By: Gabriel Bernstein
With our ever-advancing technology in the realms of artificial intelligence (AI), new movie “The Creator” creates a unique perspective on the subject. Directed by Gareth Edwards and Chris Weitz, this dramatic yet action packed Sci-Fi movie is bound to hold viewers at the edge of their seats.
“The Creator” takes place on our planet around the year 2070, when AI is a part of day-to-day life. A catastrophe occurred previously when a nuclear bomb was accidentally set off in Los Angeles, killing millions of people. Most people believed that the AI had caused it, starting a war between AI and humans.
Introducing Joshua: a retired spy who thought he lost his wife while infiltrating AI territory. The moment he saw proof that his wife was alive, the American military offered him a second chance to find her after doing a favor for them. This involved killing the Creator, the AI’s last chance weapon to somehow win the war. After realizing that the weapon was an AI child, Joshua decided to venture with it against both America and the AI race to find his lost wife.
I think that the movie did a great job with the futuristic design. The AI models were amazing and there were many new ideas in the movie, such as the NOMAD, an orbital base that could blow up any place on Earth, and the concept of putting a deceased person’s consciousness into a robot body for a limited time.
Some of the acting could use some work, especially with the lead actor playing Joshua, John David Washington. At times it was hard to get emotion out of him in certain scenes which caused the movie to release some tension. Ken Watanabe (who played Harun in the movie) was an excellent actor because he truly demonstrated the sobering toll of this war on a person’s mentality.
This movie is fascinating because it shines a positive light on AI. Most movies form a negative connotation with AI, partially due to their unpredictability, however Gareth and Chris take this unpredictability in stride to create a masterpiece where the humans and the AI each have something to fight for. Perhaps thinking they have the moral high ground makes them better antagonists.