An android endeavors to become human as he gradually acquires emotions.An android endeavors to become human as he gradually acquires emotions.An android endeavors to become human as he gradually acquires emotions.
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 2 wins & 8 nominations total
- Little Miss - 7 Yrs. Old
- (as Hallie Kate Eisenberg)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAdam Bryant, who appears as the android head, has been Robin Williams' stand-in for more than a dozen films.
- GoofsWhen Andrew and Portia are playing chess in the park, the chess board is at first very unusually set up as most of Portia's pieces are on the board side closer to Andrew and vice versa. In the next moment, the board has changed completely.
- Quotes
President Marjorie Bota: Andrew Martin
Andrew Martin: I've always tried to make sense of things. There must be some reason I am as I am. As you can see, Madame Chairman, I am no longer immortal.
President Marjorie Bota: You have arranged to die?
Andrew Martin: In a sense I have. I am growing old, my body is deteriorating, and like all of you, will eventually cease to function. As a robot, I could have lived forever. But I tell you all today, I would rather die a man, than live for all eternity a machine.
President Marjorie Bota: Why do you want this?
Andrew Martin: To be acknowledged for who and what I am, no more, no less. Not for acclaim, not for approval, but, the simple truth of that recognition. This has been the elemental drive of my existence, and it must be achieved, if I am to live or die with dignity.
President Marjorie Bota: Mister Martin, what you are asking for is extremely complex and controversial. It will not be an easy decision. I must ask for your patience while I take the necessary time to make a determination of this extremely delicate matter.
Andrew Martin: And I await your decision, Madame Chairman, thank-you for your patience.
[turns to Portia and whispers]
Andrew Martin: I tried.
- Alternate versionsIn the TV channel for the UK certain lines and particular scene is cut. The line where Andrew mentions about breasts is cut along with the scene where he says can you fix this piece of s..t. The scene that was shortened was the part where Rupert and Andrew were talking about sex.
- ConnectionsEdited into Comic Relief Zero (2013)
- SoundtracksThen You Look at Me
Music by James Horner
Lyrics by Will Jennings
Performed by Céline Dion
Produced by James Horner and Simon Franglen
Courtesy of SSO Music/Sony Music Entertainment (Canada) Inc.
The first section of the film is, by far, its weakest. In 2005, the wealthy Martin family receives delivery of a brand new servant android (Robin Williams) who, almost immediately, begins to display a remarkable range of human emotions and interests. Thus, we are set up for yet another in a long line of predictable tales (i.e. `Harry and the Hendersons,' `Stuart Little') in which a family comes to adopt a strange, not-quite-human creature, welcoming him in as one of their own. Indeed, in the film's early stages, there is no shortage of either bland humor or drippy sentimentality as Andrew, the android, ingratiates himself with all but one of the Martin household. The `wit' in the film consists, basically, of endless jokes about how Andrew takes all idioms at literal face value, a running gag that is, finally, as unoriginal as it is wearying.
Then, however, just as we are about to give up hope in it, the movie becomes more intriguing. Rather than staying within the context of the present life of this one family, the screenplay begins to move ahead in time, exploring Andrew's gradual growth toward total humanity, while the initial family grows up and eventually dies off. Actually, despite how one may feel about the film itself, one must admire its boldness and audacity, for it is not often that, in a film billed as a mass audience comedy, all the main characters pass on to their heavenly reward at one point or another but, then again, how many comedies span a two hundred year time period? `Bicentennial Man' obviously has more on its mind than mere fish-out-of-water buffoonery, as it becomes an often-elegiac reflection on the transience of life, the meaning of being human and the search for societal acceptance. The mood of the film is remarkably hushed and reflective at times, which again might make it slow going for the modern mass audience more conditioned to a faster pace and giddier tone, especially in a Robin Williams film (though, of late, his films have certainly been taking on a much more somber quality, vide `What Dreams may Come,' `Patch Adams' and `Jakob the Liar'). There are times when `Bicentennial Man' seems overly impressed with its own self-importance, yet one appreciates its refusal to settle for the easy path of cheap comedy and upbeat sentiments. There is, indeed, a real sadness to much of the film.
Special acknowledgement should be made of the superb art direction, set design, costume design, makeup and special effects that together give the film its understated and believable futuristic look. In addition, James Horner's melancholic symphonic score, though a bit lubricious at times, does create an atmosphere of contemplative seriousness that perfectly matches the tone and purpose of the film.
`Bicentennial Man' may not turn out to be what you are looking for when you first seek it out, but, if you approach it with an open mind and a certain degree of tolerance and indulgence, you may be pleasantly surprised and, perhaps, even rewarded.
- Buddy-51
- Jun 25, 2000
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Details
Box office
- Budget
- $100,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $58,223,861
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $8,234,926
- Dec 19, 1999
- Gross worldwide
- $87,423,861
- Runtime2 hours 12 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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