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Bicentennial Man is a True Hidden Gem
Pros
Proves to be much more than I expected.
Cons
It took me so long to experience it.
Recommended it?
Yes
If you only relied on the TV ads as a recommendation to see Bicentennial Man you are either in for a wonderful surprise or a sorrowful disappointment. The ads lead you to believe you are going to see Robin Williams at his best, exploiting his wonderful sense of zaniness and timing to play a part made just for Williams, that of a life-size robot opposite the supporting part of the young girl he is given to as a gift.
This would have been a wholly satisfying plot within itself. But ?Bicentennial Man? blooms from this premise to a far more significant and thought-provoking piece as you view the hidden movie you never knew existed.
The premise of the movie is less of a surprise if you are already familiar with Isaac Asimov?s short story ?The Bicentennial Man?. He penned the story in 1976 to be part of a science fiction anthology that never materialized, yet it remained one of his own favorite works. I had never read it, so I was caught totally off guard by the film as it progressed, and I ended up totally satisfied with the finished product.
Luckily for us the story ended up in the hands of director Christopher Columbus and one of his favorite actors, Robin Williams. After joining forces on two previous comedies they both fell in love with the comedy and concept of Bicentennial Man and then joined forces to bring the story to the big screen.
Williams? comedic timing as well as his ability to act the dramatic are at their very best in this film. The Pepsi girl, Hallie Kate Eisenburg, makes an almost cameo appearance as the young ?Little Miss?. Sam Neil is exceptional as the nearly all-knowing father figure that treats Andrew much as we wish we could all treat our children. Embeth Davidtz surprises with a very strong supporting role as an older ?Little Miss?, and later on as her own granddaughter.
The musical score of ?Bicentennial Man? will remind you of both ?Titanic? and ?Brave Heart?. It is appropriately moving and provokes a lot of emotion at just the right time. It also curiously lures your mind to thought at just those times when the film leaves you with much to think about.
I hate giving plots away and I?ll attempt to avoid much of the same here. Williams plays an assembly-line robot, Andrew, made to assist families with mundane household duties. Sam Neil plays the patriarch that acquires the robot as a gift to his family. The family member?s attitudes fairly reflect the range of attitudes toward robots you might find out in general society. Some see him as just another household appliance. Some see him evolving into much more.
We are quick to find that Andrew?s curiosity and sense of fascination separate him from the rest of his robot family. He begins to evolve into a quite unique anomaly amongst his own kind. An anomaly that some wish to reprogram and be rid of. An anomaly that others wish to cultivate and refine.
The film revolves around Asimov?s three laws of robotics which are hilariously introduced early in the film. These in fact have long been held as the science fiction community?s moral directives which drive any civilized robot?s purpose, to serve humanity and avoid calamity.
Many questions are posed and discussed through the generations that Andrew shares this earth with. How is consciousness defined? Can robots become human? Can robots ever be accepted as human?
The passage of time in the film is dealt with subtly, spectacularly, and at the same time very practically. Yet beyond all of the futuristic visions, the science of robotics, and the philosophy of robotic consciousness, ?Bicentennial Man? is, after all, a story of humanity.
At what point does science overstep its bounds? When do the things we invent begin to erode our understanding of ourselves? You might sense in the film that at some point Andrew?s evolution came about by some divine intervention. His worldwide search to find one like himself culminates in his actually finding the son of his creator (sound like another good book you?ve read?) who in the end assists Andrew to achieve his lifelong goal.
Bicentennial man left me with very positive feelings about technology and our future because it always came back to our humanity. To the possibility of Andrew?s humanity. The implied possibility that a robot could end up having more humanity than many humans should make us stop and take a long look at ourselves. And if we do not like what we see, we must say, ?That will not do?, and then set out to make ourselves and this world a better place.
That's my epinion. Mahalo for stopping by.
This would have been a wholly satisfying plot within itself. But ?Bicentennial Man? blooms from this premise to a far more significant and thought-provoking piece as you view the hidden movie you never knew existed.
The premise of the movie is less of a surprise if you are already familiar with Isaac Asimov?s short story ?The Bicentennial Man?. He penned the story in 1976 to be part of a science fiction anthology that never materialized, yet it remained one of his own favorite works. I had never read it, so I was caught totally off guard by the film as it progressed, and I ended up totally satisfied with the finished product.
Luckily for us the story ended up in the hands of director Christopher Columbus and one of his favorite actors, Robin Williams. After joining forces on two previous comedies they both fell in love with the comedy and concept of Bicentennial Man and then joined forces to bring the story to the big screen.
Williams? comedic timing as well as his ability to act the dramatic are at their very best in this film. The Pepsi girl, Hallie Kate Eisenburg, makes an almost cameo appearance as the young ?Little Miss?. Sam Neil is exceptional as the nearly all-knowing father figure that treats Andrew much as we wish we could all treat our children. Embeth Davidtz surprises with a very strong supporting role as an older ?Little Miss?, and later on as her own granddaughter.
The musical score of ?Bicentennial Man? will remind you of both ?Titanic? and ?Brave Heart?. It is appropriately moving and provokes a lot of emotion at just the right time. It also curiously lures your mind to thought at just those times when the film leaves you with much to think about.
I hate giving plots away and I?ll attempt to avoid much of the same here. Williams plays an assembly-line robot, Andrew, made to assist families with mundane household duties. Sam Neil plays the patriarch that acquires the robot as a gift to his family. The family member?s attitudes fairly reflect the range of attitudes toward robots you might find out in general society. Some see him as just another household appliance. Some see him evolving into much more.
We are quick to find that Andrew?s curiosity and sense of fascination separate him from the rest of his robot family. He begins to evolve into a quite unique anomaly amongst his own kind. An anomaly that some wish to reprogram and be rid of. An anomaly that others wish to cultivate and refine.
The film revolves around Asimov?s three laws of robotics which are hilariously introduced early in the film. These in fact have long been held as the science fiction community?s moral directives which drive any civilized robot?s purpose, to serve humanity and avoid calamity.
Many questions are posed and discussed through the generations that Andrew shares this earth with. How is consciousness defined? Can robots become human? Can robots ever be accepted as human?
The passage of time in the film is dealt with subtly, spectacularly, and at the same time very practically. Yet beyond all of the futuristic visions, the science of robotics, and the philosophy of robotic consciousness, ?Bicentennial Man? is, after all, a story of humanity.
At what point does science overstep its bounds? When do the things we invent begin to erode our understanding of ourselves? You might sense in the film that at some point Andrew?s evolution came about by some divine intervention. His worldwide search to find one like himself culminates in his actually finding the son of his creator (sound like another good book you?ve read?) who in the end assists Andrew to achieve his lifelong goal.
Bicentennial man left me with very positive feelings about technology and our future because it always came back to our humanity. To the possibility of Andrew?s humanity. The implied possibility that a robot could end up having more humanity than many humans should make us stop and take a long look at ourselves. And if we do not like what we see, we must say, ?That will not do?, and then set out to make ourselves and this world a better place.
That's my epinion. Mahalo for stopping by.
