Goa, 2031. On a dark and rainy night, a self driving taxi swerves to run over a man, an action which clearly violates the First Law of Robotics. The investigation will lead a cynical cop and an idealistic robot rights activist into the dark underbelly of this neon future, where they must deal with a shady robotics corporation and its missing CEO, an anti-technology cult leader who doesn't wear clothing, an immersive virtual reality video game for disaffected robots, and at the center of it all, an AI which was created to save the world but decided to go into stand up comedy instead. OK Computer (2021) is a cyber-noir detective story mixed with absurdist comedy, like Blade Runner as told by Douglas Adams.
The detective in question is Saajan Kundu (Vijay Varma), and while he might seem like the only sane man in a collection of misfits, he's just as quirky and damaged as everybody else. Saajan has lived in his car since the Covid-19 pandemic, and he has an instinctive distrust of machines and a superstitious fixation on a large sea turtle. Saajan is ably assisted by the earnest and awkward Monalisa Paul (Kani Kusruti), a police detective whose mother belongs to an anti-technology cult, and he's forced to team up with robot rights activist Laxmi Suri (Radhika Apte.) Saajan and Laxmi seem to have a past, but they parted on bad terms after he killed a submarine.
The suspects are an equally motley crew. Mysterious billionaire CNX is missing, his interests represented by a small army of lawyers, a pair of computerized shoes, and a holographic bear. Cult leader Pushpak (Jackie Shroff) is by turns whimsical, philosophical, and sinister, but is always naked.
And then there's Ajeeb, the prime suspect. Ajeeb is an artificial intelligence designed to solve all the world's problems. It was given a physical form and became a beloved celebrity, but after a crisis of confidence it quit to pursue comedy, and the backlash was so severe that Ajeeb was forced into hiding. The show is quite open about being influenced by The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, and Ajeeb is sort of the Anti-Marvin; there it is, brain the size of a (metaphorical) planet, and everybody knows and expects incredible results. Ajeeb deals with the pressure by projecting a sunny disposition which may or may not conceal a murderous dark side.
I'm not sure if OK Computer counts as a dark comedy, but it's definitely a sad comedy. These are people who have seen absurd and terrible things, and it has marked them. And while Pushpak is a big naked idiot, but he does explain that this isn't the future people wanted. "They were promised salvation. Flying cars. Smart cities. Cheap medicine, longevity. Freedom. Privacy. Unity. But what did we get instead? Private date theft. Fear, discrimination. Destruction of the environment. Stale memes. 24 hour surveillance." And if the dark future sounds like our dark present, well . . .
OK Computer doesn't pretend to offer solutions to the world's problems. It's just a reminder that something needs to change.
No comments:
Post a Comment