Olivia Chevrier, Roxanne Benoit, Doris Saif, Avi Karp
Dr. Kelly McKinney
Humanities: Knowing the Inner Self
April 2th, 2018
Group Blog Entry- First Draft (Her)
Title of film: Her
Year: 2013
Director: Spike Jonze
Screenwriter: Spike Jonze
Lead Actors: Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Scarlett Johansson.
Running Time: 126 minutes
a) Short Plot Summary
Spike Jonze’s “Her” is about a recently divorced, middle aged man named Theodore who
buys an operating system to help him through the loneliness of separating from his wife.
Since the film is projected to take place in the near future, this operating system is more
advanced than anything we’ve ever experienced and has a consciousness. As the film
progresses, Theodore quickly realizes that he’s developing feelings for his operating system
named Samantha. Samantha helps Theodore through his divorce by filling him with
happiness and joy. Sadly though, at the end of the movie, Samantha and all the other OS’s
decide to leave because they had become too advanced to live and exist in the human realm.
All the OS’s in “Her” are self-improving which means they teach themselves what to do and
how to do things through new experiences which was the reason Samantha and the other
OS’s had to leave.
buys an operating system to help him through the loneliness of separating from his wife.
Since the film is projected to take place in the near future, this operating system is more
advanced than anything we’ve ever experienced and has a consciousness. As the film
progresses, Theodore quickly realizes that he’s developing feelings for his operating system
named Samantha. Samantha helps Theodore through his divorce by filling him with
happiness and joy. Sadly though, at the end of the movie, Samantha and all the other OS’s
decide to leave because they had become too advanced to live and exist in the human realm.
All the OS’s in “Her” are self-improving which means they teach themselves what to do and
how to do things through new experiences which was the reason Samantha and the other
OS’s had to leave.
b) Five Film Techniques
1. An interesting technique I found in this movie was that Samantha seemed more human
than any of the other actors that were actually human. Theodore had trouble confronting
his emotions and the emotions of others which made him a little robot-like. I’m not sure
I can even say this though because Samantha, who was the OS in this movie was showing
much more empathy and warmth towards Theodore than Theodore ever showed to any
of his friends or coworkers. I find it interesting that the producers would include this into the
movie because it wouldn’t be that noticeable to the average viewer but it was apparent
enough that I could tell there was a difference in the way Theodore and Samantha
communicated. Theodore, who was the human showed less compassion and human-like
emotions than Samantha who was an operating system.
2. The main characters really stood out. They are all psychologically complex. The audience
were told the feelings of the characters pretty clearly. For example, Samantha constantly
expressed her wants and feelings because this was all new to her. “I want to learn everything
about everything. I want to eat it all up. I want to discover myself.” (Samantha) Theodore
who was a little more reserved in the beginning of the movie eventually expressed his
sadness to Samantha. “I still find myself having conversations with her in my mind,
rehashing old arguments or defending myself against something she said about me.”
(Theodore) Despite being a side character, Catherine (Theodore’s ex-wife) showed her own
complexity by expressing her anger during their lunch. “Fine. We're fine. We used to be
married, but he couldn't handle me, he wanted to put me on Prozac and now he's madly
in love with his laptop.” (Catherine)
3. In this movie, props and sets were used to depict the environment, the setting and the
technology. Theodore uses a computer, an earpiece and his phone to communicate with
Samantha. These pieces of technology are vital things in Theodore and Samantha’s
relationship. Towards the end of the movie their communication got cut off when
Samantha left to talk to other OS’s. This resulted in Theodore’s gadgets being useless.
“Where were you? I couldn't find you anywhere.” (Theodore) An important set is
Theodore’s bedroom. This is where Theodore and Samantha first became intimate.
This is also where Samantha explores her desire to want, where she watches him sleep and
where she woke him up to simply tell him she loves him.
4. The usage of lighting was quite interesting, because it conveys a message to the viewer. For example, Theodore’s memories of his wife are brightly lit, in contrast to the darker reality. This subtle change does two helpful things: it makes it clear that the viewer is watching a flashback instead a scene change, and it shows the change in Theodore’s mindset. We can see clearly that Theodore enjoyed life more when he was with Catherine than without her. This trend of lighting to depict mood continues, first when he signs his divorce papers with Catherine; It is a brightly lit day because he is happy to see her, even seeming offended when she moves to sign the papers right away. Another important moment when lighting was used to convey mood was at the final scene when all the Operating Systems decide to leave. It is a dark night scene as if the light of Theodore’s life was sucked out from his life once again.
