The very real paranoia of man being replaced by machine was tackled here with something not seen since Asimov...heart. Yes, heart. Unlike the malevolent machines from Terminator or The Matrix sagas, we see machines that want only to "live". Jacq Vaucan is caught in the very real, and yet surreal, dilemma of a man who at the surface seems to have to choose between his species, and the machines. And yet, the only choice is life. The symbol of the turtle recurs throughout the film, as a n avatar of what, exactly? Maybe the city,like a shell from the hostile world? The notions in a human mind, sheltered from a new reality? The image of Jacq, revolted by the automatons scavenging a fallen comrade {"vultures! They're vultures!"), only to be doing the same thing himself to a fellow human (while crying over the horrific irony of it), will stick with me for a long time. This was an excellent movie, a true science fiction work. For all of the best science fiction is, at it's heart, a study in humanity. Oh, and I liked the homage to HAL 9000 at the end. The music box playing "Daisy, daisy..." Bravo!
daisy daisy turtle vultures
46 out of 66 found this helpful