Tech thriller The Creator wants us to save ourselves
The film points out that the power to create and the power to destroy are both in our hands, and what we decide to do with them is up to us
THE more artificial intelligence (AI) continues to evolve, the higher the stakes seem to rise for humanity. The Creator arrives on the scene to ask a question that has never been more pertinent: As both man and machine reach new levels of destructive potential, can the two truly coexist – and if so, for how long?
It’s a tough one, no doubt, but British filmmaker Gareth Edwards is no stranger to tough questions. His last two releases, Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, were noted for their nuanced exploration of similarly weighted societal themes through the lens of war and military action.
Like its predecessors, Edwards’ new sci-fi thriller The Creator delivers an affecting interrogation into the consequences of our actions.
The film opens in the year 2065, a version of the future where the Western world has declared war on artificial intelligence (AI). The people of “New Asia” defend and continue the use of such technology, making them targets of repeated raids and bombings by Western armed forces led by the US.
In Ko Nang, Joshua (John David Washington) and his pregnant wife Maya (Gemma Chan) hide out on an idyllic beach – until a sudden US military ambush reveals Joshua to be an undercover American agent, hoping to get close enough to Maya to discover the whereabouts of the AI creator named Nirmata.
Haunted by Maya’s death in the raid, Joshua retreats from army duty for the next five years, until he’s drawn back into the conflict with the revelation that his wife could still be alive – and that she remains the key to finding the still-elusive Nirmata and their new weapon.
A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU
Friday, 2 pm
Lifestyle
Our picks of the latest dining, travel and leisure options to treat yourself.
The first act spends a little too long meandering about, presumably to give Oscar winner Allison Janney more to do while they’ve got her on the payroll playing Joshua’s minder Colonel Howell. But everything kicks into gear when Joshua meets the new AI weapon – a bionic child he calls Alphie (Madeleine Yuna Voyles), whom he eventually commits to protecting at the risk of his own life.
The dialogue isn’t always the cleanest or neatest, but Edwards’ arresting visuals and steady pacing carry it off, with a lot of help from the talented cast. Washington is adequate, but doesn’t quite have the natural emoting ability of his father Denzel.
The real magnetism lies with Voyles – a newcomer who conquered the film’s demanding 18-week shoot at the tender age of seven – with her round Bambi-esque eyes and impressive screen presence.
On the whole, The Creator‘s few shortfalls are easily forgiven once it gets the chance to present its strongest offerings. In particular, the film’s throughline of questioning of technological anxiety and Western imperialism are just as gripping as its tensest action sequences.
The visual language of the film speaks volumes: the nuclear-ravaged crater of Los Angeles, for example, is made up of dust and rubble, while the populated cities are glass and steel. Even with AI systems outlawed, machinery remains at the forefront.
Westerners, for all their moralising about the dangers of unbridled technological advancement, don’t seem to have learnt how to build societies ungoverned by instruments of surveillance and weapons of mass destruction.
In stark contrast, while the people of New Asia continue to rely on AI, their way of life hasn’t changed all that much – the camera roves freely over lush green mountains and paddy fields, and weaves through villages crowded with attap houses and barefoot children.
“Do you know what would happen if we win the war?” AI resistance fighter Harun (Ken Watanabe) wearily asks Joshua. “Nothing.”
Technology, The Creator argues, has neither agency nor significance in itself. When humans express fear of its potential, what we really fear is ourselves and what we’re capable of doing to ourselves and each other.
The power to create and the power to destroy are both in our hands. What we decide to do with both – or neither – is up to us.
The Creator is now showing in theatres
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
