Eternal You
Directed by Hans Block and Moritz Riesewieck
Unrated
Runtime: 1 hour and 27 minutes
Released on VOD on January 24

by Chelsea Alexandra, Staff Writer

Throughout history, humans have been fascinated by death. It is the one inevitable experience we all share, and with it comes the profound weight of grief. Losing a loved one creates an unfillable void. A pain that feels insurmountable. We crave an immediate remedy to move on as soon as possible. Over time, grief becomes more bearable, but it is the first year of grief that can be an impossible mountain to climb. That first year can be filled with guilt and haunted by unspoken words. 

However, in 2024, as the world explores AI's capabilities, a new possibility emerges: finding closure through technology. In Eternal You, filmmakers Hans Block and Moritz Riesewieck delve into examining the ethical implications of using AI to support those who are grieving the loss of their loved ones. This thought-provoking documentary explores whether technology can offer solace or if it risks complicating our relationship with mortality. Through intimate interviews, ethical debates, and demonstrations of how these technologies work, Eternal You questions what it means to preserve a person’s essence beyond death. Both Block and Riesewieck present both sides of the argument without much bias. The filmmakers leave room for its audience to decide for themselves if it is ethical for tech companies to play God. 

The documentary examines several AI start-ups aiming to create methods for communicating with the deceased, using tools like chatbots, avatars, and VR simulations. Eternal You touches on the moral, ethical, and practical concerns with these technologies aimed to bring closure to the loved ones left behind. While some AI start-ups featured in the documentary are working to bring closure to the ones left behind, others see it as a way for human life to live past an expiration date. One AI tech calls it an avenue to cheat death and reach eternal life. 

Eternal You confronts its audience with how uncomfortable we are with the topic of death and grief. Although it is one of life’s most natural occurrences, we find it difficult to talk about in a natural way. There is a looming fear around death and an unspoken pressure around making the most out of life. Death is as inevitable as the grief we feel because of it and yet, these tech start-ups feel that it’s something that can be cheated. Using the data that’s left behind, they believe it can be used to create a version of ourselves that will live many lifetimes to come.

The documentary is particularly unsettling when it focuses on the men behind these AI companies who take pride in creating hollow imitations of the deceased. It’s heart-wrenching when the film shifts to those whose vulnerabilities are exploited by these technologies. It’s hard to side with these grief services in favor of the people they are helping. Ultimately, it commodifies a natural and deeply emotional process which reduces the complex experience of mourning to a transactional relationship. With monetizing grief, these companies are exploiting those in their most fragile states. Mental health professionals interviewed in this documentary have come forward to say how such chatbots can complicate the grieving process. They can be confusing and harmful for those who are just trying to heal or keep a piece of their loved one a little while longer. The recreated digital personas are based on data and memories which can never fully encapsulate the essence of a person. This raises questions about whether the deceased would have wanted to be represented in such a manner and whether their likeness is being used respectfully. These chatbots and VR simulators that are being used to “heal” are also these AI start-ups' most powerful salesmen, being used merely as a tool for financial gain and keeping their subscribers hooked. 

Some of the companies featured in Eternal You genuinely believe that their innovations are improving humanity. Hyunsuk Lee, whose company creates a CGI and AI-generated recreation of a deceased child for a grieving mother, appears oblivious to the criticisms. In a particularly unsettling scene, Jang Ji-Sung meets this digital version of her daughter, and Lee seems convinced that this experience brought her healing. Ji-Sung herself even claims that the simulation helped end a cycle of nightmares she had been experiencing due to her grief. Stories like these complicate the conversation further. 

The documentary also weaves in a religious perspective. Eternal You begins by examining how various belief systems view the concept of immortality, the afterlife, and the ethical boundaries of using technology to simulate the deceased. The documentary also delves into the tension between faith-based acceptance of mortality and the technological ambition to defy it. Religion cannot offer what these technologies can give to the most vulnerable. These companies can create something tangible, a solid answer to examining the afterlife. Sara M. Watson, a technology critic featured in the film, suggests that AI could gradually replace religion. However, should we continue to allow these big tech companies to try to play God for their financial gain? 

Eternal You is a larger, ongoing debate about the role of technology in our most personal experiences. This documentary compels viewers to reflect on how far society is willing to go in its quest to conquer death and whether the cost is too great.

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