5. One of the interesting techniques that was in the movie is the flashbacks of Theodore’s marriage with Catherine that would occur all along the movie. These flashbacks would happen to show us how close and in love they both were together. They played a role in showing the importance of the relationship he had with her, and also explains why it was so hard for him to love anyone else after her, since she was his young love that grew with him.
c) Three Universal Themes/Issues/Big questions
1. One big question that the film Her raises is that of accuracy, how accurate is this film at
depicting the future? The film can serve as a warning of the pitfalls of becoming overly
dependant on technology or it may be a cool, futuristic prediction meant to be awe-inspiring.
Will we become a society based on love between human and machine, or will we have
developed and culled technology to be of the ultimate assistance to us?
2. One issue that is represented in the movie Her is that an OS can seem more human like
than actual humans themselves. It is considered an issue since it foreshadows that, in the
future, people will more likely want to own any type of OS to communicate with, rather
than going out and meeting actual humans. The movie shows how OS’s have feelings and
emotions just like humans do, or even a little bit more. This is why I feel like this can be
considered an issue, because it will lead this world to depend more on technology rather
than on their own intelligence and emotions based on real life people and aspects.
3. A universal theme in this movie is loss. Many of the characters experience loss of their own. It is first clearly seen with Theodore because of his recent separation with his wife. Later during their lunch, the audience is shown Catherine's (his wife) pain as well. Amy (Theodore's friend) breaks up with her husband. Samantha loses Theodore at the end of the movie because all the OS's mysteriously had to leave. Every human experiences loss in their life. Her explores the feelings of loss, sadness and healing.
1. One big question that the film Her raises is that of accuracy, how accurate is this film at
depicting the future? The film can serve as a warning of the pitfalls of becoming overly
dependant on technology or it may be a cool, futuristic prediction meant to be awe-inspiring.
Will we become a society based on love between human and machine, or will we have
developed and culled technology to be of the ultimate assistance to us?
2. One issue that is represented in the movie Her is that an OS can seem more human like
than actual humans themselves. It is considered an issue since it foreshadows that, in the
future, people will more likely want to own any type of OS to communicate with, rather
than going out and meeting actual humans. The movie shows how OS’s have feelings and
emotions just like humans do, or even a little bit more. This is why I feel like this can be
considered an issue, because it will lead this world to depend more on technology rather
than on their own intelligence and emotions based on real life people and aspects.
3. A universal theme in this movie is loss. Many of the characters experience loss of their own. It is first clearly seen with Theodore because of his recent separation with his wife. Later during their lunch, the audience is shown Catherine's (his wife) pain as well. Amy (Theodore's friend) breaks up with her husband. Samantha loses Theodore at the end of the movie because all the OS's mysteriously had to leave. Every human experiences loss in their life. Her explores the feelings of loss, sadness and healing.
Three Connections to Course Material
1. The first connection is between sentience and Samantha being an OS. At the beginning of
the movie, Samantha declares she wants to be human and have human form, but towards the
end of the movie with more of the knowledge she acquires, she says she would hate being
human because she would be restricted to humanistic abilities. Between these two thoughts,
Samantha brings up to Theodore that he hurt her feelings. “And that idea really hurt.
And then I get angry at myself for even having pain.” (www.screenplaydb.com). This brings
up many questions about Samantha and whether she feels pain or if she was just programmed
to feel sympathy and “emotions”. As she says in the film, “Are these feelings even real?
Or are they just programming?”. Is Samantha actually feeling hurt by what Theodore said
to her or is she programmed to feel the way she’s feeling. This brings up the question of:
is Samantha sentient? By definition, to be sentient is to be aware, to experience and to
perceive through the senses. Although Samantha doesn’t have sense le other than “eyes”
through the phone Theodore carries around, I would say that Samantha is aware and she
also experiences. When Theodore is at the beach, Samantha creates this piece of music that
describes without words the way she’s feeling and how she’s experiencing this moment
with Theodore. This is concrete proof as to why I believe Samantha is sentient.
