Although the world may have you believe otherwise it is actually incredibly easy to not willing use artificial intelligence. It may be seething it nearly everything there is but just like it is at its most primitive A.I. needs humans. Meaning that while it is being implemented into every application that exists on your phone, choosing to open an AI platform is all on you. So it should come as no surprise that this article review has not used AI to write or form its ideas. This can be seen as braggadocios to some but if that is the case than take a step back and realize that we may have hit a point where many balk at the idea of someone taking a stance against AI. The “It’s already here, get used to it” mentality is frightening for a number of political and societal reasons that do not need to be fully explored in this review but what it does show is a relationship humans create in order to excuse themselves from taking a gigantic shortcut that harms the world. That may be one of the reasons Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino decided to take on artificial intelligence in his latest film, ARTIFICIAL, or perhaps he saw, in a script written by Simon Rich, that there was a truly human story amongst the tech manipulation. A story of tragedy and human’s desire to push the boundaries to a point all before settling and allowing themselves to reap the benefit of an experiment run rampant. ARTIFICIAL directed by Guadagnino world premiered at the 64th New York Film Festival like a sledgehammer to both the film festival season and more importantly the film world in a time where the industry basks in its technological advances. A time where those advances are creating destruction with little to no guidance. The film which was produced by Amazon MGM Studios (an already depressing absorption) was eventually dropped for release and shopped around the industry. The drop isn’t hard to understand when you realize Amazon has invested over $150 billion into OpenAI so a film focused on the ins and outs of OpenAI and more so the hiring and firing of CEO Sam Altman may not have been the best fit. Or it was just another big business cop out being too afraid of risk and bowing down to the money that be. But eventually ARTIFICIAL found a home in Neon willing to both release the film (in theaters this Christmas) as well as have its premiere during a time where tech films are having a new moment. But as its own entity ARTIFICIAL is proof that even a scrappy and often misaligned screenplay can thrive under Guadagnino’s keen eye for human collapse. ARTIFICIAL feels too quickly thrown together (even with a script that’s been in the works for years) but thrives on the success of an engaging often wild ensemble all guided by the idea that this disturbing world of men boils down to something as simple as binary and that is the tech world is run by tiny little boys who want the coolest toys. But from the outside it is clear for many (and unclear for far too many) that these toys are dangerous and if we allow any temper tantrum throwing kid to have one then we might as well quit now. Our world as we know it will disappear and code will be the only thing left with not a soul in the world to corrupt.
Much like many people of his generation Ilya Sutskever is in a rush. Played by Yura Borisov, who won over audiences and earned himself an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Russian gangster with a heart of gold in “Anora,” Borisov embodies the computer scientist as the young eager man he once was who has no time waiting. Starting the film quickly in 2003 at the University of Toronto Sutskever wants to study and work under the esteemed Geoffrey Hinton (Mark Ryalance) who would one day earn the nickname “The Godfather of AI.” Played quickly and bouncing around like a Sorkin screenplay, the film rushes through some key but plot heavy moments involving the scientific partnership of Sutskever and Hinton that would eventually lead to the creation of AlexNet and the forming of their company DNNResearch. It can feel like whiplash for any non-tech head but for Guadagnino what matters most is that it allows Sutskever and Hinton to wind up at Google all before Sutskever grabs the attention of entrepreneur Sam Altman (played by Andrew Garfield). Even with its heavy ground to cover script, ARITFICAL quickly relies on the talents of its cast. Borisov even in his most curious always seems to maintain the humility needed to stay pure in a dangerous world. Rylance continues to thrive in quirky yet humble roles this time involving Hinton’s real life situation of trying to care for his cancer ridden wife all while dealing with phone robots as he desperately tries to speak to an actual human. The film isn’t being subtle about its frustration with primitive technology, nor should it be. But it is offering up a humorous but terrifying notion that while bad tech is annoying wouldn’t bigger be better? It’s a question that can’t be answered with a simple no at least not when dealing with human behavior.
Exhibiting some of this peculiar behavior is Sam Altman. Andrew Garfield reunites with Guadagnino after starring in the recent ‘After the Hunt,” a film that far too many decided was easier to forget that discuss, but this time around he seems back with a vengeance. A lanky and apparently boneless human, Garfield performs Altman like he is made of rubber sliding his way into Sutskever’s life. It is easy to quickly label “villain” onto Altman both in character and actuality especially when he aligns himself in the film with Elon Musk (Ike Barinholtz), but where Barinholtz’s performance can feel like an SNL cold open, Garfield thrives. It can be easy to make the comparison and see the irony of Garfield who starred in tech masterpiece “The Social Network” as getting to play the villain this time around versus prey, but it should be more noted that Garfield plays Altman as a spry young kid so in love with their own bullshit that it becomes unfathomable to them that not everyone is convinced on sight. But Guadagnino knows how to play this out in a more tragic sense without blind support. In an early scene (and one of the film’s best) Altman invites Sutskever to a dinner with his friends and business partners including Cooper Hoffman as Greg Brockman and Matte Kranz as Jakub Pachoki. During this scene Guadagnino both express the outright homophobia of Altman’s crew as well as Altman’s acceptance knowing in the end he is still the ringleader. It is both watching the bullies on the playground grow up to run the world as bullies as well as watching those mocked as kids get to bite back. In the end everyone suffers but Guadagnino and his DP Malik Hassan Sayeed shoot in a way that shows even the leaders are already causing themselves to become obsolete as the scenes move forward with them already fading into the background.
