“Bigbug” is a sci-fi that shows the dichotomy of a dystopian society “ruled” by A.I. It is a judgment-day genre-film that implements comedy as commentary and satire on the graveness that lies in a society obsessed with technology and A.I. The film is set in the future and mostly follows seven people stuck inside a house to protect themselves against the rage of an android revolt. Let’s explore these people under the roof and their conflict, which gives meaning to the entire premise.
Victor Barelli
Victor Barelli is the owner of the household. He is the one who is technologically sound. Perhaps, it is he who created Nestor, the virtual assistant in charge of the home’s security along with the other household androids (probably). Victor is shown to be the one most grounded in the present, the person who devises different ways of escape. It is this technical arc of Barelli’s character that makes him a stark contrast to his ex-wife, Alice Barelli who is a complete romantic. The reason why we should consider them together is because the household belongs to them. They were once a couple. And they become so again at the end of the movie. This is a great way to establish the scientific fact that “opposite poles attract each other” which is apt considering “Bigbug” belongs to the science-fiction genre.
Alice Barelli
Alice Barelli is the wife of Victor Barelli. For a woman who belongs to a dystopian world, she is someone who lives in the past. She is into romantic novels and her love for them has turned her into a character from the novels themselves, a lady who is wooed by poetry, sweet words, and similes alone. This is what sets her apart from the rest of the characters. It is this arc that makes her perhaps the most humane of the lot, and thus the most out-of-place in such a dystopian society.
Françoise
Françoise is one of the Barelli’s family’s neighbors. And just like any nosy neighbor, she is as much involved in the daily life of the Barelli family as that of her own. Her main role in “Bigbug” is that she brings in her android Greg into the Barelli household. It is Greg who provides the Barelli androids with the much-needed human touch.
Greg
Françoise’s assistant android, Greg, has been trained by her to reflect human emotions. The amount of time Greg has spent with her has led him to learn her emotions to the extent that he is able to share them with the androids of the Barelli household. He is the one who shows emotions of love, which instigates the Barelli androids to learn this new information and make themselves of better use to the Barelli family. So, in a way, Greg is the pathway that takes the movie from its first half to its second half.
Monique
Monique is an android who deserves a special place as one of the most important characters in “Bigbug.” As technology moves ahead at an enormous speed, the arrival of A.I. finds itself imminent. Monique encapsulates an A.I. that has developed to the extent that it is able to imbibe human emotions. The process of “learning” human emotions and putting them into effect makes Monique a rare character in the science fiction genre. In the second half of the movie, we see her slowly developing human traits that enable her to go beyond her ethical programming to help her owners and assist them in escaping from Yonyx 7389XAB2.
Einstein
Einstein, the android in charge of the Barelli family, is the one that is answerable to Victor Barelli. However, just like any A.I, it has its own strict instructions which he has to follow even if the human owner wants it to do otherwise. This is why Einstein is unable to take orders from Victor once its orders have been overruled by its larger coding that requires it to follow its system requirements. However, its intelligence as an A.I. allows it to absorb “humor” and other human emotions, which aids it in assisting its owners.
Yonyx 7389XAB2
Yonyx 7389XAB2 is the only true A.I. that has developed to the extent that it is able to distinguish between its processes and the workings of the human mind. It is able to understand when a person or an A.I is trying to divulge it in situations that fall outside of its A. I. constitution. Furthermore, Yonyx 7389XAB2 is responsible for ensuring that humans as a species are unable to access jurisdictions that it is unsuitable for. However, A.I., at the end of the day, is nothing but a machine language. And this is why it is vulnerable to strategic mindfulness, which is a quality that belongs to humans alone. Furthermore, it is a scientific fact that any machine can have at most 99% efficiency, and the movie, too, can be said to make use of this. As a result of this, the A. I makes a mistake that leads to its own downfall.
In conclusion, “Bigbug” is able to portray a dystopian society that rightfully falls into the clutches of machines. It shows how humans will be controlled by A.I. despite retaining its “source code.” The only reason why it is able to connect with us is that we have all been subject to the possibilities of technology without knowing the extent to which it can affect us all. “Bigbug” shows this very extent but as a comedy, which makes it even scarier (for lack of a better word).
See More: ‘Bigbug’ Ending, Explained – Is The Yonyx Uprising Suppressed?
