Move fast and take things, episode… whatever: The Week in Review
Plus Grok, the Krell, and the danger of monsters from the Id.
A wonderful byproduct of writing about GenAI shitposting is that people start sending you more AI shitposts, including this one that sees a baby escape a court-side crib and morph into a drone copter flying over snowy terrain (again with the snow). My new favorite, however, is kids "imitating" AI.
It starts with an argument that nearly turns into a fight before both kids (one of whom has transformed off-camera into a different person) grab full meals out of nowhere, their exaggerated expressions straining into faux-uncanny territory. It’s all fairly simple choreography and sleight of hand but the result is unmistakably clever. And suddenly, I've become aware that "bad AI" is all but certain to be a Halloween costume trend this year.
Okay, happy diversion over. Deep breath. Now onto Grok. —Ross
What we’ve read
X’s new AI image generator will make anything from Taylor Swift in lingerie to Kamala Harris with a gun (The Verge)
In the 1956 sci-fi film Forbidden Planet, Leslie Nielsen leads a crew seemingly plucked straight off a WWII Fletcher-class destroyer and dropped into a flying saucer on a mission to the planet Altair IV. There, they meet Dr. Morbius (Walter Pidgeon) and his daughter Altaira (Anne Francis), the only surviving members of the spaceship Bellerophon—the rest of the crew having been brutally murdered years before, literally torn apart by an invisible creature. That same creature soon returns to start picking off Lesley Nielsen’s crew and there’s nothing they can do to stop it; their ray guns are useless against it.
We learn later that the planet’s previous inhabitants, the Krell, super-beings millions of years more advanced than humankind, built an enormous machine spanning 500 square miles beneath the planet’s surface that could power the creation of any physical object by mere thought. But as soon as they turned it on, their entire civilization was inexplicably wiped out in a single night.
It turns out the Krell had forgotten one thing, “Monsters from the Id”: horrific, murderous creatures from their primitive past that lurked in the deepest, darkest corners of their subconscious, monsters that the Krell’s machine made manifest.
This week, Elon Musk, a supposed sci-fi fan who clearly doesn’t pay attention to anything he reads or watches, made exactly the same mistake as the Krell: he turned on Grok, a GenAi machine with enormous power capable of creating anything its users can think of on a whim. The results were entirely predictable. As Dr. Morbius says with his head in his hands, “My poor Krell.” —James
Ex-Google CEO says successful AI startups can steal IP and hire lawyers to ‘clean up the mess’ (The Verge)
Last week, we said that we were going to pay less attention to the seemingly endless examples of AI companies moving fast and taking things. Unfortunately, we hadn’t counted on Eric Schmidt saying, “Hold my beer,” and not just shouting the quiet part out loud but giving a fucking lecture on exactly how to do it to a bunch of Stanford students—and then having the temerity to say, “don’t quote me.” Sigh. —James
Ridley Scott says some things about AI
Ridley Scott has been thinking about AI’s ramifications longer than most, with synthetic humanoids being a critical aspect of both Blade Runner and Alien. It’s something that seems to have remained very front of mind: Speaking to Rolling Stone last year, he called it a "technical hydrogen bomb": "There’s something non-creative about data. You’re gonna get a painting created by a computer, but I like to believe—and I’m saying this without confidence—it won’t work with anything particularly special that requires emotion or soul. With that said, I’m still worried about it."
Scott’s latest round of interviews, in promotion of both Alien Romulus and the upcoming Gladiator 2, provides new updates on his evolving views.
"Computerization and AI—you have to embrace it... I can have a computer read every molecule and wrinkle on a rhino and then cut it on a thick piece of plastic, absolutely as a rhino’s body, which is then tailored to a skeleton shape” (from Empire).
"There’s no question that AI’s going to raise a lot of questions and therefore I think we’ve got to lay down some ground rules, but I don’t know how you do ground rules. Once the button is pushed how do you stop it? It’s hard. I don’t think you can control it" (from Brooklyn Magazine).
I love reading about creatives working through these challenges in the open, and while I’m not sure this is really a “softening” viewpoint as I’ve seen some other outlets suggest, it’s certainly more nuanced. As Scott also says to Brooklyn Magazine when asked how we should use AI, “You’ve got to look at it as a tool.” We couldn’t agree more. —Ross
What we’ve watched
Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy
Arguably one of the best streaming platforms in 2024 is Apple TV+, which I consider the new HBO of old, with Slow Horses being one of my favorite shows on the channel. The new season (its fourth) drops on September 4th and so this week in preparation, I watched Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, a very slow, but wonderfully atmospheric and authentic adaptation of the famous novel by John le Carré.