The film may progress at times in the same form that “The Social Network” forbade other films for the rest of history, and that is the rise and fall of tech companies. In this sense ARTIFICIAL does not offer up anything new even as it can be described as the film of “now.” There are still the same familiar beats that those excited by a Wikipedia page may find curious, but it is when Guadagnino uses all the elements at hand that the ship veers into fresher waters. Even when allowing his actors to run wild in their boy’s club Guadagnino never strays away from this operatic sense that exists in nearly every frame. The dark neon lighting contrasts with the foggy skies of San Francisco all while each outdoor background feels like a painting as it allows its characters to feel out of place because frankly they are. Both Guadagnino and Rich seem to be channeled into the idea that with every tech innovation comes the price of destruction of both nature and human’s ability to exist. Shots of street poverty are used less to frighten and more so act as an appropriate comparison to the countless lives ignored day and day out as these AI companies find ways to pave paradise and put up a data center. Then there is the haunting original score from Damon Albarn best known as frontman for Blur as well as musical creator of Gorillaz. Albarn creates not just score but intertwines original songs that are stunningly beautiful while being devastatingly authentic to the tragedy unfolding. It may be the film’s greatest strength and one that allows this rinse and repeat tale to remind us that while familiar that doesn’t make it any less important and more so dangerous.
ARTIFICIAL has a lot of ground and people to cover even when given its slightly over two hour runtime. It has to introduce us to Mira Murati, one of the only women to exist in this specific world performed by Moncia Barbaro as well as begin a long thread of distrust that would eventually lead to Altman’s quick firing and rehiring from the Board of OpenAI. Barbaro as Murati seems to bring in some form of ethics to accompany Sutskever but in the world of tech those ethics are short lived. Barbaro and Borisov are a charming match until lines are drawn and like any good Shakespeare play betrayal is the easiest weapon to wield. But even as the film finds itself in bleak moments Rich’s screenplay wants to see this as a dark comedy. Something that unfortunately does not work as well in execution. As mentioned before Barinholtz performs Musk in the same way Baldwin performs Trump. Comical for a moment all before falling into the same trappings of how much can a person truly laugh at this disgusting and immoral man that ruins the world with every breath. It is interesting to see this play out the same week Alejandro G Inarritu’s “Digger” is released and the idea of turning tragedy into entertainment is right at the forefront. It is easy to say that “Digger” walks away better with these ideas. But it can also come to Rich’s script not being all that humorous and working better when allowing its situations to unfold naturally into comedy that try to find the joke itself. A better display of humor comes in the form of a perfectly cast Cooper Koch as a handsome but almost bodyguard salesman for Altman. Koch and his salesman cronies become the only actual tough guys in a nerd filled room. It allows the film to express that these business are not only just about profitably in their hiring of salesman but the world of “finance bro” and tech conglomerate are one in the same. The bullied and the bullies now working together to destroy what is left of the classroom.
But even as the film wants to express all that is wrong with AI there has to be the question of how much the film itself offers up for its existence. Tech startup stories have become a new genre in itself of the last decade. “The Dropout, WeCrashed, Blackberry, Swiped” all seem to be telling the same story (some far better than others) and that story is being repeated so much so that we now need sequels to these stories with Sorkin’s “The Social Reckoning” hitting theaters by the time this review is released. This isn’t to say they are unwanted (most films find their audiences) but as its own thing does ARTIFICIAL feel alive enough? The answer can be a quick yes, to a point. As a human tragedy it excels in finding its best cinematic footing (hell the thing even finds its way to a wild “Vertigo” like finale that feels far more respectful in homage than most.” But it also seems so desperate to give us that laugh it thinks we want. This isn’t to say we can never laugh at pain but late in the film we are introduced to Jason Schwartzman as a mysterious doubter of all AI. A character that stays hidden in the background if you look closely but also seems to be played for laughs at first. But it is not until Schwartzman gets a scene (and almost film) stealing moment where we see the possibility of humor is merely a façade. There is little humorous about this scene because there is nothing funny about what is actually happening. Instead there is a warning. A warning that even its messenger realizes may be a few years too late. But it comes with the caveat that the tech world is moving too fast and the world is dying. That the AI’s mind is already made up (something expressed earlier on in a terrifying scene that feels almost HAL like), and it can still be fixed with simple pulling of the plug. But that is not where the true horror lies, where it exists is in the idea that these techies already know the failsafe. They know it still can be stopped with one push of a button, but as they walk by a dying ecosystem and open minds closing everyday they see that red button and choose to ignore it. That is where Guadagnino sees his horror story not just in the inventions that are overtaking but in the eyes of the creator who isn’t scared of their machine but in fact proud.
B+
ARTIFICIAL WORLD PREMIERED AT THE 64TH NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL. IT WILL BE RELEASED IN THEATERS THIS CHRISTMAS FROM NEON
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