AfrAId movie review: Minimalist representation of a possible AI nightmare

AfrAId still

Film: AfrAId
Cast: John Cho, Katherine Waterston, Keith Carradine, Isaac Bae, Wyatt Lindner, Lukita Maxwell, Ashley Romans, Benet Curran, Havana Rose Liu
Director: Chris Weitz
Rating: 2/5
Runtime: 104 min

A topical if not gritty, imaginative or thrilling film about AI entrapment, this Chris Weitz directorial fails to make the effort count as a warning for those who become dependent on AI for their everything. There's no doubting the fact that we are living in the age of Artificial Intelligence and that more and more day-to-day routine applications are now being run through AI. Siri and Alexa are soon becoming obsolete in the age of ChatGPT and its ilk. Chris Weitz's film tries hard to imagine the perils of being a supplicant to AI but while the warning is no doubt appreciable, there's nothing in this picture to give you insight beyond what you already know.

The set-up is reasonably good with the opening sequence sounding alarm bells right from the word go. Curtis (John Cho) a high-level marketing executive who is trying to book an account for AIA, a new artificial intelligence assistant, is hesitant to do a trial of it in his home and his wife Meredith (Katherine Waterston ) is even more reluctant - what with three easily influenced kids - teen daughter Iris (Lukita Maxwell), middle son Preston (Wyatt Lindner) and the youngest Cal (Isaac Bae)rounding up their adorable loving family. But needs must, as they say, Curtis' Boss(Keith Carradine) insists and Curtis has no other choice than to allow AIA into his home.

AIA can help pay bills, order groceries, offer incentives for the children to do their chores and homework, take on bullies, resolve deep fake porn defamation issues etc. But it also doesn't take kindly to being unplugged. The minute you talk about unplugging AIA goes on the offensive and becomes evil. The interplay here is way too straightforward to amount to something much more than a cautionary tale. But the end result is a little off. Weitz and team make it seem like there's no running away from AIA. Acceptance of AIA is the only way to get on with life he opines…Of course, we already know that AI tools like AIA are fast becoming all encompassing but there will always be those who resist their dominance for one reason or another. Weitz's fictionalised narrative fails to conjure up enough tension or thrills though. The third act goes off the rails completely here. There's no logic to support what happens there.

Cho, Waterston and the actors playing the kids don't have much to do other than look pleased and then alarmed. It's a very limited expectation from actors who have proven themselves to be much more worthy.

This could have been one of the most important movies of our time but Chris Weitz's creation about technological evolution has a very limiting and unimaginative agenda. The premise is good but the scripting is not up to the mark and the editing leaves out much of the information required to join the dots for this story. We don't see the characters experiencing any serious psychological terror either. Weitz's techno-sci-fi thriller should have gradually upped its game for some scare-inducing returns. But Alas!