Stephen Needs a Reality Check

Every now and then I (yes, even I), come up with something at work that's just plain lame. When I do, some helpful co-worker always comes along to ask me "what were you thinking?" It's integral to the production of good work that someone gives you a reality check once in a while. Farida and I do the same thing for each other's writing. But I guess when you're a famous director, people don't correct your mistakes any more.

Don't get me wrong, A.I is worth seeing. Spielberg does tons of things with this movie that no one else could get away with. It's a gorgeous futuristic fairy tale with a touch of the horror of the Brothers Grimm. Sadly, the plot left me feeling cheated from time to time. Spielberg seems to feel compelled to save his characters from nasty situations in the lamest possible ways.

SPOILER ALERT

But what really marred the movie, what really left us saying "and here's another thing that made no sense" all the way home is the ending. All I can say to Stephen Spielberg is "If you can't explain it, don't explain it!" Take a look at 2001: A Space Odyssey". The bizarre ending stands on it's own. It doesn't try to explain the whole movie and, most of all, it's relatively short. In A.I., the narrator has to suddenly appear and bail you out for the last 30 minutes.

I'm not saying that A.I. isn't worth seeing. It is. Everyone puts on a good performance, there's lots of neat scenery, and even some though-provoking science fiction, but a masterpeice it certainly ain't.

PS. Evan was murdured.