I, Robot

Kam · 07-16-2004, 10:24 PM

I enjoyed this movie much more than Spiderman 2.

Will Smith is very good at playing this type of smart-ass detective out to save the world.

The script was nice, lots of hints of what was to come, and almost of it fit in to the movie (the one exception is the kid in the beginning).

Very good graphics and a good story.

A definite see.

kingfc22 · 07-16-2004, 10:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kam

I enjoyed this movie much more than Spiderman 2..

Just got home from the theater. As I walked out, I told my dad the same thing.

I liked how the story developed with some very interesting twists thrown in.

Some very cool action scenes and one great line by Will Smith's character. You'll know what I mean when you see the film.

Kam · 07-16-2004, 10:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Some very cool action scenes and one great line by Will Smith's character. You'll know what I mean when you see the film.

*cough*?

vex · 07-16-2004, 11:02 PM

I'm seeing it Monday

kingfc22 · 07-16-2004, 11:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kam

*cough*?

*sneeze*

timmynausea · 07-17-2004, 01:11 AM

Will Smith sucks. Hard.

Danny · 07-17-2004, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by timmynausea

Will Smith sucks. Hard.

Jada must be a lucky women then.

LionsFan10 · 07-17-2004, 02:26 AM

This "robots taking over the world" thing is getting way too played out now a days if you ask me. It started with the original Terminator back in the '80's, then movies like the Matrix and now I, Robot? I'm sure I'm missing plenty of mainstream movies that have a very similar plot but to me robots are becoming the Russian/Chinese/Communists of the 2k era you know?

Pumpy Tudors · 07-17-2004, 03:29 AM

"AW HELL NAW"

Will Smith funny.

QuikSand · 07-17-2004, 05:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LionsFan10

This "robots taking over the world" thing is getting way too played out now a days if you ask me.

You objection is . . . noted. :click:

Draft Dodger · 07-17-2004, 08:28 AM

we're going tonight. my mom's coming for the weekend, so we figured we'd take advantage of the built in babysitter and take in a movie. my wife is a big Will Smith fan, and when she heard his bare butt might be in it, that pretty much sealed the deal.

I know nothing of this movie (and don't want to), so it's nice to hear it's ok.

Taur · 07-17-2004, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LionsFan10

This "robots taking over the world" thing is getting way too played out now a days if you ask me.

Your telling me. I also hate movies that have people in them. This idea of movies and people has been done to death.

Barkeep49 · 07-17-2004, 10:28 AM

From the the NYTimes Review

Quote:

When robots finally take over the world (assuming they haven't already) we will not be able to say we weren't warned. Every year, Hollywood studios present dire scenarios in which androids, computers and artificial-intelligence applications run amok and enslave the human race, but the public never seems to get the message. Perhaps "I, Robot," a hectic, half-baked science-fiction thriller that opens today nationwide, will succeed where the "Terminator" and "Matrix" movies failed, and alert us to the grave danger that our innocent-looking toasters, vacuum cleaners, smart cars and laptop computers really pose.

clintl · 07-17-2004, 10:36 AM

I haven't seen it, but this movie sounds about as anti-Asimovian as a movie about robots could possibly get.

Surtt · 07-17-2004, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LionsFan10

This "robots taking over the world" thing is getting way too played out now a days if you ask me. It started with the original Terminator back in the '80's, then movies like the Matrix and now I, Robot? I'm sure I'm missing plenty of mainstream movies that have a very similar plot but to me robots are becoming the Russian/Chinese/Communists of the 2k era you know?

Well, considering the book was written in 1950...

bbor · 07-17-2004, 12:36 PM

Looking forward to seeing this.

the_meanstrosity · 07-17-2004, 02:41 PM

I just came back from "I, Robot" and I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, the genre is a bit overdone, but it stays close to Asimov's vision according to my friends who are big Asimov fans. It's an entertaining action movie with a bit of mystery added. Overall a quality Summer film.

