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Special Features
Extended Interviews
Deleted Scenes
Tribeca Film Festival Q&A with director Barry Ptolemy and Ray Kurzweil.
Deleted Scenes
Tribeca Film Festival Q&A with director Barry Ptolemy and Ray Kurzweil.
Editorial Reviews
Technology will accelerate exponentially. Within 25 years computers will have consciousness. Humans will soon be bionic. These predictions make bestselling author Ray Kurzweil (The Singularity Is Near) a prophetic genius to some and a "highly sophisticated crackpot" to others. There is no question however that he has predicted the future with more accuracy than anyone else in history. TRANSCENDENT MAN gets inside the mind of the award-winning scientist and A.I. specialist through extensive interviews with Kurzweil himself and revealing conversations with friends and colleagues. The film outlines Kurzweil's theory of singularity-the point when change occurs so rapidly that humans will need to merge with technology to keep up-while also chronicling Kurzweil's history his myriad accomplishments (including 24 U.S. patents) and his unique vision of the future. Bonus Features: Extended Interviews; Deleted Scenes; Tribeca Film Festival Q&A with direcotr Barry Ptolemy and Ray Kurz
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Amazon Instant Video
As an inventor, businessman, and theorist--there is no denying the brilliant accomplishments or the noteworthy eccentricities of the estimable Ray Kurzweil. Alternately hailed as a prophetic genius and/or a raving madman, there is a probably a touch of truth in either position in how Kurzweil and his Singularity Doctrine view the future. "Transcendent Man," an intriguing and lively new documentary, serves as both a biographical sketch and a contemplation of man's progression through time. Kurzweil's position is that the current evolutionary cycle predominantly incorporates technology and that future incarnations of man will be human/robotic hybrids of some variation. He makes a compelling case, and has been quite astute in past predictions, about these changes--and, in fact, science has been working in that direction for quite some time with nanotechnology, robotics, and artificial intelligence.
The documentary begins with a fascinating introduction to its subject and his many revolutionary contributions. It's hard not to be caught up in the man's brilliance, impressed by his creations, and intrigued by his vision for man's evolution. As a biography, "Transcendent Man" works tremendously well. But as the movie progresses, it becomes clear that Kurzweil is abundantly obsessed with two concepts--achieving immortality through science and reviving his long dead father by computer programming and artificial intelligence. The second half of the picture evolves into science fiction. There is something both disturbing and touching seeing him contemplate rebuilding his father through old journal entries and documentation.
The final argument of the film is about the nature of man's future. Many other scientists participate in the discussion of the social and philosophical implications of Kurzweil's suppositions. While everyone agrees that technology has a large role to play, there are questions about the timeframe and the depth of that involvement. And while Kurzweil sees only the positive aspects of this hybrid society and allowing technology to take over--many others posit that there are just as many risks. The film really becomes a theoretical debate, which while interesting, seems disconnected from the start of the documentary. A definite and easy recommendation for the subject alone--the film didn't always seem to have narrative cohesion. But regardless of film structure, there is much to digest from the man and the movie. KGHarris, 5/11.
The documentary begins with a fascinating introduction to its subject and his many revolutionary contributions. It's hard not to be caught up in the man's brilliance, impressed by his creations, and intrigued by his vision for man's evolution. As a biography, "Transcendent Man" works tremendously well. But as the movie progresses, it becomes clear that Kurzweil is abundantly obsessed with two concepts--achieving immortality through science and reviving his long dead father by computer programming and artificial intelligence. The second half of the picture evolves into science fiction. There is something both disturbing and touching seeing him contemplate rebuilding his father through old journal entries and documentation.
The final argument of the film is about the nature of man's future. Many other scientists participate in the discussion of the social and philosophical implications of Kurzweil's suppositions. While everyone agrees that technology has a large role to play, there are questions about the timeframe and the depth of that involvement. And while Kurzweil sees only the positive aspects of this hybrid society and allowing technology to take over--many others posit that there are just as many risks. The film really becomes a theoretical debate, which while interesting, seems disconnected from the start of the documentary. A definite and easy recommendation for the subject alone--the film didn't always seem to have narrative cohesion. But regardless of film structure, there is much to digest from the man and the movie. KGHarris, 5/11.
