"Attack of the Clones"
by Scott Mantz

"The Island"
Ewan McGregor, Scarlett Johansson
Directed by Michael Bay

There is no sanctuary!  Scarlett Johansson and Ewan McGregor discover the outside world in "The Island"

“I think, therefore I am.”

Rene Descartes

I never thought I’d find myself quoting a French philosopher from the 17th century after seeing a movie directed by Michael Bay, but I guess there’s a first time for everything.  For the past 10 years, Bay and producer Jerry Bruckheimer collaborated on a slew of high-octane, high-concept box office hits like “The Rock,” “Armageddon,” “Pearl Harbor” and the “Bad Boys” movies.  Whether you like them or not – or you’re simply too embarrassed to admit that you do – there’s no denying that there’s an appreciative audience for these kind of testosterone-fueled, popcorn-minded Hollywood blockbusters.

And that audience knows what to expect from a Michael Bay movie – big explosions, high-speed car chases, pulverizing fight scenes, well-dressed characters and hokey endings.  While all these elements are certainly present and accounted for in Bay’s latest big screen spectacle “The Island,” there’s another more welcomed quality that has been severely lacking in his previous films – substance.  For his first directorial effort without Bruckheimer calling the shots, Bay has a fashioned a real winner – an exciting, thrilling, relevant and (dare I say it) intellectually stimulating sci-fi adventure that will not only please his longtime fans, but it may even win over his harshest critics.

Lincoln Six-Echo (Ewan McGregor) and Jordan Two-Delta (Scarlett Johansson) are among the hundreds of residents living in a technologically advanced, but carefully controlled environment in the mid-21st century.  Everything about their day-to-day lives is monitored, but they hold out hope that they will one day be chosen to live a life of freedom on The Island – the last pure spot in the world following a devastating ecological disaster.  When Lincoln begins to question the nature of his existence, he makes the horrifying discovery that his whole life has been a manufactured lie – and that The Island doesn’t even exist.  With time running out, Lincoln and Jordan make a daring escape to the outside world, where they soon realize that they are worth more dead than alive.

What’s truly remarkable about “The Island” is not that it challenges you by asking so many questions, but that it challenges you with the types of questions you find yourself asking.  Among them, should manufactured humans – or clones – be used as “lab rats” to help extend the life of the human race?  Should the science of human cloning even be tampered with in the first place?  What level of consciousness needs to be achieved before a clone can be classified as a genuine human being?  Is a clone’s value worth less than the value of the human it is created from?  And does the killing of a clone qualify as murder?

Clones have existed in the realms of science fiction and fantasy for decades, but thanks to recent technological advances, the prospect of cloning of a human being isn’t as far-fetched as it used to be.  That’s what makes “The Island” such a relevant movie, but it’s also a lot of fun, and it successfully blends elements of other sci-fi classics.  Obviously, the concept of having naive humans escape from a seemingly perfect utopian society has “Logan’s Run” written all over it.  But writer Caspian Tredwell-Owen – who adapted his own story with co-screenwriters Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci – was also inspired by Philip K. Dick’s “Blade Runner,” which proposed the notion of having manufactured humans fight for their identities after being implanted with previously existing memories.

But “The Island” is still very much a Michael Bay movie, and it doesn’t take long for the filmmaker’s slick, explosive flair for theatrics to take over.  After Lincoln and Jordan break out into the real world, they seek the help of a reluctant institute employee (Steve Buscemi, in typical comic relief fashion), who immediately sets them up with a stylish wardrobe.  From that point on, you can count on a vast array of brutal fights, fierce car chases and harrowing near misses, and while these action scenes feel like an intellectual step down after such a provocative set-up, they are still extremely thrilling and exciting.

Director Ridley Scott once remarked about his film noir classic “Blade Runner” that “sometimes the design is the statement.”  That’s certainly the case with the brighter, sleeker design here, but Ewan McGregor still shines through with an engaging performance.  Then again, after managing to stand out in the special effects-saturated “Star Wars” prequels, this must have been child’s play for him.  Scarlett Johansson is more understated in her first full-blown action movie, but at least she’s effective enough (and looks good) as McGregor’s love interest.  And as the institution head, Sean Bean pretty much channels the same bad guy performance he’s played countless times before, while Djimon Hounsou makes some very contrived choices as the leader of the security team pursuing McGregor and Johansson.

Despite losing some of its edge in the last 40 minutes and coming to a hokey, corny conclusion, “The Island” is still a very entertaining film, and it easily stands out as one of the year’s best movies.  It’s that rare summer film that manages to be intellectually challenging and a lot of fun, and if Michael Bay can make a movie this good without Bruckheimer looking over his shoulder, then here’s hoping that they don’t team up again anytime soon.

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