What I found most interesting about A.I. was the ending. David, having spent his "life" seeking the Blue Fairy, is seemingly thwarted in his quest, by time and by reason. He has devoted himself to an ideal, an ideal that ultimately failed him. At least, that's how it seems, until the SuperMecha show up.
(SPOILERS...) The SuperMecha (the "aliens" of the finale) are interesting because they have seemingly evolved. They left the planet for the black of space, only to return to find David, encased in the frozen wasteland of Manhattan. In doing so, they have had no human contact, which is why they're so surprised to find David, an "original" who has spent time with humans. While David is told that it is impossible to become human he is given the chance to spend one "perfect day" with Monica. In the end this is all he really wanted, becoming human was just a means to an end.
The idea that these SuperMecha could be so full of compassion that they would grant David this gift is an interesting one. They are far removed from the gross, arrogant form of humanity we witnessed at the Flesh Fair earlier in the film. However, it is also a cruel twist of fate. In giving David this final moment with the mother he loved, they have given him another lie. He can never truly be with Monica, only an image of her, and even when she tells him that she loves him, it's the SuperMecha who are "faking" these emotions so that he may rest. By the time David closes his eyes and shuts down, seemingly forever, he is comfortable with the idea that Monica loved him, has always loved him, and is content.
This ending proves that throughout the movie, David is the purest character. Is he human? No, he is Mecha, but it's more than that. David has spent the entire runtime of the film being lied to, abused, abandoned by the humanity he so wished to join. In a cruel twist of fate, Monica leaves him in the woods, to his own devices, because she feels she has no other choice. Joe is guided by programming, a seeming "lust" to fulfill his duty as a "Love Mecha." The humans of the Flesh Fair, feeling threatened by Mecha's superiority, take their anger out on the machines. The SuperMecha wish to study David, as he is an anomaly, an "other" outside of their race. Only David, guided by his wish for acceptance, his longing for the love he ultimately cannot have, has pure intentions. He does not wish to overtake Monica's natural son, Martin, only to co-exist alongside him. It is this point that sets him apart from the other characters.
David is human, and yet something more. He feels love, compassion, a need to belong. Yet he is also tainted by the darkness of humanity, seen when he takes his anger out on his brother model in Prof. Hobby's office, thinking it wishes to replace him. It's obvious that a Mecha can feel, but is it mere programming that allows them to do this, or their experiences? Perhaps both, but it is when the Mecha start to feel that we realize the difference. When pushed into a corner, as David is many times throughout the film, his very human mission remains clear. David just wants to be loved and, in the end, isn't that what everyone wants?
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