20 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Sure there is the technical stuff and the robots and the idea of singularity, but more than that what struck me was the soft spoken Ray Kurzweil gently saying, 'No' to death. He intends to invent his way out of it. The documentary explains how all this might happen and I am not even going to pretend that I am being balanced here. I love this guy! It was a pleasure to see him speak at the Screening. I was sitting in the balcony and the normalness of this man astounded me. Someone who invented the flat bed scanner, helped the blind to read, made a robot create music, went to M.I.T, is really not an introverted geek. I was expecting a large headed man in a white labcoat. Instead there he was standing in a checkered jacket, telling us that how the computer that once occupied the whole room now sits in our pockets. How far are we from this pocket sized machine going into our blood cells? Just as we dont feel the earth moving around the sun at thousands of mile per hour, we are also perhaps unaware of how quickly things are changing. Ray also spoke about a pill that may allow us to eat all we want without gaining weight. These things are in play. And then he sat down to watch the Transcendent Man. It was weird watching the film and also being able to see Ray sitting in the same room. In one scene he wore the same jacket that he was wearing that evening. Anyway I will end this most balanced review now. Just watch it!
Minhaj Arifin
Author of
How Desis Became The Greatest Nation On Earth
Minhaj Arifin
Author of
How Desis Became The Greatest Nation On Earth
12 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I've seen Ray Kurzweil speak at a conference, and it was a life-changing experience for me. His insights about the future, based on what he's learned about the speed of change, are remarkable. But the DVD doesn't capture that well at all. Instead of making his points, providing evidence and refuting key objections that people have raised over the years--which is what he did at the presentation--this video focuses on a few soundbites about his ideas, doesn't illustrate them, and doesn't show you the objections that commonly get raised and his answers to those objections. Instead, it spends a lot of time on irrelevant side trips, such as showing him talking about his father and how he'd love to "recreate" his father via computer technology; and it shows people giving their opinions about his ideas without giving him a chance to respond. Despite the awards this video has apparently won, it is a LOUSY representation of Kurzweil's ideas and his defense of them. Don't waste your time and money. Instead, try to see him talk live. (His book about the singularity isn't totally satisfying either--it's complex material even for a well-educated fan--but it's far superior to this video.)
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Tigre future is now
Even if Ray is only 10% correct, our lives will drastically change in the very near future.I look forward to the next big evolutionary push.
Published 26 days ago by Jason T. Bull
Pretty Cool
Being a sci-tech fan, I was already a fan of Ray, but ahd yet to see his film. I enjoyed following around Ray Kurzweill in the documentary, listening to the proponents and... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Kyle J. Cronin
Efficient Documentary Mostly Stays Out of the Way of the Mesmerizing,...
One part biography, one part brain food; as an appetizer to the thought path of noted futurist Ray Kurzweil, it can be difficult at times to separate fact from fragment over the... Read more
Published 4 months ago by drqshadow
Exciting
The DVD is a little commercial but a very good introduction to the topic.
Anyone can understand and it's just exciting to watch. A must have! Read more
Anyone can understand and it's just exciting to watch. A must have! Read more
Published 7 months ago by Laura
Ray Kurzweil - Transformative man
Since receiving this DVD (one of the BEST documentaries ever), I have watched it at least 10 times. I have gifted it to others frequently, and they report being Transcendently... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Thinkman
Thoughtful, Very Optimistic View of the Future
Earlier ('99) Kurzweil argued that the ever-accelerating rate of technological change would lead to computers rivaling the full range of human intelligence. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Loyd E. Eskildson
Video PR release
I saw Keith Olberman and Bill Maher's interview and I was intrigued.
This video is just a nothing but a PR bio. No science. Read more
This video is just a nothing but a PR bio. No science. Read more
Published 9 months ago by K. Sullivan
Really got me thinking...
The frantic, juvenile search "without" oneself for the strength one lacks "within" is as eternal and laughable as death. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Techno-daaancing!
infinitely interesting, not enough animation
i really love this sort of topic and have seen many documentaries of this ilk. being a modern science-nonfiction documentary it really should have involved some cgi animation of... Read more
Published 10 months ago by cdbndp
Brain Candy
Well done film that spotlights a brilliant mind. There is many topics of current research where the outcome can be speculated and thus it is a fun film to watch and think about. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Thomas
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