// SPACE.COM — SPAZIO & SCIENZA
It's been 25 years since'A.I. Artificial Intelligence', and we think this was Spielberg at the top of his sci-fi game
Two cinematic geniuses united to create one of Hollywood’s most arresting android movies
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On the occasion of its 25th anniversary today, it’s worth noting a certain sense of irony that Steven Spielberg's "A.I. Artificial Intelligence" seems oddly prescient into today’s AI-obsessed environment, especially when compared to the master director’s recently released "Disclosure Day," which sadly feels three decades late to the whole governmental cover-up UFO/UAP party.
"A.I. Artificial Intelligence's" path to the silver screen is a strange odyssey, one that includes two of the world's greatest filmmakers, a '60s short story about global warming and advanced robots, a child star hot off a horror hit, multiple production starts and stops, and even a crazy sudden death conspiracy theory.
This $75 million futuristic fairy tale was filmed in a dreamy, desaturated preternatural haze that draws audiences into its emotional depths, making "A.I." one of Spielberg’s finest films made during what can be considered his darker, more serious period of moviemaking.
Released by Warner Brothers on June 29, 2001, the mature sci-fi film attracted a diverse audience that was mesmerized by the depiction of a climate-changed world and the advancement of artificial humans called mechas. It tells the story of a couple whose child is stricken with a fatal disease, causing them to purchase David, a new model of android child programmed to love.
When their son recovers, conflict between the human and mecha becomes hazardous, and David is disposed of, where he meets up with a band of stray robots. Attuned to the fairy tale of "Pinocchio" and yearning to become a real boy, David and his A.I. toy bear Teddy embark on a strange road trip to a flooded Manhattan to find the Blue Fairy, who might grant him his wish.
Spielberg naturally brought along his faithful A-list team of Oscar-winning collaborators that included cinematographer Janusz Kaminski, editor Michael Kahn, and composer John Williams for this PG-13 sci-fi adventure whose eventual global box office take was a respectable $236 million.
Starring Haley Joel Osment, Frances O’Connor, Jude Law, Sam Robards, Brendan Gleeson, and William Hurt, "A.I." was a brilliant storm of spectacular visual effects, especially observed in the Flesh Fair set pieces where robots were forced into gladiatorial battles to entertain post-apocalyptic crowds.
Law has a lot of ribald fun with his pleasure model android called Gigolo Joe, who rescues David and brings him into his fold as they travel to meet their 'maker' in a sort of twisted "Wizard of Oz"-like journey. Robin Williams also voices an amusing interactive search engine conceived in the likeness of Albert Einstein and aptly called Dr. Know.