Taur · 07-17-2004, 11:08 PM

WOW, I am beginning to get excited. If you can get through all the B.S. in this thread you will notice that there is not a single negative review from people that have actually seen this movie. Not even LOTR could say that.

I will definitely be catching this flick this week.

Malificent · 07-17-2004, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the_meanstrosity

I just came back from "I, Robot" and I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, the genre is a bit overdone, but it stays close to Asimov's vision according to my friends who are big Asimov fans. It's an entertaining action movie with a bit of mystery added. Overall a quality Summer film.

Really? Robots running amuck and killing people seems about as far away from Asimov's vision of robots as you can get. Hmmmm...

clintl · 07-17-2004, 11:48 PM

I'm mystified by that comment as well. Asimov was the ultimate technophile, and I don't remember anything remotely like that happening in any of the robot stories I have read. It has been a long time since I read them, so maybe I forgot, or maybe I've just been mislead about the film, but something is not adding up.

Sun Tzu · 07-17-2004, 11:53 PM

I, Sun Tzu...

what?

kingfc22 · 07-18-2004, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Malificent

Really? Robots running amuck and killing people seems about as far away from Asimov's vision of robots as you can get. Hmmmm...

Not to give anything away, but you might want to check out the film first. You might be pleasently surprised.

Malificent · 07-18-2004, 01:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kingfc22

Not to give anything away, but you might want to check out the film first. You might be pleasently surprised.

That's good to hear - I'm certainly willing to give it a shot.

cincyreds · 07-18-2004, 06:51 AM

I went to see it last night. I enjoyed the action and thought the storyline was good.

I thought that some of the language was uncalled for but that is just me.

If you haven't seen it, go see it. Highly recommended for adults. Not for kids 10 and under, which I happened to see alot of while viewing.

Next week is the Bourne Supremecy which looks great!

Draft Dodger · 07-18-2004, 07:17 AM

my wife and I went last night too. we rarely see movies in theaters (last one was ROTK) because they often are dissapointing. but this one was pretty good. I wasn't really expecting a lot, but I was pleasantly surprised.

not a great one, but a good one

the_meanstrosity · 07-18-2004, 10:35 AM

clintl and malificent,

I'm just telling you what I've heard from a couple of Asimov fans. I'm assuming it's because of the three laws and the robot named Sonny and not because of the robots taking over.

TroyF · 07-18-2004, 12:34 PM

Perhaps "I, Robot," a hectic, half-baked science-fiction thriller that opens today nationwide, will succeed where the "Terminator" and "Matrix" movies failed, and alert us to the grave danger that our innocent-looking toasters, vacuum cleaners, smart cars and laptop computers really pose.

That wasn't "Terminator" or "Matrix"

That's Maximum Overdrive.

Be afraid of the soda/pop/coke machine, be very afraid.

ISiddiqui · 07-18-2004, 05:57 PM

Uck... I can't willingly pay money for a movie which seems to have taken Asimov's great book and butchers it (at least from the trailers and what people on other forums have said about it... Asimov's robots in "I, Robot" don't go bezerk and start killing people willy-nilly). I'll wait for it on HBO, if I watch it at all.

SFL Cat · 07-18-2004, 06:08 PM

Well, it certainly isn't better than Spiderman 2 IMO, but it was worth a look. Haven't read Asimov's Robot stories since college, but it seems like the movie is more of a kit-bash of several Asimov tales...the one that stands out the most is Caves of Steel.

ageofquarrel · 07-18-2004, 07:26 PM

Took my Dad to see it while my mom is on vacation. He thought it was stupid and I thought it was ok. We should have went to see Anchorman instead. But I did see the Aliens Vs Predator preview now that looks sweet. I pray that they dont butcher it.

Schedule Junkie · 07-20-2004, 04:22 PM

As I understand it, the only reason the movie got called "I, Robot" was because the rights to the title of Asimov's book became available and the producers bought the rights and slapped the title on the film. During production the film had a completely different title (which I unfortunately forget at the moment), and in any event it was not supposed to be an actual translation of any of Asimov's books to the screen.

