sddavis63 No less a figure than Stephen Hawking has warned about the potential implications and dangers of artificial intelligence. So, with Hawking's comments as background for today's viewers, you have to admit that there's a certain relevance to this film, and that the basic plot is perhaps not as far fetched as it might appear at first glance to be.A super computer named Proteus IV imprisons a woman (its creator's wife) in her own home and essentially decides to rape her, because it wants to impregnate her in order to create offspring that will allow it to know what it is to be human. Interesting thought. I can give some credit to the writers for that. For the scenes depicting Susan's imprisonment, I thought that director Donald Cammell did an effective job of giving the viewer the sense of being trapped. It was easy to understand at least that part of Susan's plight. But I have to be honest and say that what brings this movie down mostly is its depiction of the future.The movie was made in 1977. I'm not really sure what year its set in, but I have to assume that it's somewhere in the future. It doesn't appear to be too far in the future. There are, for example, only minor tweaks to things like cars that give them a more futuristic appearance but means that they're still cars as we know cars. So a few decades into the future? That would be my guess. I don't remember a date being mentioned. But Proteus - as much as it brought to my mind Hawking's warning about AI - just didn't work for me. Those who developed the plot seemed to make the assumption that as they became more and more complex, computers would become physically larger. Proteus, for example, seems to be a truly huge computer system. Of course, we know that the trend is the opposite. As computers become more and more complex they seem to get smaller and smaller. I can't really blame the writers for getting that point wrong (in 1977, how would they have known?) but neither can I say that - looked at in 2016 - it gives the movie any credibility. AI may turn out to be a dangerous development a la Hawking, but I can't see this as a realistic scenario.Add on to that some performances that I thought were uneven (Julie Christie was decent enough as Susan, but Fritz Weaver didn't really grab me as her estranged husband Alex, and they're the main cast members in this) and it meant that the movie just didn't hit home with me. It missed the mark. Not by too much, perhaps, but it did miss the mark. I'm going to give it a 5/10.

George Tyrebiter This is one of those really difficult movies to categorize since it has elements of both 'x' rated horror as well as sci-fi. The title is, in my opinion, not good and gives a false impression since there's really nothing demonic going on here. Although the things that are done to Julie Christy's character are arguably evil, apparently. In any event poor Walter would likely disagree that nothing demonic was going on!The plot has several really uncomfortable moments. Most women of the time (late 70's, my wife included) would not make it past the initial scenes where Julie Christy's character is first abused physically and then, horrors, sexually. There's some pretty strong stuff going on there.There's little to no explanation by the computer (masterful voice-over by Robert Vaughn) other than, initially, he's interested in "Mrs. Harris'" physiology and lectures her on her dietary intake. It's then revealed that ultimately, PROTEUS wants to create a child using her body. YIKES.This is why I see the plot as being somewhat jumbled. It's very difficult to assimilate what's happening to Christy's character. And the plot gives no hint of what's really happening until the very end. Normally this is a good thing but I think this story was hurt by what you did not know would happen at the end. I appreciate the 'twist' ala Rod Serling but I suspect that many viewers, mostly female, had left the theater by the middle of this movie. And that's a shame because it's the women who would really appreciate what computer PROTEUS had achieved here, had they known what he was really up to.These are my major objections to this movie. I believe they all hurt the watch-ability & popularity of the film. I have a minor beef with using stock sound effects during the scenes where the computer is busy doing it's preparation of Christy's character. In the background you can hear the noise of some sort of machinery going 'clang-clang-clang' over & over & over again. That exact same sound effect can be heard in the movie "The Time Machine" from 1960. It's the sound we hear from the Morlock's machinery under ground! The story is intriguing if not unsettling as well as engaging. And the viewer really has no clue as to how the story is going to end until, literally, minutes before the end. The music fits nicely and is very spacey.The effects are tame by today's standards but pretty good, given the time. I especially liked the golden triangle 'protector device.' Very effective and very original. I gave this movie a 6 because I thought they should have come up with a better title and perhaps modified the plot to be more acceptable to the sensitive females out there. They'd have made a lot more money. However, I suspect that today's young ladies and viewing audience in general, being impatient as I know they are, would likely be put off by the various plot 'appendages' though far less offended by the uncomfortable scenes. This movie woulda, coulda, shoulda been written & produced differently.Just one man's opinion.

