# A.I., the movie: Tremendous logistical flaw in the story line? \<\\> **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 17, 2001, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761 "2001-07-17T03:50:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![freewill39](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d2c977/32.png) [@freewill39](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freewill39)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2001, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/1 "2001-07-17T03:50:04Z")
For those who have NOT seen the movie A.I., and want to, don’t read any further. * * * First let me say, that I loved A.I. I thought it was terrific, and was affected by it on a variety of different levels. However, there is, IMHO, a definitive and fundamental error in logic regarding the way the film winds up, in the last 25 minutes or so. Here it goes: The “super-mecha” considered David to be something of a missing link, because he was around when there were still humans, so he had memories of what they were like, and there were no other modern day Mecha who had did, right? Thus part of wha they strived for was the smallest hint of what mankind was like, right? Well…if all that’s true…then who CREATED those Super Mecha’s? If their creators were human, why don’t they have any recollection of them? Let’s say their creators were ALSO Mecha…who created THEM? And so on. Down the line, someone must have been witness to human life, and if the modern Mecha had the ability to make every one of David’s memories their own (“no memory, no matter how small, was too hidden for us to find” \ ), they certainly could share those memories with each other and pass them along through the centuries, right? AND…any of the Mecha in this chain were most likely more advanced than David, and _CERTAINLY_ more advanced than Teddy, right? Well, they both remained operational for 2000 years. Surely the more advanced Mecha’s that came along after David and Teddy, or some of them, would have survived, especially if this race of Super Mecha can now dominate the Earth as they do in the end of the film. Why does no one remember the details of human life??? At one point was it lost, and why? Did someone erase 400 years of their memory or something?? ``` - Freewill39. ``` ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2001, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/2 "2001-07-17T05:15:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by freewill39 \* > **For those who have NOT seen the movie A.I., and want to, don’t read any further.** > > * * * > > First let me say, that I loved A.I. I thought it was terrific, and was affected by it on a variety of different levels. However, there is, IMHO, a definitive and fundamental error in logic regarding the way the film winds up, in the last 25 minutes or so. Here it goes: > > The “super-mecha” considered David to be something of a missing link, because he was around when there were still humans, so he had memories of what they were like, and there were no other modern day Mecha who had did, right? Thus part of wha they strived for was the smallest hint of what mankind was like, right? Well…if all that’s true…then who CREATED those Super Mecha’s? If their creators were human, why don’t they have any recollection of them? Let’s say their creators were ALSO Mecha…who created THEM? And so on. Down the line, someone must have been witness to human life, and if the modern Mecha had the ability to make every one of David’s memories their own (“no memory, no matter how small, was too hidden for us to find” \ ), they certainly could share those memories with each other and pass them along through the centuries, right? > > AND…any of the Mecha in this chain were most likely more advanced than David, and _CERTAINLY_ more advanced than Teddy, right? Well, they both remained operational for 2000 years. Surely the more advanced Mecha’s that came along after David and Teddy, or some of them, would have survived, especially if this race of Super Mecha can now dominate the Earth as they do in the end of the film. Why does no one remember the details of human life??? At one point was it lost, and why? Did someone erase 400 years of their memory or something?? > > ``` > - Freewill39. ** > > ``` **Moderator’s note:** Deleted duplicate thread; it double posted for some reason. Also closed bolding tag. There’s a very similar thread open in IMHO at the moment–[Do you HATE the ending of](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=78198). That thread title is less specific and the topic, as phrased, may spread to encompass other movies. I’m leaving both open for the moment and we’ll see what develops. Just FYI there’s a very similar discussion going on elsewhere. (And another one in the Pit, for that matter.) For the record, I thought all three referred to “A **1** ” and wondered why folks were getting so upset over steak sauce. TVeblen, for IMHO ---