BillyPilgrim · 07-20-2004, 04:35 PM

Asimov's robots did take over the world. A robot was elected world controller, and five or six positronic brains were given the task of planning for the world. They ended up creating problems for people to fix to make humans feel useful, but they had effectively taken over. Since the slow takeover of humanity by robots through elections and world planning would make a boring movie, the way it was done was pretty good, I thought, and fairly close to Asimov's vision.

While I'm typing, I don't think Asimov was really all that much of a technophile. Most sci-fi, especially the stuff from the 40's and 50's, were stories of technology gone wrong/being used in a harmful manner. In one of Asimov's robot detective books, he talks about human settlements in space that took robots along, and every settlement failed (e.g. the people died) due to apathy. The humans became bored with nothing to do.

Wolfpack · 07-21-2004, 11:01 AM

Hmm...this is sounding like that Simpsons episode where the audio-animatronic robots at Itchy-and-Scratchy-Land go berzerk and rampage....

Franklinnoble · 12-15-2004, 01:07 AM

Just saw this movie tonight on DVD (I hadn't seen it in the theaters... tough to go out with a toddler in tow).

I really, really enjoyed it. The plot was solid, and the story remained suspenseful without using stupid tricks to do so. Will Smith's character was pretty well developed, although some of the other folks were left wanting (not that there was much room for any more).

I never read any of Asimov's work (yeah, I know... revoke my geek card), so I can't comment on how it related to the book of the same name. I can say that much of the plot seemed borrowed from the Terminator series (at least, some of the central points - massive artificial intelligence overtakes the world), but I think that I, Robot presented that "vision" much better than The Terminator or The Matrix (which were good movies that got milked a little too hard - for that reason, I hope I, Robot remains a stand-alone film).

The "individual/human" artificial intelligence aspect was also handled better (and with much less tedium) than movies like A.I. and Bicentennial Man. In that regard, I really liked the movie.

Overall, I'd say it's definately worth renting, for those of you who haven't seen it yet.

sterlingice · 12-15-2004, 05:30 AM

I remember enjoying it despite being in a theater with a bunch of people who wouldn't shut up. And I don't mean *whisper* *whisper* *whisper* or the occasional lean over and talk to girlfriend talking. I mean full out "BLAH BLAH BLAH. THAT ROBOT CAN'T DO THAT" and "THIS MOVIE'S STUPID" crap all throughout the entire movie. And when about half the theater told them to shut up, one of them was mouthing off "MAKE ME" and stuff like that until someone sucked up to her and asked her to be quiet. But I digress... Movie was fun, unexpectedly so, for Will Smith doing Sci-Fi/Action which he's building a decent "portfolio" of movies (Independence Day, MIB, now this).

SI

Bomber · 12-15-2004, 09:34 AM

You people have the worst taste in movies. This thread is great. Thanks for the laugh.

Honolulu_Blue · 12-15-2004, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bomber

You people have the worst taste in movies. This thread is great. Thanks for the laugh.

Haven't seen it, so can't comment on it, but I reckon you'd prefer this take on the film....

hxxp://maddox.xmission.com/c.cgi?u=bill_oreilly

IMetLyleAlzado · 12-15-2004, 11:37 AM

For those of you who have not read much or any Asimov, and in particular I, Robot, the movie has nothing at all to do with anything Asimov ever wrote.

From what I remember reading when the movie was originally released, it was a script in search of a title. The Studio owned the rights to I, Robot, and decided to combine the unrelated script with a popular series of short stories. About the only input from the book was the Three Rules of Robotics, and a couple of character names.

Bonegavel · 12-15-2004, 12:01 PM

One of science fiction's greatest traits is that it takes a look around and extrapolates. One of the results is the classic "what if" story (ie, not Star Wars and its ilk).

Right now we can look around and see how "robots" or technology are all ready ruling the world. If every piece of electronics in the world right now stopped working or gained autonomy over their human creators, the civilized world would collapse.

