| Hollywood seems to have its own belief system | | | | explored by such movies as The Perfect Woman, |
| which proposes some basic laws of life. Among | | | | Mannequin and Stepford Wives (amongst the |
| them are: Bad guys always die in the end. | | | | more wholesome examples anyway). An idea |
| Terrorists are always foreigners. Before battle, | | | | that offers hope for all those geeky science |
| you must always make a rousing speech. If you | | | | fiction fans who can't get a date but might be |
| are a woman, it sometimes necessary during an | | | | able to invent one. Also probably has appeal for |
| exciting chase for most of your clothes to fall off. | | | | the control freaks out there.c) Androids with AI |
| And so on. | | | | want to be real. You might call it the Pinocchio |
| Artificial Intelligence shown in movies is no | | | | syndrome. It's a theme that runs through a |
| exception to the rule. Below are some of the | | | | number of movies, notably in A.I., a movie about |
| basic tenets of AI in Hollywood movies:a) | | | | an android boy David who craves the love of his |
| Computers will one day rise up against us. A belief | | | | adoptive human mommy. Unwanted by the rest |
| borne possibly of technological superstition and our | | | | of the family, at one point he does actually make |
| underlying fear of technology. Demonstrated in old | | | | a wish to become a real boy. Actually, the theme |
| favorites like Terminator, where artificially | | | | is not just a wish to be real, but to be on equal |
| intelligent machines decide to rebel against their | | | | footing with humans. In the cult classic Blade |
| creators and wage a nuclear war against humans. | | | | Runner, slave humanoids called replicants have |
| The Kubrick film, 2001: A Space Odyssey is | | | | been given a 4-year lifespan by their human |
| another example of an AI being confronting | | | | creators. They escape to earth illegally and try to |
| humanity. A spaceship crew is trapped with an AI | | | | get their time to live extended. |
| computer on board which tries to kill them off | | | | What all these ideas about AI have in common is |
| slowly. And on a related theme: that all tangible | | | | a love-hate relationship between humans and |
| pieces of technology from your home computer | | | | technology. We love technology, we fear it, and |
| to the kitchen toaster are somehow in cahoots | | | | we think it has a life of its own. Hollywood uses |
| and will one day unite against us.b) We can create | | | | both our love and fear of technology to give rise |
| AI subjects who will fall in love with us. A myth | | | | to lovable characters like A.I.'s David and unfeeling |
| that has plagued us from the Greeks to the | | | | bad guys to destroy like the Terminator. |
| geeks. Back in ancient Greek times, legend had it | | | | Ultimately, the plotlines about AI are not used just |
| that Pygmalion, a talented sculptor and known | | | | as a playground for what ifs but as a way to |
| hater of women, created the perfect woman out | | | | define what it means to be human, as opposed to |
| of ivory and was granted his wish to make her | | | | what it doesn't. |
| real by Aphrodite. A popular Hollywood plotline | | | | |