The film stars Gary Oldman as George Smiley, who gives such a neat, quiet, restrained performance that’s in stark polar opposite from the character he plays in Slow Horses: the filthy, greasy, farting, belching Jackson Lamb, the head of Slough House and his gang of misfit and reject agents. But though the characters of Lamb and Smilie couldn’t be more different, they share one all important trait, in that they’re always the smartest person in the room. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy also features a small role for Kathy Burke, the astonishingly talented British actress who also starred in Nil By Mouth, written, directed, produced and starring by Gary Oldman in what is one of the most harrowing films I think I’ve ever seen. The film also stars Ray Winstone of Sexy Beast fame. —James
Sunny (Apple TV+)
This delightful series slowed a little in the middle but is building again. —James
”Why Does Acting Feel So Different Now?” (Thomas Flight / YouTube)
I'm a big fan of Thomas Flight's video essays, which take a deep dive into TV and film and the techniques used to create engaging storytelling. His latest essay is an hourlong look at acting as it evolved from the more theatrical (think: Maltese Falcon) to the more natural, "authentic" style that dominates today's productions. A very good watch for cinephiles. —Ross
What we’ve played
Supermarket Together
"Run a grocery store with your friends" is maybe not the most compelling pitch, but there have been at least three different grocery store / supermarket simulators released on Steam this year alone. The most recent, Supermarket Together, lets up to 16 people try their best at running a little grocery store. Players can order items, manually stock shelves, run empty boxes to recycling across the street, smack potential shoplifters with brooms, try to math out proper change at the cash register... Look, I know this makes everything sound incredibly boring, but "doing organized mundane tasks while hanging out with friends on Discord" is a very popular genre. And you might be surprised just how angry people can get when you accidentally spend all your shop's money ordering cheese in bulk. —Ross
Star Wars Outlaws
I continue to take my time with my third Sekiro run (I am currently up against the annoyingly difficult O'Rin of the Water), but what I am really waiting for is the much anticipated Star Wars Outlaws on August 30, the first open-world Star Wars video game. As a long-time Star Wars stan (I am still dying to go back to Galaxy’s Edge and try the Rise of the Resistance ride, which wasn’t open when I went to the press launch), I have been very much looking forward to playing this new game, although admittedly with some trepidation. I beat Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order, which was OK, but I gave up on Star Wars: Jedi Survivor because of motion sickness, though not before I found the bathroom. —James
Steamworld Heist II
Image & Form's series of SteamWorld games is rather unique in that there is no "core" genre. Sure, Mario can play tennis and race karts and punch his friends, but the core Mario experience has always been that of a platforming adventure. Conversely, the SteamWorld games jump around from a set of disparate genres, maintaining some semblance of cohesive worldbuilding while putting its own spin on Metroidvania adventures (SteamWorld Dig), card battlers (SteamWorld Quest), city builders (SteamWorld Build), and tactical shooters (SteamWorld Heist)—all lovingly borrowing elements from other genre staples but streamlined to be more approachable. Their latest release, SteamWorld Heist II, builds upon what made the original great without overcomplicating the game's elegant loop of combat, upgrades, and exploration. A great pick-up-and-play game for when I've got even just 15 minutes to spare. —Ross
What we’ve listened to
Fred again (Tiny Desk NPR)
I recently spoke with a friend of mine in the UK who suggested I listen to Fred again. "Who is Fred again,” I asked. "He's worked with Brian Eno and is very good," he replied and sent me this video of Fred again's NPR Tiny Desk concert from 2023. It is genuinely one of the most incredible live performances I have seen in years, and this week I have been sending it to everyone and anyone I can think of.
It turns out that Fred Gibson is a big deal: he’s worked with Brian Eno for years and has also written and produced with Ed Sheeran. But what struck me most about Fred’s Tiny Desk performance in particular was his seamless use of both analog and digital instruments: He plays a standard upright piano, while triggering record vocals via MIDI and live sampling rhythms and melodies he plays on xylophones and glockenspiels. At one point he literally bangs his arm on the desk to sample a bass rhythm. And all this while mixing and playing live. He makes it look so unbelievably easy, but I imagine it was far from it, even for someone so clearly talented..
I have spent much of this week listening to his other albums but keep coming back to this more raw, intimate performance as my favorite. BTW, if you have time, you should also just hang out with Fred and his friends as he plays a live set on a rooftop in London and watch the sun go down. —James
Out of Time - REM
For no particular reason other than it’s currently high summer and this album takes me back to Maui in 1991, when I worked as a photographer on the professional windsurfing world tour and spent weeks on the island for the Aloha Classic and played this album on repeat. —James
Into the Great Wide Open - Tom Petty
See above —James
My Analog Journal
For over 5 years now, My Analog Journal has been uploading 45-minute sets, inviting myriad guests to showcase vinyl mixes focusing on specific eras and eclectic subgenres. If you're looking for a great at-home soundtrack—or for when you've spent far too many hours on the Lofi Girl channel, which is generally my problem—you should check out a few sets on Nu-Disco, Afro-Cuban and Latin Jazz, and 1970s Japanese Soul. —Ross