Saying that there are too many "robots take over" movies out is like saying there are too many love story movies or [insert genre here]. While I highly doubt that a Terminator-like A.I. could be around any time soon (we can barely keep our PCs from blue-screening), in time, replicating the complex functions of the human brain are not only possible but inevitable.

Since the micro processors debut a few decades ago, the speeds and capacities of our current processors and storage media are astounding. Not too long ago I was using a state-of-the-art 200 MHz pentium and now they are at 4 GHz.

It is interesting to see projects like MIT's COG and their attempts to create a human-like being via software and the problems they are having. Simple things that seem so natural to us are proving to be big obsticles for programmers. But, someday they will figure it out. Someday they will create these systems that may become too smart for our own good. Someday we may find ourselves waking up in a red tinted ooze with hoses attached to our bodies. Just remember to take the red pill.

Desnudo · 12-15-2004, 02:01 PM

No offense to anyone who liked this movie, but I thought the acting in it was horrendous, especially Will Smith. Some of the lines were so bad I winced. I thought the story itself had a lot of potential, but, man the lines were just so bad it ruined the movie for me. Whoever wrote the dialogue should never work again and hang their head in shame.

Bonegavel · 12-15-2004, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Desnudo

No offense to anyone who liked this movie, but I thought the acting in it was horrendous, especially Will Smith. Some of the lines were so bad I winced. I thought the story itself had a lot of potential, but, man the lines were just so bad it ruined the movie for me. Whoever wrote the dialogue should never work again and hang their head in shame.

The only trailer from the movie i've seen (or heard) was Will saying "Oh, hell no!" which came out sounding like "Ah, hay'll nah!" and that makes me insane. Reminded me of his Independence Day role which was ick-a-licious to me.

Desnudo · 12-15-2004, 02:25 PM

That's about the sum of it. Will Smith has become the Al Pacino of action heroes. "Hoo-rah!"

gstelmack · 02-20-2005, 09:51 PM

Dredging up a moderately old thread: bought the DVD a couple of weeks ago, and finally got a chance to watch this last night. In preparation, I re-read "I, Robot" a week or so ago.

The movie actually did a pretty good job of capturing the feeling of the book. Lots of tidbits from the book come through in the movie, and they did a pretty good job of modernizing it. Sure, the end is a bit overdone from an action standpoint, but still not bad at all. It strikes me as more of a "what if the first planning brain went a bit insane?" twist on it than a complete bastardization of what Asmiov wrote. Asimov even talks about a series of robots (I'd have to double-check the books, but I thought they were Nestors) that had the 3 laws modified for specific purposes, much like Sonny in the movie.

Overall, I enjoyed it, and thought it did a better job of capturing the source material than a lot of Hollywood "licenses" do. I was not expecting that.

-Mojo Jojo- · 02-20-2005, 09:59 PM

Just saw this film last week as well. It had some awful dialog (writing and delivery both), many cliche movie moments, a number of gaping plot holes... and yet was entertaining

It's a simple, fun movie.

07-17-2004, 02:26 AM	#8
LionsFan10 High School Varsity Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Detroit, MI, U.S.A	This "robots taking over the world" thing is getting way too played out now a days if you ask me. It started with the original Terminator back in the '80's, then movies like the Matrix and now I, Robot? I'm sure I'm missing plenty of mainstream movies that have a very similar plot but to me robots are becoming the Russian/Chinese/Communists of the 2k era you know? __________________ It's true, it's true.

07-17-2004, 03:29 AM	#9
Pumpy Tudors Bounty Hunter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Pittsburgh, PA	"AW HELL NAW" Will Smith funny. __________________ No, I am not Batman, and I will not repair your food processor.

07-17-2004, 08:28 AM	#11
Draft Dodger Coordinator Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Keene, NH	we're going tonight. my mom's coming for the weekend, so we figured we'd take advantage of the built in babysitter and take in a movie. my wife is a big Will Smith fan, and when she heard his bare butt might be in it, that pretty much sealed the deal. I know nothing of this movie (and don't want to), so it's nice to hear it's ok. __________________ Mile High Hockey

07-17-2004, 12:36 PM	#16
bbor Pro Starter Join Date: May 2001 Location: toronto	Looking forward to seeing this. __________________ Pumpy Tudors Now that I've cracked and made that admission, I wonder if I'm only a couple of steps away from wanting to tongue-kiss Jaromir Jagr and give Bobby Clarke a blowjob.

