Even
if singularity is not yet nigh, our understanding of consciousness is significantly
evolving. The demarcation between humanity and computers will likely become
increasingly porous. In fact, a handyman has apparently created a breakthrough
AI utilizing organic matter. Unfortunately, he happens to be the super of a
building right smack in the middle of the worst urban pathologies imaginable in
Ethan Shaftel’s short film Flesh Computer
(trailer
here), which
screened during the 2014 Fantasia International Film Festival.
Like
Mike Cahill’s Another Earth, Flesh directly uses the words of an
expert commentator to explain its underlying concepts. On paper, this sounds
rather dry (or perhaps something of a cheat), but in practice it works
surprisingly well. After all, the power of ideas is always compelling. In the
case of Flesh, it is NYU’s David
Chalmers who is heard via a neighbor’s television explaining our evolving
conception of consciousness.
Frankly,
Chalmers is the best part of Flesh
(although production designer Nathalie Ruiz and art director Alec Joler earn
credit for the giving the film a highly distinctive look). It is very cool how
Shaftel’s screenplay addresses such heady concepts, but the narrative follows a
pretty standard arc. You also really have to wonder why the Handyman would
build such an advanced construct in such a beleaguered environment. There are
also suggestions of greater integration between the human and the machine that frustratingly
remain unexplained.
