Potential. That was the word that came to mind when I watched the trailer for director Gareth Edwards’ new film, The Creator. I was intrigued, and while that might not come as a surprise—I am squarely within the target audience for a sci-fi action movie, after all—there were a number of things that The Creator had going for it.
First, it’s an original story, and though it leans on certain well-worn storytelling tropes and conventions, the fact that it wasn’t already part of some preordained cinematic universe was a positive in my book. Second, the story itself feels timely—a future war between humans and artificial intelligence as we grapple with the implications of AI in our current day and age. Third, it looks great. I mean, really great. The vision of a near-future Asia that Edwards and his team have concocted is stunning: natural, agrarian vistas seamlessly meld with neo-noir cityscapes.
But a film, like anything, cannot succeed on potential alone. It has to deliver. So, does The Creator live up to its potential? To abbreviate the words of another iconic sci-fi movie character: “Mostly.” Here's a review of The Creator...
Man vs. Machine
The Creator takes place in 2065, ten years after AI supposedly detonated a nuclear bomb in Los Angeles. America has declared war on AI in its entirety, including the robots and simulants (robots designed to look like humans—sans ears) who have achieved a very humanlike consciousness. As a result, the robots flee to New Asia, where they live alongside humanity as equals. That doesn’t stop the American military from pursuing them, however, resulting in a conflict intentionally modeled after the Vietnam War.
In the middle of the conflict is Joshua Taylor, played by John David Washington, an undercover operative for the U.S. Army tasked with finding and assassinating “Nirmata”—the mysterious, near-mythical architect of AI’s continuing advancement. Taylor is presented as a man with conflicting loyalties; he is a soldier committed to the cause (his family was killed in the nuclear attack on LA), but he also is married to Maya (Gemma Chan), a pro-AI resident of New Asia who is pregnant with his child.
When Maya and their unborn child are killed in an attack from NOMAD—think a big, orbital rocket launcher run by the American military—Joshua returns to the States a broken man. After a time, however, he is asked to return to New Asia with a task force led by Colonel Howell (Allison Janney) to find and destroy a new AI superweapon that could turn the tide of the war.
Lone Wolf and Cub
If you’ve seen any trailers for The Creator, you know that the AI superweapon is actually a simulant child, which Joshua dubs “Alphie” (Madeleine Yuna Voyles in an impressive debut, especially for a 7-year-old). Alphie can influence and control the technology around her, and it is implied that, in time, she will grow exponentially more powerful. As you might imagine, Joshua doesn’t want to kill a kid, even one he may not see as “real,” and thus begins another iteration of the “lone wolf and cub” story trope (Disney, the distributor for this film through 20th Century Studios, has used this same trope to great effect in the Mandalorian).
It doesn’t break any new ground, but there’s a reason this story style is frequently used—it’s effective. I also appreciated that the relationship between the two wasn’t rushed. Joshua might have a moral objection to destroying Alphie, but he’s not immediately gaga over her either. He sees Alphie as a means to an end, a way to reunite with his wife, who we eventually learn might not be so dead after all.
Substantive Spectacle
As mentioned above, The Creator is a visual triumph. The action is exciting and visually coherent. Skirmishes and large-scale destruction are rendered with aplomb. Honestly, the amount of technical TLC Edwards and Co. put into the film is staggering. No detail was overlooked, either in the macro or micro sense. The grandiose shots of Nepalese mountains, techno-cities, and space-based superweapons are given the same care and quality as a robot lounging on a fishing boat. As a director, Edwards’ sense of scale is impeccable, but he doesn’t skimp on the small stuff either.
Best of all, the action is backed up by a story with stakes—as you might expect from a war movie, there is a significant body count. And while the violence isn’t gory or graphic, the characters feel appropriately fragile. When someone gets shot in this movie, man or machine, they usually die (with one glaring exception).
The film’s visuals are made all the more impressive knowing that the movie’s budget was only $80 million. That’s a lot of money to be sure, but it’s a comparative bargain when most modern blockbusters take anywhere from $200-$300 million to produce (not including marketing costs). The Creator’s price tag is a result of a clear, unified vision shared by its, well, creators—the director, the cinematographer, the visual effects artists, and more. It’s a masterclass on delivering more while spending less.
The Space Between Black and White
The Creator is not a flawless film, and if I had one complaint about its story, it’s that it explored very little (if any) gray area between the two sides of the conflict. The robots and simulants of New Asia are willing to fight for their freedom, but it is made clear that all they want is a peaceful coexistence with humanity. Even Alphie, their “superweapon,” is created in benevolence.
Now, there is a reason for that which I won’t spoil it here. But the movie would have been better served by muddying things up a bit. For example, in addition to the American military, Alphie could have been pursued by a splinter group of the AI that grew to hate humanity and wanted to corrupt her in order to destroy or subjugate their oppressors.
Gareth Edwards sprinkled in many moments throughout the film where the robots are shown to have more of a heart than their human counterparts. The most effective sequence is when one robot knowingly sacrifices his life to protect a group of children. It’s a powerful moment that clearly illustrates the movie’s theme. Even still, The Creator would have benefited from showing us the shades of gray that could’ve existed in this world. Something a little more developed than humans bad, robots good.
Additionally, the dialogue is serviceable, and it’s delivered well by skilled actors, but I can’t imagine any quotes joining the ranks of classic sci-fi movie lines. The soundtrack also did its job, but it didn’t stand out (though maybe this will change after listening to it a few more times).
The Creator Review: A Sci-Fi Epic Well Worth Your Time
The Creator is an original, exciting, and often breathtaking movie that is well worth your time. Though its story, while effective, doesn’t quite match the standard set by its worldbuilding and visuals, and there is a third act hitch that (in my opinion) unnecessarily delays the finale, these are minor complaints that don’t upend a very good movie.
There are some truly special ingredients here that every sci-fi fan deserves to experience. The Creator may not have totally lived up to it’s vast potential, but it got pretty darn close.
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