07-17-2004, 11:08 PM	#18
Taur High School Varsity Join Date: Jan 2002	WOW, I am beginning to get excited. If you can get through all the B.S. in this thread you will notice that there is not a single negative review from people that have actually seen this movie. Not even LOTR could say that. I will definitely be catching this flick this week. __________________ END OF LINE.....

07-16-2004, 11:02 PM	#4
vex Grizzled Veteran Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Tulsa	I'm seeing it Monday

07-17-2004, 01:11 AM	#6
timmynausea College Starter Join Date: Dec 2002	Will Smith sucks. Hard.

07-17-2004, 10:36 AM	#14
clintl College Starter Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Davis, CA	I haven't seen it, but this movie sounds about as anti-Asimovian as a movie about robots could possibly get.

07-17-2004, 02:41 PM	#17
the_meanstrosity College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2002	I just came back from "I, Robot" and I was pleasantly surprised. Yes, the genre is a bit overdone, but it stays close to Asimov's vision according to my friends who are big Asimov fans. It's an entertaining action movie with a bit of mystery added. Overall a quality Summer film.

07-17-2004, 11:48 PM	#20
clintl College Starter Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Davis, CA	I'm mystified by that comment as well. Asimov was the ultimate technophile, and I don't remember anything remotely like that happening in any of the robot stories I have read. It has been a long time since I read them, so maybe I forgot, or maybe I've just been mislead about the film, but something is not adding up.

07-17-2004, 11:53 PM	#21
Sun Tzu Pro Starter Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: In the thick of it.	I, Sun Tzu... what? __________________ I'm still here. Don't touch my fucking bacon.

07-18-2004, 06:51 AM	#24
cincyreds High School Varsity Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Mississippi	I went to see it last night. I enjoyed the action and thought the storyline was good. I thought that some of the language was uncalled for but that is just me. If you haven't seen it, go see it. Highly recommended for adults. Not for kids 10 and under, which I happened to see alot of while viewing. Next week is the Bourne Supremecy which looks great! __________________ The Dallas Cowboys!! America's Team will rise again.

07-18-2004, 07:17 AM	#25
Draft Dodger Coordinator Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Keene, NH	my wife and I went last night too. we rarely see movies in theaters (last one was ROTK) because they often are dissapointing. but this one was pretty good. I wasn't really expecting a lot, but I was pleasantly surprised. not a great one, but a good one __________________ Mile High Hockey

07-18-2004, 10:35 AM	#26
the_meanstrosity College Benchwarmer Join Date: Oct 2002	clintl and malificent, I'm just telling you what I've heard from a couple of Asimov fans. I'm assuming it's because of the three laws and the robot named Sonny and not because of the robots taking over.

07-18-2004, 12:34 PM	#27
TroyF Coordinator Join Date: Oct 2000	Perhaps "I, Robot," a hectic, half-baked science-fiction thriller that opens today nationwide, will succeed where the "Terminator" and "Matrix" movies failed, and alert us to the grave danger that our innocent-looking toasters, vacuum cleaners, smart cars and laptop computers really pose. That wasn't "Terminator" or "Matrix" That's Maximum Overdrive. Be afraid of the soda/pop/coke machine, be very afraid.

07-18-2004, 05:57 PM	#28
ISiddiqui Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Decatur, GA	Uck... I can't willingly pay money for a movie which seems to have taken Asimov's great book and butchers it (at least from the trailers and what people on other forums have said about it... Asimov's robots in "I, Robot" don't go bezerk and start killing people willy-nilly). I'll wait for it on HBO, if I watch it at all. __________________ "A prayer for the wild at heart, kept in cages" -Tennessee Williams Last edited by ISiddiqui : 07-18-2004 at 05:59 PM.

