Sunday, 1 October 2023

The Creator - The scoop and digest

Gareth Edwards directs, provides story and co-writes screenplay with Chris Weitz.

John David Washington - Sergeant Joshua Taylor
Madeleine Yuna Voyles - Alpha-O/Alphie
Gemma Chan - Maya Fey-Taylor
Ken Watanabe - Harun
Sturgill Simpson - Drew
Allison Janney - Colonel Howell
Ralph Ineson - General Andrews
Marc Menchaca - General McBride
Veronica Ngo - Kami

Summary

In 2055, a nuclear warhead was detonated in Los Angeles killing nearly a million people by the A.I. created to protect humanity.  Despite banning A.I. in the western world, the New Asia Republic continue to develop A.I., raising them as equals.

Ko Nang, 2065.

Sergeant Joshua Taylor's pregnant wife Maya is apparently killed when weaponised spaceship the U.S.S. Nomad (North American Orbital Mobile Aerospace Defense) drops a bomb.

Five years later, Taylor is visited by General Andrews who informs Maya isn't dead and A.I. leader Nirmata has developed a super weapon dubbed Alpha-O, designed to destroy Nomad.

He reluctantly joins reconnaissance mission to take out Nirmata, but learns target is actually a young robot girl he calls 'Alphie'.

In order to find Maya, Taylor goes rogue and protects wee lassie.

More human than human

Loaded with thought-provoking themes, excellent worldbuilding, great performances, tight action and stunning visuals, Gareth Edwards' sci-fi epic is unlike any other.

Having said that, this borrows from so much.

Blade Runner, Apocalypse Now, Kundun, I, Robot, Star Wars, Akira, Ex Machina, Children of Men, Elysium, Platoon, District 9, The Terminator, The Last of Us and rather ironically, A.I. Artificial Intelligence.

Even if writing gets bogged down with sentimentality and some characters lack personality, glorious spectacle is still a must see.

Oh, not since The Evil Within (ntbcw 2017 film of same name), has Claude Debussy's Clair de Lune felt more appropriate.

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