A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)

USA 146m, Colour
Director: Steven Spielberg; Cast: Haley Joel Osment, Frances O’Connor, Jude Law, Sam Robards, Jake Thomas, William Hurt

A.I. is a captivating darkly themed science-fiction film about the development of a cybernetic boy known as David who is programmed with emotions and given to a grieving family whose dying biological son is being kept in suspended animation. As David, Haley Joel Osment delivers an endearing, although at times, an unnerving portrayal of the unblinking Pinocchio-inspired child robot – which remains one of the most memorable child performances in cinema history. Despite criticisms that A.I. suffers from an over-abundance of sentimentality, particularly with regard to the film’s conclusion, I would argue that the emotional ending was a perfect fit with the intent of what remains a dark and largely under appreciated movie (Klaus Ming May 2010).