Sitting in Mumbai airport at 2am can lead to some truly random conversations. Discussing the plot of Short Circuit 2 led us to thinking about this article. Here’s my list of the top 5 movies featuring advanced machine learning.
- Short Circuit 2 [imdb]
“Hey laser-lips, your momma was a snow blower!”
A plucky robot who has named himself Johnny 5 returns to the screens to help build toy robots in a big city. By this point he is considered to have actual intelligence rather than artificial intelligence, however the plot of the film centres around his naivety and lack of ability to see the dark motives behind his new buddy, Oscar. We learn that intelligence can be applied anywhere, but sometimes it is the wrong place. Or right if you like stealing car stereos for “Los Locos”.
- The Matrix Revolutions [imdb]
The robots learn to balance an equation. Bet you wish you had them in your math high-school class. Also kudos to the Wachowski brothers who learnt from the machines the ability to balance the equation and released this monstrosity to even out the universe in light of the amazing first film in the trilogy.
- Blade Runner [imdb]
“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe.”
In the ultimate example of machines (see footnote) learning to emulate humanity, we struggled for 30 years to understand if Deckard was really human or a Nexus (spoilers: he is almost certainly a replicant!). It is interesting to note that when Pris and Roy are teamed up with JF Sebastian, their behaviours, aside from the occasional murder, show them to be more socially aware than their genius inventor friend.
- Wall-E [imdb]
Disney and Pixar made a movie with no dialog for the entire first half, yet it was enthralling to watch. Without saying a single word, we see a small utility robot display a full range of emotions that we can relate to. He also demonstrates other signs of life – his need for energy and rest, and his sense of purpose is divided between his prime directive of cleaning the planet, and his passion for collecting interesting objects.
- Terminator 2 [imdb]
“I know now why you cry, but it is something I can never do”
Sarah Connor tells us that “Watching John with the machine, it was suddenly so clear. The terminator, would never stop. It would never leave him, and it would never hurt him, never shout at him, or get drunk and hit him, or say it was too busy to spend time with him. It would always be there. And it would die, to protect him.” Yet John Connor teaches the deadly robot, played by the invincible ex-Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger, how to be normal in society. No Problemo. Gimme five. Hasta La Vista, baby.
Footnote – replicants aren’t really machines.
The replicants are genetic engineered and created by the Tyrell corporation with limited lifespans and specific abilities. For all intents and purposes, they are really organic robots.
