Alchemy (I) (2005)

Can an university computer scientist (Cavanagh) make a woman fall in love with his interactive computer before she succumbs to a well-known professor?

Director:

Evan Oppenheimer

Writer:

Evan Oppenheimer

Stars:

Michael Ian Black, Tom Cavanagh, Sarah Chalke

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael Ian Black	...	Jerry (voice)
Tom Cavanagh	...	Mal Downey
Sarah Chalke	...	Samantha Rose
James Barbour	...	Dr. Troy Rollins
Illeana Douglas	...	KJ
Nadia Dajani	...	Jane
Logan Marshall-Green	...	Martin
Wil Horneff	...	Dave (as Will Horneff)
Celeste Holm	...	Iris
Shannon McGinnis	...	Barbara
Anna Belknap	...	Marissa
Tovah Feldshuh	...	Senior Editor
Daphne Rubin-Vega	...	Belladonna Editor
Susan Misner	...	Associate Editor
Erik Palladino	...	Groom

Storyline

Mal is a New York computer scientist about to lose his university job. He posits that a woman can fall in love with a responsive computer program as easily as with a real man. He finds a subject for the experiment, not telling her what's actually going on. She's Samantha, an actress, and a he finds a rival who calls himself Dr. Love. A women's magazine wants to report the story, but its editor changes the game, insisting that Mal dress up like "Jerry," the personality the computer creates, wear an earpiece, and spout the computer's words. Samantha plays along until her feelings for both "Jerry" and Dr. Love get serious. What's a scientist to do when his hypotheses goes awry?

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Plot Keywords:

computer | university | computer scientist | womens magazine | computer program | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 April 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Love Is...

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Black Sand Pictures, Enlightenment Productions, Alchemy Productions LLC

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The opening of the film shows a group of students interacting with the computer, and one girl laughs when the computer says, "The Aristocrats!" That is the punch line to a famous, dirty joke that reportedly was Johnny Carson's favorite joke and was the subject of the Penn Jillette documentary The Aristocrats.

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Crazy Credits

The disclaimer at the end of the film reads: "The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons, places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred. Except Father Bogoliobov, who's available for weddings, communions, and bar mitzvahs."

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Connections

References Electric Dreams (1984)

User Reviews

An OK Movie

For those who really enjoyed this movie, do I have a much better one to suggest - Electric Dreams (1984). Even those it's 20 years old, this older movie has the soundtrack as well as a nice romantic comedy script that really touches the heart and goes to the essence of the artificial intelligence controversy. Alchemy, unfortunately seems forced, even though more likely scientifically more plausible than Electric Dreams or A.I., the need to introduce and change the rules of the game in favor the computer program makes for a rather dissonant and artificial flavor ironically. The comedy seems forced. The overall plot and the essence of the movie is decent, it just doesn't have the fun and magic that Electric Dreams had. Five out of Ten Stars.