Director Gareth Edwards makes his return to multiplexes this week with his sci-fi adventure film The Creator. The year is 2065 and the world is in the midst of war as the West is engaged in conflict with the Republic of New Asia over its continued usage of artificial intelligence after AI detonated a nuclear bomb in Los Angles five years earlier. Ex-special forces agent Joshua (John David Washington) is recruited to hunt down and kill Nirmata, which means the Creator in Nepalese, the elusive architect of advanced AI. His cover is blown during an operation and Joshua loses his pregnant wife, and daughter of Nirmata, Maya (Gemma Chan). Five years later in 2070, Nirmata has developed a mysterious weapon that has the power to end the war and all of mankind. Joshua and a team of elite operatives venture into New Asia to find and destroy the weapon, with Joshua promised to be reunited with Maya who has recently been discovered to have survived the 2065 operation. They soon discover the mysterious weapon is a humanoid AI, which are called Simulants, in the form of a young child codenamed Alpha-0 (Madeline Yuna Voyles). Joshua soon learns “Alphie” knows where to find Maya and embarks on a journey to find his long lost wife.
As one would imagine, The Creator’s premise leads to exploration of AI’s sentience and existence; whether they exist for the created entities and how that question dictates their treatment and the rights they receive. It is interesting to see this theme and the validity of the question play out onscreen due to the performances of Washington and Alphie and the dynamic between them that invests you in the outcome. On a philosophical level however, it’s a question about cyborgs and ethics that have been oft explored in other legendary sci-fi films in more substantive, and as a result, more interesting ways. The story of a chosen child who needs protecting and questions of where sentience begins and ends in artificially created intelligence and what moral responsibility for humane treatment toward AI exists if they are determined to be autonomous entities have been covered extensively in film, even in recent years. The Creator adds nothing new here even if the exploration of the limits to where AI is headed in the real world is topical and prescient. What Edwards does do successfully here that still makes The Creator an entertaining watch is imbue the film with a hefty war aesthetic that feels real with stakes that inspire a rooting interest in the audience and it is this that ultimately powers the film rather than intellectually pondering over the moralistic aspect of its theme. The film’s action sequences are bombastic and ambitious, but well paced throughout the story so as to not overshadow the film’s thematic exploration and character work. The visual effects also standout, looking seamless and futuristic while still seeming realistic for a war weary world that has seen its share of destruction.
Washington’s performance as Joshua may be the strongest performance of his young film career as a believable military figure with an emotional hole in his backstory that has left him jaded and hardened, only to slowly come out of it as he seeks the aid of a young girl who may lead him back to his lost love. Voyles’ performance and chemistry with Washington does the rest of the heavy lifting, complimenting Joshua’s arc with a child character to become invested in not just due to any cliched cuteness, but in wanting to see her fulfill her stated promise as a simulant who can bring about peace. Both of their stories and how they lead to them building a connection combine with the film’s action to form the hook for the audience.
The Creator subtly includes some religious themes in its portrayal of the batter between American humans and AI with its characters sharing similarities with various biblical figures. Joshua, a warrior who leads a persecuted minority to a metaphorical promised land following the death of its Moses figure, is the most obvious biblical analog as his name literally suggests. Although a reluctant hero who has to be led to recognizing the humanity in the figures he ends up saving, his actions and sacrifice in leading them to victory and a better place on Earth is reminiscent of his biblical namesake. Alphie serves as an equally obvious savior figure who was created to save her people, with Edwards going so far as to include a scene in the film where an AI tells the story of the coming savior who will bring peace on Earth as the camera lingers on Alphie. The religious allegory present in the film is interwoven into the story in an interesting way that doesn’t distract from the film.
The Creator is a sci-fi visual feast that seems futuristic but plausible for its setting with large-scale action set pieces that are well executed. While its premise is slightly worn and can be seen portrayed with better depth in other sci-fi classics, John David Washington and Madeline Yuna Voyles’ chemistry and performances ensure that the non-action parts of the film aren’t a waste and still keep audiences attentive.
Image: 20th Century Studios
