A.I. Artificial Intelligence (12) at Blackpool Odeon, reviewed by RICHARD KING WHEN the reins of the late great Stanley Kubrick's 20-year pet project were handed over to Steven Spielberg it looked like the box office was set for a real treat.

But after a mediocre opening weekend in the US it began to look like A.I. Artificial Intelligence wasn't so much a white-hot box office smash as a white elephant. So what's wrong with it?

Technically, movies really don't come much better than this (except if Kubrick had directed himself). The acting is superb and the visuals nothing short of breathtaking.

Trouble is -- how do you re-sell the story of Pinocchio ('cause that's what it is) to an essentially adult audience.

If Spielberg had targeted A.I. at a younger audience and maintained a certain adult sensibility he would have had a smash on his hands.

Unfortunately the story of David (Sixth Sense's Haley Joel Osment), a robot boy, ousted from his family home when his parents' real son recovers from a coma, doesn't know whether it's a fairy tale or ta sci-fi thriller.

The result is neither. The movie drags and the final 20 minutes must be among the most excruciatingly boring and unnecessary endings ever on the big screen.

But people should still go and see A.I. for themselves as the design work and sets are truly awesome and several episodes are standout, specifically the central chunk of David's adventure with Gigolo Joe (Jude Law).

But for me the most remarkable thing about A.I. is Haley Joel Osment, who is rapidly developing into one of the finest actors around and he's only 13. I for one look forward to seeing a lot more of him.