07-18-2004, 06:08 PM	#29
SFL Cat College Starter Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: South Florida	Well, it certainly isn't better than Spiderman 2 IMO, but it was worth a look. Haven't read Asimov's Robot stories since college, but it seems like the movie is more of a kit-bash of several Asimov tales...the one that stands out the most is Caves of Steel.

07-18-2004, 07:26 PM	#30
ageofquarrel H.S. Freshman Team Join Date: Feb 2004	Took my Dad to see it while my mom is on vacation. He thought it was stupid and I thought it was ok. We should have went to see Anchorman instead. But I did see the Aliens Vs Predator preview now that looks sweet. I pray that they dont butcher it.

07-20-2004, 04:22 PM	#31
Schedule Junkie n00b Join Date: Apr 2004	As I understand it, the only reason the movie got called "I, Robot" was because the rights to the title of Asimov's book became available and the producers bought the rights and slapped the title on the film. During production the film had a completely different title (which I unfortunately forget at the moment), and in any event it was not supposed to be an actual translation of any of Asimov's books to the screen. __________________ Proper schedules matter!

07-20-2004, 04:35 PM	#32
BillyPilgrim n00b Join Date: Jan 2004	Asimov's robots did take over the world. A robot was elected world controller, and five or six positronic brains were given the task of planning for the world. They ended up creating problems for people to fix to make humans feel useful, but they had effectively taken over. Since the slow takeover of humanity by robots through elections and world planning would make a boring movie, the way it was done was pretty good, I thought, and fairly close to Asimov's vision. While I'm typing, I don't think Asimov was really all that much of a technophile. Most sci-fi, especially the stuff from the 40's and 50's, were stories of technology gone wrong/being used in a harmful manner. In one of Asimov's robot detective books, he talks about human settlements in space that took robots along, and every settlement failed (e.g. the people died) due to apathy. The humans became bored with nothing to do.

07-21-2004, 11:01 AM	#33
Wolfpack Pro Rookie Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Raleigh, NC	Hmm...this is sounding like that Simpsons episode where the audio-animatronic robots at Itchy-and-Scratchy-Land go berzerk and rampage....

12-15-2004, 01:07 AM	#34
Franklinnoble Banned Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Placerville, CA	Just saw this movie tonight on DVD (I hadn't seen it in the theaters... tough to go out with a toddler in tow). I really, really enjoyed it. The plot was solid, and the story remained suspenseful without using stupid tricks to do so. Will Smith's character was pretty well developed, although some of the other folks were left wanting (not that there was much room for any more). I never read any of Asimov's work (yeah, I know... revoke my geek card), so I can't comment on how it related to the book of the same name. I can say that much of the plot seemed borrowed from the Terminator series (at least, some of the central points - massive artificial intelligence overtakes the world), but I think that I, Robot presented that "vision" much better than The Terminator or The Matrix (which were good movies that got milked a little too hard - for that reason, I hope I, Robot remains a stand-alone film). The "individual/human" artificial intelligence aspect was also handled better (and with much less tedium) than movies like A.I. and Bicentennial Man. In that regard, I really liked the movie. Overall, I'd say it's definately worth renting, for those of you who haven't seen it yet.

12-15-2004, 05:30 AM	#35
sterlingice Hall Of Famer Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Back in Houston!	I remember enjoying it despite being in a theater with a bunch of people who wouldn't shut up. And I don't mean whisper whisper whisper or the occasional lean over and talk to girlfriend talking. I mean full out "BLAH BLAH BLAH. THAT ROBOT CAN'T DO THAT" and "THIS MOVIE'S STUPID" crap all throughout the entire movie. And when about half the theater told them to shut up, one of them was mouthing off "MAKE ME" and stuff like that until someone sucked up to her and asked her to be quiet. But I digress... Movie was fun, unexpectedly so, for Will Smith doing Sci-Fi/Action which he's building a decent "portfolio" of movies (Independence Day, MIB, now this). SI __________________ Houston Hippopotami, III.3: 20th Anniversary Thread - All former HT players are encouraged to check it out! Janos: "Only America could produce an imbecile of your caliber!" Freakazoid: "That's because we make lots of things better than other people!"