**Author:** ![Tars\_Tarkas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Tars\_Tarkas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tars_Tarkas)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2001, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/3 "2001-07-17T14:35:20Z")
I think the big flaw in the film is the Transformers don’t show up and fight! The Decepticons should have slagged that planet, then Optimus Prime and the Autobots could have come, and fought, and with Speilberg directing, that would have been the best battle ever! Oh, and i haven’t seen the movie, but if that happens, let me know! ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [July 17, 2001, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/4 "2001-07-17T21:40:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tars Tarkas \* > \*\*I think the big flaw in the film is the Transformers don’t show up and fight! The Decepticons should have slagged that planet, then Optimus Prime and the Autobots could have come, and fought, and with Speilberg directing, that would have been the best battle ever! > \*\* Yeah, but I suspect that the lions would’ve united to form Voltron, and once that blazing sword is swingin free through the breeze, the only thing to do is call Xena. ---
**Author:** ![DaveRaver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daveraver/32/1078_2.png) [@DaveRaver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveRaver)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/5 "2001-07-18T01:56:33Z")
In answer to the op’s question, the creatures at the end of A.I. were alien anthropologists, not advanced mecha. Therefore, they had no earthly connection to humans at all, and needed David to make a connection. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/6 "2001-07-18T02:03:55Z")
That’s not the way I read it DaveRanger (and I have Roger Ebert on my side, so nyah!). If they were alien anthropologists I could see why they would think David an important find, being the earliest emotional robot known but why would they consider humans key to learning the purpose of the universe (or whatever their exact quote was)? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/7 "2001-07-18T02:06:08Z")
1. They were aliens. Both Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy have said that this was not open to debate and wasn’t supposed to be unclear. 2. This has been discussed ad infitum in the other A.I. threads. 3. **Freewill** , welcome to the board. One thing, though. Use the search engine that is available on the top of the screen(if you click search) to search for popular topics that might have been discussed recently. You will find a lot if you try A.I. including many on this specific topic. ---
**Author:** ![Epimetheus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c4cdca/32.png) [@Epimetheus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Epimetheus)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/8 "2001-07-18T02:34:39Z")
Do you have a cite showing they said it? In the thread I started on it, it was shown quite astutely that they were, in fact, Mecas. The forshadowing of David in the elevator at the begining of the film having the same shape, the way they read Davids Databanks, etc. It seems to make a more logical and sequential sense for them to be Mecas. In fact I thought they were Aliens too, and hated the ending of the movie for this reason. Once It was revealed to me that they were in fact advanced Mecas, the movie made more sense and seemed less farsicle. It would be distressing indeed to find out that they were indeed aliens. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/9 "2001-07-18T04:48:05Z")
I can’t say that I looked too closely for official comment, but the general consensus in the various usenet groups I’ve is that they are mechas. I’m not saying Spieldberg didn’t say it but I haven’t run across it yet. (And if he did say it, he shouldn’t have because if those things are aliens then the ending really does suck.) ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 9:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/10 "2001-07-18T09:35:20Z")
> [@](#): > > In answer to the op’s question, the creatures at the end of A.I. were alien anthropologists… You’ve just been listening to _Amused To Death_, haven’t you? _And when they found our shadows Grouped around the TV sets They ran down every lead They repeated every test They checked out all the data on their lists And then the alien anthropologists Admitted they were still perplexed But on eliminating every other reason For our sad demise They logged the explanation left This species has amused itself to death_ Sorry… I’m tired, and the usage of the phrase “alien anthropologists” just brought that whole thing to me. ---
**Author:** ![freewill39](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d2c977/32.png) [@freewill39](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freewill39)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/11 "2001-07-18T12:51:47Z")
A Roger Water’s fan!!! A man after my own heart. (-: “What God wants…God gets, God help us all…” ---
