The Creator Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Gareth Edwards
Stars: John David Washington, Gemma Chan, Madeleine Yuna Voyles, Allison Janney, Ken Watanabe, Sturgill Simpson, Ralph Ineson, Michael Esper, Veronica Ngo, Marc Menchaca.
Ever since HAL refused to open the bay door in Stanley Kubrick’s 1967 sci-fi classic 2001: A Space Odyssey AI has been seen as the convenient villain in numerous Hollywood sci-fi themed movies, from Demon Seed through to T2: Judgment Day. But with this ambitious and intelligent blend of action and sci-fi director Gareth Edwards (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, etc) attempts to rehabilitate the negative image of this cutting-edge technology.
Co-written with Chris Weitz, The Creator is set in the not-too-distant future of 2070. A nuclear explosion, supposedly caused by a rogue AI machine, has devastated LA and led to the US (here known as “the West”) to declare ban all AI, and declare war on robots everywhere. Meanwhile in New Asia, the population of humans seems to live in harmony alongside AI and the self-replicating human-like bots known as simulants. The US has at its beck a giant mother ship attack vessel known as Nomad, which is capable of dropping laser-guided nuclear missiles from above. But the West fears that AI has now developed a new, advanced superweapon that is capable of blowing the Nomad out of the sky and will help them win the war.
Former special services operative Joshua Stone (John David Washington, from Tenet, BlaKkKlansman, etc) is a broken man, still grieving over the death of his wife Maya (Gemma Chan, from Crazy Rich Asians, etc) whom he fell in love with while he was working undercover as a member of an AI resistance group. Because of his familiarity with the area, Joshua is now approached to lead a small force behind enemy lines to infiltrate a secret base, uncover the architect behind this new threat, known as Nimrata (Hindi for creator), and destroy both them and the weapon. This small military force is led by the no-nonsense and gung-ho Colonel Jean Howell (Allison Janney), who reveals to Joshua that Maya may still be alive and is somehow involved in creating the new technology. Joshua discovers that the weapon is actually a robot in the form of a six-year-old girl named Alphie (newcomer Madeleine Yuna Voyles), who has special kinetic powers, much like “the Force”. Conflicted, Joshua disobeys his mission protocols and instead sets out to protect the girl.
The Creator is highly critical of the US military and its imperialism and aggressive stance in various world hot spots, and there are allusions to Vietnam, the WMD lies that led to the ill-advised invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan. Ironically it also turns out that the nuclear explosion that devastated Los Angeles was actually caused by human error, but the disaster was still used by the US military to justify their efforts to wipe out AI and the AI beings known as simulants. It’s clear where Edwards’ sympathies lie and, not surprisingly given the thrust of the film, the AI creations and the simulants actually seem imbued with more compassion and humanity and intelligence than the human characters.
Washington brings a solid quality, gravitas and nuance to his role as Joshua. Voyles is good as Alphie, and she has an engaging presence and brings an innocence to her performance. Janney is suitably hardnosed as Howell, a somewhat cliched character, while Ken Watanabe brings gravitas to his performance as Harun, a leader of the simulants.
The Creator is a film of big ideas and provocative themes, and it tackles the issue of AI from an intriguing angle. Edwards and his production team have built an impressive brave new world for the film, and the special effects are quite superb. The film has been superbly shot by Oscar winning Australian born cinematographer Greig Fraser (Dune, etc) and Oren Soffer, whose stunning visuals are clearly influenced by such cinematic touchstones as Blade Runner and Apocalypse Now. The film was shot on location in Thailand which adds to its otherworldly look and feel as Edwards has seamlessly integrated his CGI-creations into the natural landscapes. There are a couple of quite exciting, spectacularly staged and visceral action sequences as well and some jaw dropping visuals.
But The Creator ultimately lacks subtlety and is let down by its conventional plotting and a derivative climax that indulges some of the usual tropes of the war movie and sci-fi genres.
★★★☆
