This is Gareth Edwards' first film since the fantastic Rogue One in 2016 and it's certainly an ambitious prospect. If you can imagine a sliding scale of sci-fi quality with Blade Runner at one end and Elysium at the other, then The Creator would shuttle between the two, eventually landing closer to the former. There are aspects that feel familiar - some moments are a bit Avatar-ish, specifically when Allison Janney's Colonel Howell is on screen - but there's a lot that feels fresh, too.
It starts with a great premise - Artificial Intelligence has been steadily developing until around 2050, when a nuclear warhead is detonated in Los Angeles, prompting the 'Western world' to ban AI. Other regions, such as New Asia, don't accept or enforce a similar ban, forcing the US into a war, nominally against the AI and those who create or harbour them (no mention of 'New Africa' or New Oceania' or other such entities). The infiltration and jungle warfare tactics of the US authorities has a pretty heavy whiff of Vietnam here, drawing a long bow in the comparison between the existential threat of AI and the mendacity of forcing that messy chapter of history.
Picking up a few years later, John David Washington (Joshua) is under cover in New Asia when a botched attack by the US scuppers his gig and kills his agent/wife/mother of unborn child in the bargain. All in the attempt at finding Nirmata, the AI creator of the title. We jump forward a few more years again to learn that a new threat is on the table. Nirmata has produced a super weapon that can shut down the US floating super structure, NOMAD, likely tipping the war in New Asia's favour. High stakes.
The world building by Edwards is fantastic - the watery cities of New Asia; robot police fanning through rice fields; old cars with new electronics; the megalithic NOMAD, floating just out of the earth's atmosphere, raining down missiles; jogging 'suicide' bombs; clunky translation devices (ChattaBox); and a range of cool looking robots and simulants. The production design by James Clyne and the CGI are high-water marks of The Creator (here's a good read from The Credits website). The whole film looks amazing, with co-DOP's Greig Fraser and Oren Soffer to thank.
The film slightly loses its grasp in the third act where the story gets a little frenetic but, somehow, soporific at the same time. The Rogue One style righteous despair works less well here, possibly due to the lack of character development - for example, we don't get enough background of Gemma Chan's character, Maya. The relationship between her and Joshua needs a bit more than a few flashback beach shots at the beginning to give us reason to care and feel for their plight. Another issue might be that Washington doesn't have quite the talent of his father, Denzel, and unfair comparisons aside, he seems a touch miscast. His double act with Madeleine Yuna Voyles (Alphie) is sweet enough, though, I suppose.
All in all, this is a welcome entry to the original, thought-provoking sci-fi 'one-offs' stable (assuming there's no franchise on the cards). It has plenty going for it, especially visually, and is certainly worth a look. Ultimately though, Edwards has done a great job of smoothing the way for our future AI overlords by pitching the sympathy squarely in their cold, passionless favour. Thanks a lot, Gareth, you massive quisling arsehole.
See also:
I see a link to Alex Garland's Ex Machina (2014) and there's more AI sympathising going on in Alex Proyas' I, Robot (2004).
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