Lo and Behold,
Reveries of the Connected World
Theatrical release poster
Directed byWerner Herzog
Written byWerner Herzog
Produced by
  • Werner Herzog
  • Rupert Maconick
CinematographyPeter Zeitlinger
Edited byMarco Capalbo
Music by
Production
companies
  • NetScout
  • Pereira & O'Dell Entertainment
  • Saville Productions
  • Skellig Rock
Distributed byMagnolia Pictures
Release date
  • January 23, 2016 (2016-01-23) (Sundance)
Running time
98 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World is a 2016 American documentary film directed by Werner Herzog. In it, Herzog ponders the existential impact of the Internet, robotics, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and more on human life.[2] The film premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival,[3][4] and was sponsored by the company NetScout.[5] The film contains interviews with Bob Kahn, Elon Musk, Sebastian Thrun, Ted Nelson, and other leaders of the technology world.[6][7]

Synopsis

Herzog narrates over footage of the University of California at Los Angeles, where pioneering work building the Internet took place, and looks at the first piece of Internet equipment ever to be installed. The film then explores the positive and negative impacts the Internet has had on society. Herzog interviews a family that has been harassed online after the death of their daughter.

An institute where no electronic equipment is allowed within a 3-mile radius is examined, and people living in this area describe their experience. The film comes to a group of people that are afflicted with an electromagnetism sensitivity condition who have to live in this area.

Elon Musk and his quest to send humans to Mars are investigated. Artificial intelligence is touched upon and the film comes to focus on how robots could become replacements for human interaction in the future. At the end of the film, Herzog poses the question to multiple interviewees, "Can the Internet dream of itself?"

Themes

When asked by TechCrunch.com what effect could the film have on the audience, Herzog replied:[8]

I think we have to abandon this kind of false security that everything is settled now, that we have so much assistance by digital media and robots and artificial intelligence. At the same time, we overlook how vulnerable all this is, and how we are losing the essentials that make us human.

Reception

Lo and Behold has received generally favorable reviews from critics.[9] On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 93% approval rating based on 141 reviews, with an average rating of 7.5 out of 10.[10] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 76 out of 100 based on 28 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[9]

References

  1. ↑ "Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World (12A)", British Board of Film Classification, September 27, 2016, retrieved September 28, 2016
  2. ↑ "Computer love: watch the first trailers for Werner Herzog's documentary about our relationship to machines", The Guardian, January 19, 2016
  3. ↑ "Watch the trailer for Werner Herzog's new documentary about the internet", The Verge, January 4, 2016
  4. ↑ "Werner Herzog laments the internet in the Lo And Behold, Reveries Of The Connected World trailer", The A.V. Club, January 4, 2016
  5. ↑ "Sundance: Werner Herzog's 'Lo and Behold' plumbs the Internet's impact", Mashable, January 21, 2016
  6. ↑ "The Legendary Filmmaker Werner Herzog Has Made A Documentary about Robotics and A.I.", io9, January 20, 2016
  7. ↑ "New Game in Town", TheTedNelson YouTube
  8. ↑ "Interview: Werner Herzog On His New Documentary, Lo And Behold". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
  9. 1 2 "Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World", Metacritic, retrieved 2021-10-14
  10. ↑ "Lo and Behold, Reveries of the Connected World", rottentomatoes.com, Rotten Tomatoes, retrieved 2021-10-14
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.