The article discusses the conflict between a human and anartificial anthropomorphic object, which is based on the theme of fear. First ofall, the article analyzes the causes of fear resulting from the interaction with ananthropomorphic machine, including the phenomenon of the “valley of death”,first described by Japanese robotics engineer M. Mori, and specifies the featuresof this phenomenon in cinema. The author compares the justified use of the“sinister valley” effect from the point of view of structuring the plot (“Humans”series) and the unsuccessful experience (“The Polar Express”, “Beowulf ”).Next the article studies the basic and the original strategies in plotconstruction in modern cinema, which are determined by the “man-machine”or “man-artificial body” conflict. Primarily the article investigates the causes ofplot predictability in a number of film works, where the fear is the main theme(“Frankenstein”, “Westworld”). Considerable attention is given to the analysis offilms where attempts are made to overcome fear thanks to a more complex andmultifaceted plot structure, including the bodily transformation of an artificialbody and attempts to bring it closer to the human creator. Various scripts ofhumanization are considered: a magical body that has acquired the human formwith the aid of magic (“Alraune”), a technogenic digital body (“Bicentennialman”), a human body with mechanical elements (“RoboCop, “Hardcore”). Theproposed conclusion is that the elimination of the fear of the machine is anecessity dictated by modern reality and that cinema offers its own originalways of solving this problem.