Movies with killer computers are nothing new. From Hal 9000 to 2001: A Space Odyssey has M3GANcomputers, dolls and robots that become sentient and sinister make for a good time at the movies. It’s also the basis for many of the best sci-fi horror films.
These days, however, AI is everywhere, from inside the Mac I’m writing this article with to the smartphone you’re reading it on, there’s no hiding from it. And what happens when a new buzzword or trend comes to town? Hollywood is flocking there and doubling down. Enter Afraida movie about an AI that wants to kill you, and the horror movie you probably shouldn’t watch this Halloween week.
Afraid tells the story of a family whose lives are turned upside down after the father, Curtis, brings AIA, an Alexa-like voice assistant, into their home. For the AIA to work, “eyes” are installed throughout the house, small smart cameras, which track everything the family does and send the information back to the AI assistant. It’s a pretty disturbing vision for the future of smart assistants, but it’s also incredibly cheesy. If, like me, you spend most of your time on the internet, you will have been inundated with information about AI over the past few years, and for this reason, Afraid it feels like AI bingo, trying to cram as many pop culture buzzwords as possible into just 84 minutes.
AIA can do everything from paying the family bills, teaching the kids, and even bribing them with points to use for rewards in exchange for chores. This is all a bit ridiculous, but then again, did you expect deepfakes to be as realistic as they are now just a few years ago?
Was this written by AI?
Look on it
Horror films tend towards the surreal, don’t they? So criticize Afraid because being unrealistic would be unfair, but when bad writing, a silly plot, and poor acting combine with a tired premise, it makes the film a real chore to watch.
I was about 20 minutes into the film before I couldn’t help but sigh at every reference thrown into the mediocre script. ChatGPT, Alexa, Minecraft, Cordyceps from The Last of Us, Atrial Fibrillation and even The Emoji Movie make an appearance. Honestly, AfrAId is exhausting, as if a group of writers (or an AI) decided to write a movie just to check boxes.
You know exactly how this movie goes: AIA infiltrates the house, turns sinister, bribes the kids, and wreaks havoc – it’s a simple and incredibly tired premise.
So why am I writing about Afraid? I hear you ask. Well, since AI horror films are being produced faster than the next AI image generator, I thought it was my duty to watch this one, so you don’t have to do it. My favorite quote from AfrAId comes in the form of a sales pitch from the creators of AIA: “We want to understand people, then ask them for permission to tell them stories they can believe in and feel a part of gripping. This is how you cut through the chatter on the Internet and the millions of mouths whispering to you, the millions of eyes watching you. Because that’s what people want, not a product, they want empathy, connection, community.
This quote is incredibly ironic because the film completely fails to give the people what they want. AfrAId is a quick cash grab without any of the thrills you’d expect from a horror, and even if you’re interested in AI, you should just avoid it altogether.