The Creator (2023)

 

Gareth Edwards brought the world the surprisingly good 'Star Wars Rogue One' among others, so it's fair to say some people were curious to see what he would bring to the table in this project. Once again delving into science fiction and with the threat of war looming over the story, this feels akin to the other project, only with a bit more schmaltz and mostly a very predictable storyline. Thank goodness the visuals and overall acting are decent enough to at times make one forget that you can telegraph every single step of the way. 

In the relatively near future, AI and robots are an integral part of society all over the world. That is, until a nuclear explosion destroys large parts of Los Angeles, after which the United States bans AI. The Far East however does not and thus a war between both ensues. 

Yes, this film gives off quite a bit of Vietnam War-vibes, both politically and visually.

Joshua is a soldier tasked with finding the leader of the Asian AI-front called Nirmata, but instead he falls in love with a woman called Maya. However, when a military operation goes awry, Maya is killed and Joshua grows disillusioned. He is however brought back in order to lead a team that will infiltrate a base to destroy an alleged new AI superweapon.

Turns out the superweapon is a child. A robot child, but a child nonetheless. This child also has the power to interrupt, destroy or start anything electronic or computerised. And with the US superdestroyer Nomad in the sky, you can see where this is headed. Oh, and because Joshua not only lost Maya but she was pregnant at the time, you can doubly see where this is headed.

And you would be most emphatically correct.

So Joshua and the child (which he named Alphie) are now on the run and chased by a zealous colonel and her troops. Along the way Joshua learns that AI is not all evil and that everything just wants to live, whereas the dastardly American military wants to plunder, destroy and eradicate with no regard for anything.

There is a clear metaphor here somewhere, I just know it.

So yes, the message gets beaten to death and though there is certainly truth to it, it gets a little tedious after a while. The fact that Joshua first despises all things robotic and then develops feelings for the robot child and learns that they just want to live, is also predictable to a T. In fact, this is what hurts the film most: its bog standard plot. 

However, the visuals and set design are absolutely stunning. This is one goodlooking film. The acting is fine, with decent performances and pretty good line delivery of some rather inane dialogue at times, but if you're looking for deeply authentic thoughts about the state of the world and what it means to be alive, then you might want to check some other properties.

All in all, definitely not a bad film by any stretch and wonderful to look at, but a little run-of-the-mill as far as stories go.