Century's first fairytale. Haley Joel Osmont is a revelation and Jude Law has reminded the world what he is capable of after a year of atrocities.
There are many people who admitted they didn't "get it" and I'm sorry for them, but not to worry, Dude Where's My Car 2 and Road Trip 2 will, in no doubt, be along soon.
AI is an uncomfortable masterpiece for those viewers wishing to see another ET or Close Encounters from Spielberg. It is a true blending of Kubrick's detached world view and the directors need for parental warmth. It deals successfully with the central themes of their work as well as having the classic Kubrick three act structure. The Academy will not honour the film but this will also be in keeping with Kubrick's own record.
I couldn┐t make my mind up about this film. I know I enjoyed it but I am not sure whether it was thought provoking or just confusing. But since I watched it over a week ago I just can't stop thinking about it. There is one point that I really do not get - was the girl at the flesh fair mecca? And if yes, why was this not explained?
I feel that this film will be reassessed in later years as a classic. I honestly don't know what critics want, the effects are incredible and at no point hinder the storyline. The performances were excellent and I seem to be the only person living that thought the ending was incredibly moving. This is without doubt one of the three best movies Spielberg has ever made precisely because he's incorporated some of Kubrick's 'dark' vision. Critics will only respond to pretension, violence or computer graphics, how sad then that if Spielberg reads the reviews he may be driven to make Jurassic Park 4. I think people don't like the fact that it's slow moving, we live in sycophantic and cynical age, but I'm not afraid to stand up for this film. Well done Spielberg for being brave enough to make it.
The thing that really spoiled it for me (apart from the lack of a coherent plot) was some of the imagery in Manhattan. It was a little insensitive to say the least, given recent events. Seeing the twin towers was weird enough, but the lingering shots of Haley Joel Osment falling off a building? Surely a week or two delay in the UK release to edit that out wouldn't have been impossible.
Great cast... great idea... diabolical film.
The central idea is quite stunning. The finished film is utterly appalling. Particularly the last half-an-hour, which is some of the worst cinema I have ever had the misfortune to watch.
I am normally a fan of Spielberg, but this time he's got out of his depth. It would have been a different film if Kubrick had still been alive.
I really enjoyed the film. It was a fantastic fairy tale for the 21st Century. A refreshingly different look at issues of separation and loss in the modern world. I felt it was a true collaboration between Spielberg and Kubrick. Haley Joel Osment was just spellbinding, give him the Oscar.
I don't know if these people have been to see a different movie. This is one of the best films I have seen - great acting, a great script and stunning imagery. Kubrick and Spielberg, who could ask for more?
Appalling, just terrible. The story is basically interesting, but drawn out at a snails pace. The visuals are stunning but the characters, baring the teddy bear and Jude Law, are lifeless, dull uninteresting and totally lacking in any credibility.
As so many of the previously-posted comments have said, this could have been a superb film. Whether the problem lies with Kubrick's original premise, with Ian Watson's screenplay or with Spielberg's execution is debatable. It's an old story done badly, and not even the talents of Osment or Law, or the truly amazing special effects, were enough to paper over the cracks.
A fantastic movie. What more can I say. Excellent story. Superb special effects. Fantastic performances. It appears no-one else truly appreciates what a masterpiece this movie is. Don't sit there and dissect and analyse it, just absorb the story. It is spectacular.
I'm not certain we should be too hard on this film. I thought it blended Kubrick's detached, floating feel with Spielberg's emotional gravity very well. The film has an old fashioned tempo that sets it apart from some of the more modern films and while the ending seems to come and go a couple of times you end up feeling glad that it's still going - a touch indulgent perhaps but it is so visually beautiful you can't take your eyes away from the screen.
It's visually intriguing, imaginative, thought provoking, deliberately paced, superbly acted and well directed. Easily the best film of the year so far. It's not typical Spielberg fare and it's not aimed at the 'blockbuster braindead' crowd. Instead it's a mature, intelligent piece of sci-fi, and thank heavens for that.
How can anyone say this film lost the plot towards the end? It didn't have a plot to start with. One of the, if not the worst film I have ever seen. During the screening I endured, one man fainted on the front row (I can only imagine through sheer boredom) and the kids in the audience were so disinterested by the end they were throwing popcorn at themselves.
J Brewin, UK
Last 20 minutes - utter nonsense that had the audience laughing in condemnation. Spielberg - WAKE-UP!
Sentimental, long, slow, rambling, and loses its way toward the end. A disjointed film of three parts, some very good, some not so good. Jude Law was superb, but the performance from Haley Joel Osment was worth the admission fee alone. A 12-year-old carrying a film with an outstanding performance. The most technically gifted young actor ever? Deserves an Oscar.
What a load of rubbish. A true waste of talents. Spielberg created some fantastic effects, Haley Joel Osment was superb (as usual) and Jude Law was the best aspect of the film - an amusing and well acted "love robot"! But what happened to the story? To say it lost the plot would be to suggest it had one in the first place. This film was a real disappointment - it could have been great and a real piece of cinematic history. Instead, it isn't even worth getting out on video. Get out the scrabble board instead and save your money.
AI is in so many ways a mess. It is disjointed, split into three unnecessary parts, its storyline trite and profoundly simplistic. But most of all it is just very very boring. Something must have gone terribly wrong with Steven Spielberg. This is a man who does know how to entertain (Indiana Jones anybody?) but in the case of AI he needs to deal with his unhealthy obsession with childlike sentimentality, and remember to never underestimate his audience. AI is
Watchable first three quarters; marred by the sheer silliness of the final half hour. Kubrick is probably turning in his grave.
It was definitely a Kubrick film - anyone who saw Eyes Wide Shut would have recognised the trademark surrealism transforming into gobbledegook. However Spielberg also tried to make it a kids film. Result: Gangs of bored kids running riot toward the end; Muttered "Oh for God's sake.." from the adults as the ending got even more ridiculous; and quiet snores from the man on the end of the row. Two and a half hours of my life that I'll never get back.
Nice film shame they wasted the budget with what they did. Tons of better scripts dealing with same issues. Nice try.
I'm not normally for sci-fi films, but I saw AI with a few friends and thought that it could have been the best film I've ever seen.
Monica Brown, USA
I thought it was absolutely awful and completely pointless. If this film was meant to teach us or show us something I must have completely missed the lesson! What was the point of Jude Law's character? The best thing was the Teddy Bear - does anyone know when one of these will be available in the shops?
Excellent, ambitious and thought provoking for the first 90 minutes.
Unfortunately it goes downhill in the last 20 minutes, and that is why many will reject it, like in the US.
Shame that Spielberg felt he had to mess around with the script that Kubrick was keen to film. Spielberg is a talented director, but he will never be in the same league as Kubrick. Spielberg always tends to home in on sugary sentiment and the resulting mess of AI does not really surprise me.
This film is a magnificent piece of work that encompasses the very best of these two giants of the cinema. It has to be one of the most moving, thought-provoking and visionary films I have ever seen. Haley's performance was outstanding, and I eagerly await the release of the DVD which I will greatly treasure.
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