Not Quite Human

Set in the late 1980s United States, a period of rapid advances in personal computing and robotics. The era shapes the story with gadgetry, school life, and corporate intrigue driving the plot. The era's social and technological anxieties are mirrored in Chip’s quest to be understood as human.

The story unfolds in a late-1980s suburban American town, centered around a new high school where Chip attends with Becky. The junkyard serves as a pivotal location for confrontations and escapes involving Vogel and the reprogramming attempt. Washington, D.C. is the destination where Chip might be patented, highlighting the tension between family life and corporate intent amid a tech thriller backdrop.

🤖 Identity

Chip Carson is an android designed to pass as a human teenager, raising questions about what constitutes personhood. The film follows his learning and social navigation as he attends school and forms bonds. His pursuit of belonging prompts characters to reconsider what it means to be truly human.

👨‍👩‍👦 Family

Dr. Jonas Carson adopts Chip and treats him as a son, while Becky helps him fit into a human family. The trio's dynamics anchor the story, balancing care with secrecy as threats loom. The bond between inventor, android, and sister drives the emotional core of the film through danger and rescue.

⚖️ Ethics

Vogel's efforts to seize Chip for military use and patenting raise questions about the exploitation of sentient machines. The plot contrasts scientific ambition with responsibility toward created life. The password-protected self-destruct mechanism embodies the moral limits of technological power.