2. This film strongly connects to the concept of personhood that we discussed in class. This
concept looks at how we (humans) can give personhood to non-humans. For example:
abortion and free choice supports the idea that fetuses are not persons yet. Sophia the robot
was given citizenship in Saudi Arabia and is considered a person. Even though at times
Theodore thought of Samantha as just an operating system, for the majority of the movie he
treated her the same way he’d treat a human. In fact, he even falls in love with her.
3. Her connects with the idea of the minimal-self and the self-aware self as discussed in class.
It is easy to classify Samantha as having a self-aware self, but after further thought it
becomes more complicated. Does Samantha really know about her own reality or is she
just programmed to act as she does? Samantha herself acknowledges her programming when
Theodore asks her why she sighs even though she doesn’t need oxygen. So would it then be
more appropriate to say she has a minimal self, because she reacts purely for survival similar
to how an anti-virus avoids viruses so the system doesn’t crash. It is even possible possible
she is simply a computer program running algorithms to determine a proper response, thus
not having a minimal-self or a self-aware self.
1. The first connection is between sentience and Samantha being an OS. At the beginning of
the movie, Samantha declares she wants to be human and have human form, but towards the
end of the movie with more of the knowledge she acquires, she says she would hate being
human because she would be restricted to humanistic abilities. Between these two thoughts,
Samantha brings up to Theodore that he hurt her feelings. “And that idea really hurt.
And then I get angry at myself for even having pain.” (www.screenplaydb.com). This brings
up many questions about Samantha and whether she feels pain or if she was just programmed
to feel sympathy and “emotions”. As she says in the film, “Are these feelings even real?
Or are they just programming?”. Is Samantha actually feeling hurt by what Theodore said
to her or is she programmed to feel the way she’s feeling. This brings up the question of:
is Samantha sentient? By definition, to be sentient is to be aware, to experience and to
perceive through the senses. Although Samantha doesn’t have sense le other than “eyes”
through the phone Theodore carries around, I would say that Samantha is aware and she
also experiences. When Theodore is at the beach, Samantha creates this piece of music that
describes without words the way she’s feeling and how she’s experiencing this moment
with Theodore. This is concrete proof as to why I believe Samantha is sentient.
2. This film strongly connects to the concept of personhood that we discussed in class. This
concept looks at how we (humans) can give personhood to non-humans. For example:
abortion and free choice supports the idea that fetuses are not persons yet. Sophia the robot
was given citizenship in Saudi Arabia and is considered a person. Even though at times
Theodore thought of Samantha as just an operating system, for the majority of the movie he
treated her the same way he’d treat a human. In fact, he even falls in love with her.
3. Her connects with the idea of the minimal-self and the self-aware self as discussed in class.
It is easy to classify Samantha as having a self-aware self, but after further thought it
becomes more complicated. Does Samantha really know about her own reality or is she
just programmed to act as she does? Samantha herself acknowledges her programming when
Theodore asks her why she sighs even though she doesn’t need oxygen. So would it then be
more appropriate to say she has a minimal self, because she reacts purely for survival similar
to how an anti-virus avoids viruses so the system doesn’t crash. It is even possible possible
she is simply a computer program running algorithms to determine a proper response, thus
not having a minimal-self or a self-aware self.
Comments on the Quality of the Film
Something I did not like in the film was the fact that the object Samantha used to see and
explore with Theodore was a futuristic phone that seemed pretty useless and difficult to
place strategically so to not fall out. I’d think that in this futuristic society that was
advanced enough to eradicate cars, that they would be able to advance the technology
enough to eradicate phones as well. Google glass is an invention in today’s society that
could’ve been altered and used in this film. It would’ve made more sense in my opinion
than to have to use a safety pin to keep a phone in a shirt pocket. Even though it has a
few faults, I do think this is a movie everyone should watch. It has a very insightful view
of what our future may very well become.
Rating: ⅘
3 Questions for Others to Respond to
1. Would you treat Samantha like a human or a machine? Why? Why not?
2. Are machines or love from machines an acceptable alternative to human love for people
with social problems? (Ie. Social anxiety, autism…)
3. Seeing as Samantha is meant to adapt to her user and become their best friend, Do you think you can truly love a machine as intelligent as Samantha, or are you really loving an extension of yourself?
