Artificial intelligence continues to captivate the imagination of science fiction fans around the world. Their fascination is satisfied in part by the bevy of AI movies that Hollywood and Bollywood release on a regular basis. These 11 movies showcase some of the greatest hits and misses with AI technology and how it could impact our world.
Back to the Future is a much-loved movie series that features some of the funnest AI audiences have witnessed to date. Marty McFly gets to experiment with artificial intelligence gadgets like hoverboards and self-lacing shoes in his travels to the future and the past.
Set in Detroit, Robocop explores the concept of humans being transformed into robots. A wounded police officer is made into a half-human, half-robot crime-fighting machine. Robocop is programmed to clean up the mean streets of Detroit. This movie is somewhat campy but still loved by AI fans.
Total Recall foretold AI decades before it actually came to fruition. Primarily, the movie showcased the possibility of self-driving cars. Perhaps inspired by the movie, companies like Google are now making cars that can drive themselves without human intervention. Self-driving cars are likely to become a reality.
The movie AI demonstrates how artificial intelligence can be used to create replacement family members. In the movie, a family who lost a child is given a child-like replacement. The family eventually abandons the robot, which only wants to become a human boy to be loved.
Ex-Machina is an AI movie involving the meeting of a programmer and the head of a major Internet company. The company leader needs the computer programmer to help test a humanoid robot. The movie was not well-received by audiences or critics, however, and is an AI miss.
The movie Her explores the question of whether or not AI can reciprocate feelings towards humans. In the well-received movie, a lonely man falls in love with an AI program. He wants to know if this AI program, voiced by a woman, can actually love him back.
2001: Space Odyssey is one of the highest acclaimed AI movies. The movie focuses on conflict between an AI program on a spacecraft and the humans who man the ship. The conflict disrupts the mission of finding monoliths that connect the past to the present.
I Robot is a popular and fun movie that explores how AI robots can serve in the world of humans. The robots in the movie have three important rules to follow, one being to never harm humans if possible, another being to preserve their own existences.
Bicentennial Man is a movie that follows the story of a robot that operates as a butler for a family. In the movie, the robot only wants to become a human. The movie explores whether or not AI creations like the robot can have human-like feelings and sentiments.
Frank and Robot is a Bollywood movie that also explores the connection between AI and humans. Frank, who is a former felon, adopts a robot son that he tries to manipulate into committing crimes. However, he eventually develops an emotional connection with his robot son, which is programmed to be a companion and assistant to Frank.
Moon pays homage to 2001: Space Odyssey. It follows a similar storyline, exploring the conflict that can arise between an AI program and humans while astronauts mine for helium-3 on the moon. The movie was not well-received by critics or by science fiction fans and is considered an AI miss.
Artificial intelligence is increasingly becoming a part of our everyday world. Inventions like self-driving cars are on the verge of hitting the market. Their creation as well as other AI gadgets are many times foretold in movies. The movies themselves can be either AI greats or failures that do not appreciate the possibilities that lie with artificial intelligence.
