Narrative technique · used in 3 films

Machine Learning as Arc

Following an artificial character as it slowly comes to understand human feeling or questions its own mind. Its growth is the distance between its original programming and what it becomes.

Examples

3 films that use it

  1. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) poster

    Terminator 2: Judgment Day

    James Cameron · 1991

    The T-800 goes through a sped-up version of how a person grows up emotionally. He learns to understand jokes, physical pain and the value of human life. In the end, he chooses to sacrifice himself. Nothing in his programming tells him to. He does it because he has watched people and understood what it means. The ending works because Cameron shows you that learning.

    Where to see it: The T-800 telling John that he now understands why humans cry. This is the emotional center of the film.

  2. Prometheus (2012) poster

    Prometheus

    Ridley Scott · 2012

    David the android watches the crew search for their makers and questions why they want to meet them. He secretly takes a cylinder, puts a sample of black liquid in a drink and offers it to Holloway. These are his own choices. Writer Damon Lindelof has said David ends up following Shaw out of survival and curiosity.

    Where to see it: The tainted drink: David gives Holloway a drink with a sample of the black liquid after Holloway says he would do anything for answers.

  3. Blade Runner 2049 (2017) poster

    Blade Runner 2049

    Denis Villeneuve · 2017

    K investigates whether his implanted memory is real and whether he might be the replicant child of Deckard and Rachael. That search drives the emotion of the film. The arc ends without the confirmation he wanted. K acts decently even though he knows he is not special. The film says that choosing to be good matters more than being born special.

    Where to see it: K's discovery that he is not the child. His search into his own identity fails to give him the answer he wanted. His arc ends somewhere harder and more meaningful than special status.

Questions

Quick answers

What is machine learning as arc in film?
Following an artificial character as it slowly comes to understand human feeling or questions its own mind. Its growth is the distance between its original programming and what it becomes.
Which films use machine learning as arc?
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Prometheus (2012), Blade Runner 2049 (2017).
What kind of technique is machine learning as arc?
It is a narrative technique. Related narrative techniques include Premise Inversion, Nested Creator Hierarchy.

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