A.I.: Upgrade Your Son Today | Reading Between the Reels 145

For this installment in our Steven Spielberg series, we unpack “A.I.” — the feel-good family story about replacing your dead child with an upgraded model. We’re talking abandoned robot children, existential loneliness, uncanny smiles, fairy tale symbolism, and why this movie somehow feels like both a warm hug and a psychological evaluation. Also: the tonal whiplash of watching a sweet robot boy wander through a world that absolutely deserves several lawsuits. It’s sentimental. It’s disturbing. It’s beautiful. It’s two filmmaking legends stitched together like cinematic Frankenstein. Some assembly required.