Hide and Seek (From A.I. Artificial Intelligence)

John Williams is renowned for composing very warm and familial themes for various films (see most of the Harry Potter soundtrack, for instance), and that’s a trend continued here – to an extent. Though childish and carefree in its overtones, this piece carries a distinctly eerie vibe. Not enough to be uncomfortable, but enough to make you reflect quizzically upon it when hearing it.

The normally expansive string and brass sections are subtle, gentle and inquisitive, leaving it to almost spar with the electronic motifs repeated throughout the piece. These motifs inject a sense of otherworldliness into the mix, a stab at portraying a future ruled by technology that is currently unfeasible. In fact, they almost seem to recall the classic Looney Tunes shorts that made references to robots or futuristic hardware: a plink-plonk scattering of unresolved notes, played to introduce discourse and highlight the non-natural aspect of the action or character. For those who have not seen the film, it fits quite perfectly into the scenes showing David, a human analogue in the form of an android, attempting to integrate itself into its new household by mirroring the expected behaviour of a child.