12-15-2004, 09:34 AM	#36
Bomber High School Varsity Join Date: Sep 2004	You people have the worst taste in movies. This thread is great. Thanks for the laugh.

12-15-2004, 11:37 AM	#38
IMetLyleAlzado n00b Join Date: Nov 2000 Location: Colorado Springs	Movie vs the Book For those of you who have not read much or any Asimov, and in particular I, Robot, the movie has nothing at all to do with anything Asimov ever wrote. From what I remember reading when the movie was originally released, it was a script in search of a title. The Studio owned the rights to I, Robot, and decided to combine the unrelated script with a popular series of short stories. About the only input from the book was the Three Rules of Robotics, and a couple of character names.

12-15-2004, 12:01 PM	#39
Bonegavel Awaiting Further Instructions... Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Macungie, PA	One of science fiction's greatest traits is that it takes a look around and extrapolates. One of the results is the classic "what if" story (ie, not Star Wars and its ilk). Right now we can look around and see how "robots" or technology are all ready ruling the world. If every piece of electronics in the world right now stopped working or gained autonomy over their human creators, the civilized world would collapse. Saying that there are too many "robots take over" movies out is like saying there are too many love story movies or [insert genre here]. While I highly doubt that a Terminator-like A.I. could be around any time soon (we can barely keep our PCs from blue-screening), in time, replicating the complex functions of the human brain are not only possible but inevitable. Since the micro processors debut a few decades ago, the speeds and capacities of our current processors and storage media are astounding. Not too long ago I was using a state-of-the-art 200 MHz pentium and now they are at 4 GHz. It is interesting to see projects like MIT's COG and their attempts to create a human-like being via software and the problems they are having. Simple things that seem so natural to us are proving to be big obsticles for programmers. But, someday they will figure it out. Someday they will create these systems that may become too smart for our own good. Someday we may find ourselves waking up in a red tinted ooze with hoses attached to our bodies. Just remember to take the red pill.

12-15-2004, 02:01 PM	#40
Desnudo Coordinator Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Here and There	No offense to anyone who liked this movie, but I thought the acting in it was horrendous, especially Will Smith. Some of the lines were so bad I winced. I thought the story itself had a lot of potential, but, man the lines were just so bad it ruined the movie for me. Whoever wrote the dialogue should never work again and hang their head in shame.

12-15-2004, 02:25 PM	#42
Desnudo Coordinator Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Here and There	That's about the sum of it. Will Smith has become the Al Pacino of action heroes. "Hoo-rah!"

02-20-2005, 09:51 PM	#43
gstelmack Pro Starter Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Cary, NC	Dredging up a moderately old thread: bought the DVD a couple of weeks ago, and finally got a chance to watch this last night. In preparation, I re-read "I, Robot" a week or so ago. The movie actually did a pretty good job of capturing the feeling of the book. Lots of tidbits from the book come through in the movie, and they did a pretty good job of modernizing it. Sure, the end is a bit overdone from an action standpoint, but still not bad at all. It strikes me as more of a "what if the first planning brain went a bit insane?" twist on it than a complete bastardization of what Asmiov wrote. Asimov even talks about a series of robots (I'd have to double-check the books, but I thought they were Nestors) that had the 3 laws modified for specific purposes, much like Sonny in the movie. Overall, I enjoyed it, and thought it did a better job of capturing the source material than a lot of Hollywood "licenses" do. I was not expecting that. __________________ -- Greg -- Author of various FOF utilities

02-20-2005, 09:59 PM	#44
-Mojo Jojo- High School Varsity Join Date: Nov 2003	Just saw this film last week as well. It had some awful dialog (writing and delivery both), many cliche movie moments, a number of gaping plot holes... and yet was entertaining It's a simple, fun movie.

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