Computers and the Family

The Invisible Boy (1957)

The film's critique of cold-war faith in technological progress as the answer to political (i.e., human) problems takes the form of a domestic drama. After the opening sequence, the film takes us to Dr. Mereneau's home, where he sits at the dinner table with his wife and his son, Timmy. His wife asks "Did you have a nice day at the computer, dear?" He responds "Yes, dear. I had a fulfilling, stimulating and, I may say, a useful day at the computer." Then, Timmy, slurping his soup to the dismay of his parents, asks his father "What's a computer?" Pleased that his son is taking an interest in his work, Mereneau responds:

     "I've been waiting a long time for you to ask that question. A computer is simply an  electronic adding and remembering  machine, its fundamental operation not being altogether unlike that of the human brain. But, despite all of our modern improvements, it remains exactly what it was to begin with--a completely accurate and lighting-fast idiot with a lead pencil."

Merenaeu's wife responds, inexplicably, "How disgusting," and Timmy continues slurping his soup, happy to have distracted his father from punishing him for bad table manners. Meanwhile, Mereneau continues rambling on about some of the more esoteric technical challenges of his work. Like many other sci-fi computer scientists (Alex Harris, in Demon Seed, for example), Mereneau's single-minded devotion to his work has alienated him from his family.
     For Mereneau, scientific intellect is the sign of manhood, and he is dismayed at Timmy's apparent disinterest in mathematics. After dinner, he tries to help Timmy with his math homework, but when Timmy doesn't grasp the concept of a fraction, Mereneau tells Timmy he's not trying hard enough: "You do want to be a man someday, don't you?" In desperation, Mereneau feeds Timmy's physical and mental profile into the super-computer for analysis, and the computer concludes that Mereneau himself is the root cause of Timmy's maladjustment, and that "direct contact" with Timmy is required for the computer to complete its analysis of the situation. Merenaeu then brings Timmy to the institute, places Timmy in the seat of the main console, telling him to pay attention to the computer, and leaves the room. The lights begin flashing and the computer says "Look at the lights, Timmy. Look at the lights." It then begins to teach Timmy chess.
     At home that night, Timmy beats his father at chess, and Mereneau realizes that his plan has worked. The computer has expanded Timmy's intellect. Timmy asks permission to "play" with an inoperable robot named "Robby" at the institute, and Timmy eventually fixes Robby.
     Robby is capable of technical marvels, such as building a large kite for Timmy to fly on, and making Timmy invisible by adjusting his index of refraction. Timmy's ability to fly and his invisibility allow him to escape the oppressive authority of his parents, either by flying on his kite high above the town, by playing pranks on his father and the other scientists at the institute, and by spying on his parents in their bedroom as they prepare for bed. Timmy's technological friend, however, is under the control of his father's computer at the institute, and has plans for Timmy, and for the entire human race.

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