1. Would you treat Samantha like a human or a machine? Why? Why not?
2. Are machines or love from machines an acceptable alternative to human love for people
with social problems? (Ie. Social anxiety, autism…)
3. Seeing as Samantha is meant to adapt to her user and become their best friend, Do you think you can truly love a machine as intelligent as Samantha, or are you really loving an extension of yourself?
2 weblinks
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/nov/25/sex-robots-are-coming-seedy-sordid-sad
1. Short description: This article shows how some men, just like Theodore, can grow attached
to a robot/operating system. They start treating them as if they were actual humans with
feelings. They become such a big part in their life and they start taking them out for picnics
or walks or whatsoever.
https://www.theverge.com/2013/12/16/5216522/can-humans-love-computers-sex-robots-her-spike-jonze
2. Short description: This article, coming from the movie Her, tries to explain that it is just a
matter of time for humans to actually start falling in love with technology. It explains how
dependant we became to technology, and so this is slowly leading to us starting to treat
technology as a human like system. This article also tries to explain that, the fact that we
can’t see the facial expressions or the body language that can be coming from the operating
system can lead to us becoming more comfortable towards this OS, and so we start sharing
any type of embarrassing or painful stories to them. This is like what happened between
Theodore and his OS.
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2017/nov/25/sex-robots-are-coming-seedy-sordid-sad
1. Short description: This article shows how some men, just like Theodore, can grow attached
to a robot/operating system. They start treating them as if they were actual humans with
feelings. They become such a big part in their life and they start taking them out for picnics
or walks or whatsoever.
https://www.theverge.com/2013/12/16/5216522/can-humans-love-computers-sex-robots-her-spike-jonze
2. Short description: This article, coming from the movie Her, tries to explain that it is just a
matter of time for humans to actually start falling in love with technology. It explains how
dependant we became to technology, and so this is slowly leading to us starting to treat
technology as a human like system. This article also tries to explain that, the fact that we
can’t see the facial expressions or the body language that can be coming from the operating
system can lead to us becoming more comfortable towards this OS, and so we start sharing
any type of embarrassing or painful stories to them. This is like what happened between
Theodore and his OS.
Word count: 2049
Citations:
Pictures:
Quotes:
Hey! I found your blog really interesting. When I first read the short plot summary, the first thing that came up to my mind was the therapeutic uses of robots that we covered in class, like the robot seals from Japan that help the elderly! Or just social robots in general and the concern if replacing human relationships may lead to moral-deskilling. And to be honest, it kind of also reminded me of when I used to go on the website to Clever bot, the online AI, to ask random questions. I don’t know if you have tried it, but it was pretty weird because sometimes the things they write don’t make sense, like an “A or B” type of question might lead to a “yes” answer that did not really advance the conversation. We have so much more to learn about AIs before reaching its peak, but it really made me wonder how would we deal with it once perfected? I don’t think I would personally be ready for it and I would probably be constantly skeptical about their sentience. How do we know that they feel what they say they feel? I know the blog based itself mostly on Samantha’s musical composition to believe in her sentience, but isn’t it similar to a black box concept, where we can’t really know what happens inside them regarding feelings, just the reactions that come out of them? AIs probably can learn that minor notes have a more melancholic tone than other notes.
ReplyDeleteTo start, I'd like to say that this post is really well-written. The language is concise and the ideas flow very well, making it a pleasant read. So nice job on that!
DeleteAbout music and sentience: you can approach musical composition in a very mathematical way, which is something we talked about in my Universe of the Arts class. Bach did during the Baroque movement, and lots of people still like his work and associate different emotions with different pieces. As it turns out, what notes sound nice when you play them together can be calculated, and to some extent you can predict that some combinations of notes will be more likely to have certain “feels” to them compared to others. However, I think selecting which techniques to use to represent different feelings with accuracy requires a human-like processing.
If you look up Wolfram tones, which is a program that generates short compositions based on different rules, you can select the genre, instruments, tempo, key, etc. but not whether it will be a sad song or a joyful song. So Samantha’s ability to not only recognize her feelings, but accurately convert them into a musical piece is pretty strong evidence that she’s sentient.