Director: Gareth Edwards 
Starring: John David Washington, Gemma Chan, Ken Watanabe, Sturgill Simpson, Allison Janney, Madeleine Yuna Voyles
Certificate: 12A
Run Time: 133 mins

The Creator is an original sci-fi from visionary director Gareth Edwards. Edwards attracted acclaim for his debut feature Monsters, which he shot on a shoestring budget and overlaid the 250 visual effects the film required in his bedroom over footage he had shot on location beforehand. He was quickly tapped to direct Godzilla, which had a fantastic opening only to self-combust in its second half. Edwards then directed Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, which sounded like a stressful project with extensive reshoots close to release. In my opinion, this was to the film’s benefit as the final result struggled with an uneven first act and then found its feet later on. It’d be fair to say Edwards has always been a better visionary than a storyteller and it’s striking that his follow-up to Rogue One arrives seven years later. 

Co-written with Chris Weitz but based on an original story from Edwards, The Creator is set in 2055. After a nuclear warhead is detonated in Los Angeles by an artificial intelligence created by the US government, the US and its Western allies want artificial intelligence eradicated. However, a region in Southeast Asia called New Asia resists attacks from the US and continue to embrace the technology. John David Washington plays Sergeant Joshua Taylor is tasked with returning to New Asia (after previously working undercover with devastating consequences) to locate ‘Nirmata’, New Asia’s chief architect behind its AI advancements.

The Creator is an enjoyable and thoughtful watch, although uneven in its execution. Although the storytelling may be flawed, Edwards has concocted an adventurous narrative and really showcases the most of some breathtaking locations. Edwards has clearly been by influenced Blade Runner, Apocalypse Now and District 9, with infusions of his own war imagery in Rogue One and strangely, Martin Scorsese’s religious epic Kundun. It doesn’t sound like it should work, but it mostly does. Although Edwards doesn’t really make his intentions clear, The Creator seems to perhaps be trying to compare this futuristic fight for humanity to the Vietnam War, suggesting Americans treated the natives as if they were robots. 

Despite the mixed messaging,as you’d expect for a Gareth Edwards film, The Creator is visually stunning with breathtaking cinematography. I was blown away by the fact the film had a $80 million budget – I’d have put it up there with the $250+ million budgets many blockbusters now have. Like Monsters, Edwards proves he’s masterful at dressing up footage with state-of-the-art visual effects. 

Edwards reunites with Greig Fraser, who served as Director of Photography through pre-production only for Oren Soffer to then take over. This film is sure to put Soffer on the cinematographer’s road map. A shot with a security camera guy inspecting footage who is then killed as we witness a solider enter the room on the CCTV recording and kill him is novel, as is a shot from the perspective of a child looking out an escape pod to see an explosion, the camera then dipping downward in the direction of the pod. There’s some phenomenal action sequences too, especially an early raid on a house. 

While the performances are serviceable, Edwards struggles with fleshing out the human characters. John David Washington is decent in the lead role but the character is a bit of a cypher and doesn’t have a lot of charisma. It’s a similar story with Gemma Chan, who is criminally underused. That said, Allison Janney’s a surprise highlight as a cutthroat Colonel and Ralph Ineson also impresses as a domineering General. Newcomer Madeleine Yuna Voyles fares well as the robotic simulate Joshua has to guide to safety.

Hans Zimmer’s score is very fitting at times but I wish the film cut back on some of the diegetic needle drops, which detract from the sombre tone it’s trying to go for. It was interesting to hear the film was originally edited without music, Edwards citing it was to allow the story to flow, with Zimmer being brought in late in post-production. 

Although The Creator’s plot doesn’t flow seamlessly, I appreciated Edwards’ ideas and ambition. It’s a remarkable-looking film and for an original sci-fi like this to exist without ties to existing properties is a miracle in and of itself. Despite its flaws, The Creator is an entertaining ride that has something to say.

⭐⭐⭐ (Good)