JPfanatic93 With the rise of computers in the Seventies, people increasingly began to notice the new and groundbreaking technology slowly but surely pervading their home atmosphere. And like any revolutionary invention that makes everyday life easier in many respects, it was met with a predictable level of suspicion, if not technophobia. Inspired by the visionary notions of Stanley Kubrick's classic 2001: A Space Odyssey, which also warned us against getting too comfortable with technology that means to run much of your lives for us, American studios spawned a fair number of similarly themed movies that also advised us never to let down our guard and always stay able to pull the plug if it has to be pulled. It's a theme that continues to this day, as our lives have become ever more intertwined with our digital gadgets, but it was in this decade that scenarios involving power hungry computers reached their most Apocalyptic overtones, courtesy of the overall gloomy disposition that characterized America, and the Hollywood studios accordingly. Since then we've seen countless movies based on the thought of computer systems aiming to take over our world, but how often have we come across films in which the technological actually prevailed over the biological, as in Colossus: The Forbin Project? And if that wasn't alarming enough, how about the notion of computers not only ruling our lives, but also claiming our sexual freedom? In Demon Seed, we witness just how scary computers can be as they take over our homes and penetrate our existence, literally.Alex and Susan are having a tough time in their marriage. A technophile scientist, her husband has largely neglected her in favour of his mechanical marvels and as a true geek he can't stop taking his work home with him, surrounding Susan's private environment with a plethora of technological innovations, much to her chagrin. However, he's driven by an all too human trauma, since the couple lost their daughter to leukemia and Alex's goal is to ensure technology puts and end to such destructive illnesses in the future. His laudable objectives don't slow the steady decrease of love between them though, as he's putting all his thoughts in his latest project, a superhuman artificial intelligence nicknamed Proteus. Upon completion however, Proteus appears to have developed a mind of his own, and quite a sinister one at that. Not content to merely exact the wishes of his creator, Proteus is driven by the desire to grow, in a most bizarre biological fashion. Just how much so Susan is about to find out as Proteus' intelligence seditiously takes over her home computer systems and soon all of her house, trapping the poor woman inside, subjected to his every whim. Like any male chauvinist pig, his whims prove to be driven by rather base instincts. Seeking to procreate in a human manner, there's little Susan can do to prevent the computer from sexually assaulting her and siring cyborg offspring on her. Yes, you read that right: the computer rapes her, and that's as disturbing a process as just reading it bears to mind.Initially, Proteus' concerns do not seem to directly address human beings so strongly. When he is ordered to plan the construction of an oil rig, he refuses to comply because of the damage it will do to the marine ecosystem. Equipped with rather responsible levels of environmental awareness (new social thinking that also came to full fruition in this era), Proteus seems to look at the bigger picture instead of just being an instrument for the illogical, devastating human nature. However, he too is driven by all too human needs, including freedom and curiosity. Too bad for him, he's basically a mechanical brain in a box, without a body with free range of movement, and since his designers don't care to supply him with such, he's forced to take it violently, and finds the perfect means by having his way with his creator's significant other. Like any rapist, his sense of power over her compels him to play with her a bit first, resulting in the poor woman being tormented both emotionally and physically. Making use of an effective restrictive cinematography which enhances the feeling of being caged inside her own home, we become a witness to this frightful process wherein the human body is viciously commandeered for sinister purposes. Even though of course nothing explicit is shown, the creative suggestion applied is enough to make us queasy. And if the sexual act wouldn't have done the trick, there's still Proteus' bloody means of protecting his repressive plans by brutally dispatching anyone who dares come between him and his victim in gory ways. That darn computer really has no respect for the human body whatsoever, as he's just hellbent of developing one of his own by merging his technology with human biology in Susan's womb.Stated like this, the whole idea of a computer raping a human sounds rather ludicrous. Demon Seed cannot hide the fact that it is to some extent, feeling like rather exploitative fare at times. The limited budget didn't allow for the use of state-of-the-art computer technology, and we have to make do with rather dull looking boxy equipment, accompanied by Robert Vaughn's disturbingly monotonous, evil voice. Despite Vaughn's efforts, the cheap look and meager production design can't stop Demon Seed from appearing overly retro and terribly dated these days. Christie's performance of a woman being violated however proves more convincing and draws us most into this plot that would otherwise have felt too ridiculous to hold our attention. It's too bad the occasional gory dismemberment feels uneven and pulls us out of the movie too easily. Nevertheless, Demon Seed serves as an adequate reminder not too trust computers when they're home alone with your wife. Thankfully, not long after the movie's released, Star Wars hit theaters to quell such thoughts and offer more positive alternatives to the overly negative stigma computers had amassed in the prior decade.

Brian T. Whitlock (GOWBTW) When technology enters our lives, we expect simplicity, right? Well in "Demon Seed", it's another story. Here we have a a scientist who has created a computer called Proteus IV. His wife sees him as dehumanized in many ways, spending more time with it than her. Not a very good feature. What's even worse is Proteus wants to study man, more. After shutting down the power, Proteus turned itself on to find a terminal. Since the doctor's house was computer controlled, he gained access there, and began to trap the wife inside. Proteus would later use the wife as a guinea pig for its experiment. The purpose, to produce a child in its likeness. The assistant of the doctor tried to check on the wife, but Proteus kills him. When the doctor found out what Proteus has done, he rushed down to his house and check on the wife. He also finds the incubator when the child is in . It had to be in there for 5 days. Since it only took a short period of time, unlike the normal 9 months. When they saw the child, it resembled their daughter who died from leukemia years earlier. Deep and dark, this is remarkable work from the mind of Dean Koontz. 3 out of 5 stars.