The Creator (2023)
There’s been plenty of anticipation for The Creator, Gareth Edwards’ first directorial credit in seven years. The publicity surrounding it looks vaguely Star Wars-y, of course, and seeing as Edwards is best known for directing Rogue One, this is no small obstacle. However, he exceeds expectations, albeit with a few missteps.
The year is 2070, and Joshua Taylor is mourning the death of his pregnant wife, Maya. He spends his days cleaning up Ground Zero in Los Angeles, where AI created by the US government detonated a nuclear bomb five years previously. Meanwhile, the government is looking for and rooting out any AI by way of sorta atoning for their mistake.
Joshua is asked to lead the team of operatives to the central AI base in New Asia and take out a mysterious figure known as Nirmata, who is reportedly fixing to destroy the USS Nomad and put AI in control of the world. If that happens, humankind is in danger of going extinct.
When Joshua finally consents, he finds more than he bargained for and his loyalties change. I won’t give spoilers except this: Certain people thought to be allies are actually enemies. Joshua also finds a little AI girl named Alphie, who can control technology with her mind.
There will be a lot that’s familiar here. George Lucas’s trademark used future is definitely in evidence, with some of the robot heads looking like Roombas and others looking like Kitchen Aid stand mixers. Still others call Boushh and his thermal detonator to mind, only in this case the detonators look more like dynamite with countdown clocks.
There are also I, Robot vibes, right down to the Three Laws of Robotics. There are Blade Runner and X-Men vibes, with humans and robots trying to figure out how to live together and governments declaring open season on certain individuals. And of course there are Matrix elements, what with the main threat being AI.
Amazingly enough, though, none of the seeming hacks matter, because they’re all tropes and everyone uses them to some extent. The story has enough humanity and high enough stakes that feels fresh, not to mention the visuals are absolutely stunning. John David Washington is amazing as Joshua and is a face to watch.
No movie is perfect, of course, and one of the things I would say about The Creator is that there were a lot of characters and not all of them make much difference to the story—after a while it’s not hard for the eyes to glaze over when a new face pops up. The film has a few too many plot points and sometimes feels unfocused. I also wish we could have seen some lighter moments between Joshua and Alphie; as it is, they only have time to run from their impending threat, but their relationship needed a wee bit more punch for the ending to have some more resonance.
Oh, and there’s a key moment very late in the film that feels a little contrived and cliched, but I’m not going to say more because I don’t want to ruin anything.
Other than that, I think The Creator is going to wear well and reveal more of itself upon repeated viewings. A mostly original story is indeed welcome among all the remakes, reboots, adaptations, and updates, especially when it plays as well as this one.
The Creator is currently in theaters. Rated PG-13.
My grade: B+
Principal Cast: John David Washington, Madeleine Yuna Voyles, Gemma Chan, Allison Janney, Ken Watanabe, Sturgill Simpson, Amar Chadha-Patel, Marc Menchacha, Robbie Tann, Ralph Ineson, Michael Esper, Veronica Ngo, Ian Verdun, Daniel Ray Rodriguez, Rad Pereira, Syd Skidmore, Karen Aldridge
Directed by Gareth Edwards.
Written by Gareth Edwards and Chris Weitz.