The Creator review

THE CREATOR: 

A FLAWED BUT WELL-CONSTRUCTED SCI-FI ADVENTURE! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** out of 4

20^TH CENTURY STUDIOS

A conflict between humans and AI robots is about to begin in The Creator

 

            In the tradition of films about artificial intelligence such as A.I., Ex-Machina, M3GAN, and…Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, writer-director Gareth Edwards (Monsters, Godzilla (2014), Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) decides to throw his hat in the ring with his latest sci-fi adventure, The Creator. Along with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Oppenheimer, this was one of my most anticipated films of the year, I admire Edwards as a filmmaker even though his films aren’t necessarily great (I enjoyed his Godzilla movie and Rogue Onedespite their flaws). 

            Regardless of whether or not I love or simply like a movie of his, I’m usually very excited whenever a new film of his comes out and this was no exception. Especially since artificial intelligence has become so relevant in recent years (Most infamously it being the cause of the 2023 Writers Guild of America Strike) and how advanced it’s gotten. 

            So, after much anticipation and repeatedly watching the trailers featuring the Aerosmith song, Dream On, I can say that I enjoyed The Creator. I don’t think it’s a perfect film especially in terms of its narrative, but there is a lot to admire about it. 

            The film is set in 2065 during a war between the human race and forces of artificial intelligence and follows a hardened ex-special forces agent named Joshua (John David Washington-BlacKkKlansman, Tenet, Amsterdam) grieving over the mysterious disappearance of his wife Maya (Gemma Chan-Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Crazy Rich Asians, Eternals) being recruited to hunt down and kill the elusive architect of advanced AI simply known as the Creator who has developed a mysterious weapon with the power to end the war…and mankind itself. But when Joshua discovers the weapon is actually in the form of a young child named Alphie (Newcomer, Madeleine Yuna Voyles), he realizes there may be more to this little robot girl than he expected. 

            The film also stars Ken Watanabe (Inception, Godzilla 1 and 2, Pokémon: Detective Pikachu) as Harun, Sturgill Simpson (The Dead Don’t Die, The Hunt, Killers of the Flower Moon) as Shipley, Allison Janney (American Beauty, I, Tonya, Bombshell) as Colonel Howell, Ralph Ineson (Harry Potter franchise, The Green Knight, The Northman) as General Andrews, Marc Menchaca (The Alamo, Ozark, Sick) as General McBride, and Veronica Ngo (Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Da 5 Bloods, The Old Guard) as Kami. 

            Overall, The Creator may not be the most original film about artificial intelligence, but it’s still a well-constructed sci-fi adventure with excellent performances by the cast and tons of relevant, thought-provoking themes. The plot is very derivative of other sci-fi films about AI to the point where it can get predictable at times, but it utilizes familiar elements in a way that makes them feel new when you see it. 

            I wasn’t constantly comparing this film to other movies with similar subject matter or storylines and if anything, I was engrossed thanks to its spectacular cast. I’ve talked about John David Washington as an actor before in other movie reviews and he is once again a very endearing leading man for the film, but the person who steals the show is easily Madeleine Yuna Voyles as Alphie and the #1 reason to see the movie. 

            This is Voyles’ first acting credit, and she knocks it out of the park here, she is so sympathetic and so likable in this movie while also having very charming chemistry with…just about every single one of her co-stars. Voyles is giving her all in every scene and finds a perfect balance between cute and innocent and dead serious, easily one of the best child actor performances since Haley Joel Osment from The Sixth Sense and Jacob Tremblay from Room. 

            Despite taking place several years in the future, The Creator hits on some very relevant themes specifically with AI, how far it should go, and the difference between intelligence and artificial intelligence. We all know how big AI has become in the news lately and how it’s been subjected to both excitement and controversy and this film depicts those real-life aspects very effective while also showing sympathy for the artificial intelligence, it reminded me a lot of James Cameron’s Terminator movies if the Machines had a sense of humanity to them which I found very fascinating in the film. 

             The CG effects are also stunning with the absolute best being the ones you don’t even notice like the robot parts of Alphie and other AI robots, or some the technology used in this world. There was a trailer for the new MCU movie, The Marvels before it and just about all the CGI looked very fake and overly digital despite having a significantly larger budget than this so kudos to the filmmakers and graphic artists here for actually trying to make the effects look as good as possible. 

            At times, the film’s pacing feels rushed with certain plot elements being glossed over or were originally explored more but had to be trimmed down to fit the runtime. It didn’t bother me too much, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a director’s cut comes out that expands upon the world and storyline further and is better paced than the version released in theaters. 

            Despite its flaws, The Creator is definitely worth checking out especially in a theater with a large screen. You get a fun sci-fi adventure while also getting a much deeper storyline about modern technology VS society and if there’s a middle ground that could be reached.