Could “The Island” be that “Logan’s Run” remake we have all been waiting for?
“The Island” stars Ewan McGregor as Lincoln Six-Echo, a man who lives in a perfect, yet very strict environment. His utopian world is filled with duties and routines which Lincoln begins to question. How does his perfect world actually operate?
The only real salvation that Lincoln and the people of his controlled world have is a daily lottery where winners are whisked off to the mythical paradise “the island” to live the rest of their lives in freedom. Where is this “island” and what do you do when you get there?
The more questions Lincoln raises the more he begins to doubt his surroundings until he learns that he is in fact living a lie and that he is a clone. Lincoln grabs fellow resident and his friend Jordan Two-Delta (Scarlett Johansson) and they begin to run for their lives. Together they will find out all the secrets that their world hides.
“The Island” is one of those films that the less you know going in the better the experience it will be. The problem with that kind of film is that it’s very hard to market especially when you have a high-profile director like Michael Bay at the helm.
The opening and experiences that Lincoln Six-Echo encounters while still within the utopian society are interesting and really draw you in. Director Michael Bay’s restraint here is actually impressive where we begin to see a story with real substance and he allows his actors to act.
I really enjoyed McGregor and Johansson as the leads in this film and the humanity they bring to their characters. McGregor is one of the most intriguing actors working in Hollywood today and this proves it once again. I can’t imagine what this film would have been like without him. Can you imagine a hack like Colin Farrell in this role? Perish the thought.
The production design and basic plot elements reminded me a lot of the sci-fi classic “Logan’s Run” where the utopian survivors begin to doubt that the outside world is contaminated and that their society is in fact a lie so they must run. Don’t get me wrong this isn’t a direct remake but it does house a lot of the same philosophy.
The idea of replacing the whole “dated” nuclear holocaust angle in “Logan’s Run” with this cloning angle is actually very intriguing and seems a perfect way to bring that story into our world and deliver a similar impact it had back in the 1970s.
I was enthralled by “The Island” and started to believe it was the best movie of the summer. For over an hour, I was transfixed to the screen. Then the more the film moved along the more signature Michael Bay shots I started to see. Man stepping from helicopter in slow-mo with blades whizzing above him. A cluttered freeway crash sequence ripped right out of “Bad Boys 2”. And even more explosions and bellowing action stunts that are way, way over the top.
I liked Michael Bay a lot when he was restrained from using his signature stuff and I even believed for a second that he could be a great director if given the right material. But once I started getting hit with Michael Bay mayhem I started to lose touch with the story and the characters.
Don’t get me wrong there was also some of the adrenaline junkie stuff I liked but it just seemed tiresome and routine especially the truck sequence.
Surprisingly the product placement in the film didn’t bug me as much as it has been talked about. There are some scenes where I did notice it but for me it wasn’t any worse than it was in “Minority Report”.
I liked “The Island” and a lot of what it had to offer but I think the film should have stuck more with the story and less with the explosions.
(3.5 out of 5)
So Says the Soothsayer.
How we all yearn to control our lives more. Stop enjoy the beautiful moments, skip the uncomfortable situations and advance past the work day so we can get some quality time with the people we love.
Also why wasn’t there a slo-mo scene involving Sandler’s affections for Beckinsale. He always seemed to fast-forward past her even though in the very next scene he cries out his unconditional love for her. If anyone deserved a slo-mo scene it’s Beckinsale.
When I was a mere squirt of about 13 years old, a comic book taught me a few lessons that I haven’t forgotten to this day. This comic book was Daredevil.
This is one of the hardest reviews I have ever had to write. I have struggled to look at this film without my admiration with the comic. I have found that impossible. The film is based on the legendary Frank Miller storyline from the 1980s, which changed the lives of the ones who read it forever. How could a comic influence and change a reader so much? Isn’t that left only for novels? Well for anyone who doesn’t enjoy comics or know that comics are for grown-ups, that maybe the truth.
I had a lot of problems with the portrayals of Elektra and Kingpin. The audience needs to know more about them before it can connect with them. Even as a die-hard fan I found it difficult to follow the film-versions. It was as if Joel Schumacher had written these characters. Who is Elektra? Why should we care about her? How deep does the Kingpin’s influence go? What is his motive?
Like sands through an hourglass, so are the days of our lives. Well, that seems to be the case with Persian lives anyhow.
The 2010 movie does harnass the allure of the video game with lavish sets, costumes and an impressive production design. The stunts are some of the most impressive in recent memory and even scenario is ripped right from the game itself. You could say this homage reminded me a lot of what they “tried” to do in the first Tomb Raider film.
There has been a lot of political backlash regarding the film and it’s casting. If it worked I wouldn’t complain but this doesn’t.
Those lonely commuter train rides really can get to us. The faceless strangers we are crunched together with as we are shuttled around until we reach our next stop. A sigh of relief as we can breathe for a minute then its back into the mosh pit we call a bus or train.
Like all “forbidden affairs” everything goes inevitably bad. This time the couple’s love tryst is invaded by a mean guy (Vincent Cassel) who seems to be cardboard cut-out of the most boring villain ever. This oh-so mean guy beats Owen to a pulp, rapes Aniston and well leaves them alive so he can bug them later.
I really think that Owen’s performance and character should have been more like Harrison Ford in Roman Polanski’s “Frantic”. The guy isn’t a moron and does all he can to fight back even if he is an every-day joe. Just because your every-day doesn’t mean you won’t fight. Owen is a wet noodle compared to Ford in “Frantic”.
Written: February 25, 2003
Written: June 19, 2000
The way the film is put together and synchronized is really nice to see. This is the pure atmosphere that makes us fondly remember those cult films of seventies. I have always loved the Isaac Hayes “Shaft” theme song. Another atmospheric marvel within Shaft is that this film pays homage to genre by embracing what it was instead of making fun of it. Another breath of fresh air had to be there was no cliched woman love interest for the hero. Blaxpolitation is finally becoming cool.
A heroin addict’s child could be the savior of man but first she must face a series of temptations sent by Lucifer himself.
A few amazing visuals perfectly capture the vision of demons and angels. But the “rat-demon” boggles my mind on why that effect was necessary. Wouldn’t Rufus Sewell’s devilish performance be enough unholy enough for the plot and the religious finale? I often wondered what it would have been like if Sewell and Smits had switched roles.
That zany Jack Black is at it again. He’s rocked the school, questioned our taste in music and chased a giant gorilla. Now he’s taking on the Mexican world of professional wrestling as a masked luchador.