**Author:** ![pldennison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/9fc29f/32.png) [@pldennison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pldennison)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/12 "2001-07-18T13:13:14Z")
[A review](http://www.guerilla-film.com/ai/scriptment.htm) of Kubrick’s original script treatment for the movie (developed in part with Ian Watson, who received a story credit on _A.I._) explicitly states: > [@](#): > > The following part of the movie takes place thousands of years later, where the human race is nothing but a vague memory in the mind of the new > populators of the earth, the robots.During an archeological mission into what was once Tin City, these robots find David, and repare his energy battery to help David recuperate. These robots have great interest in David, regarding him as a link to a past they barely know anything about. Kathleen Kennedy, producer of the film, has also explicitly stated that they are mechas, although I can’t find an online cite. It was pretty clear to me, though–the introductory out-of-focus shot of David, and the constant references to the skinny humanoid figure in the Cybertronics logo, were giveaways. It might have been prudent for Spielberg’s production designer, though, to say, “Steve, these look a lot like your CE3K aliens . . .” ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 18, 2001, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/13 "2001-07-18T23:23:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mahaloth \* > \*\*1. They were aliens. Both Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy have said that this was not open to debate and wasn’t supposed to be unclear. > > \*\* **I’m so sorry!!! I meant to say, “They are robots”, not aliens. No, I no longer have the cite where Spielberg and Kennedy said that it wasn’t supposed to be open to debate, but I promise I read it. I repeat, they are ROBOTS, not aliens.** Sorry, my fault. Didn’t mean to give anyone a heart attack. ---
**Author:** ![DaveRaver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daveraver/32/1078_2.png) [@DaveRaver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaveRaver)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2001, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/14 "2001-07-19T02:40:24Z")
Yup, I had Roger Waters in mind when I used the phrase “alien anthropologists”. No one picked up on my phrase “No Earthly Connection” - - an obscure Rick Wakeman album from the 70’s! The concensus here certainly seems to be that they were advanced mecha (why was Spielberg afraid to use the word “robots”?) but I still say that there is not enough clarity in the movie to show that they weren’t aliens. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2001, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/15 "2001-07-19T02:47:33Z")
Just saw A.I. Heres my $.02 Contemporary Mechas cannot download/upload/transfer memory from their memory banks. Umpteenth Generation Mechas 2000 years later ARE capable of sharing memory, AND can access the memories of earlier models. ---
**Author:** ![freewill39](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d2c977/32.png) [@freewill39](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freewill39)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2001, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/16 "2001-07-19T19:32:20Z")
"Contemporary Mechas cannot download/upload/transfer memory from their memory banks. " “Umpteenth Generation Mechas 2000 years later ARE capable of sharing memory, AND can access the memories of earlier models.” * * * ``` Ok...so, where are the earlier models who created the Umpteenth Mechas? Could they not relate in words what humans were like, if nothing else? Why is there no thread whatsoever? Why is there no connection at all? Also...what about the human hair strands that lasted for 2000 years with no decomposition, and looked like brand new? Any comments on that? ``` ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2001, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/17 "2001-07-19T23:11:40Z")
> [@](#): > > Ok…so, where are the earlier models who created the Umpteenth Mechas? Presumably, over the course of 2000 years, they found ways to get themselves destroyed (Note: I realize that David managed to stay functional after 2000 years… perhaps his inactivity helped with this). Either that, or as the Mechas improved themselves, they recycled previous models for spare parts, and eventually the memories got deleted. A third possibility is that a previous generation of Mechas held a sort of hatred towards humans, and deleted most of the knowledge about them. ---
**Author:** ![easy\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb8c5e/32.png) [@easy\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easy_e)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2001, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-i-the-movie-tremendous-logistical-flaw-in-the-story-line-spoiler-alert/72761/18 "2001-07-20T07:08:28Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Epimetheus \* > > The forshadowing of David in the elevator at the begining of the film having the same shape, the way they read Davids Databanks, etc. It seems to make a more logical and sequential sense for them to be Mecas. \*\* There’s also the foreshadowing by Gigolo Joe, who says something along the lines of “They made us too clever, too many, too soon. They hate us because they know that when the end comes, we will be all that’s left.”