The Island (2005) (1 Viewer)

[Kevin Grey]

 

[Kevin Grey]

Also on the sponsorship- its even worse from the clones perspective: If they think they are the last remanants of humanity then in what context would large corporations like Aquafina and Xbox exist in? Lincoln should question who this "Microsoft" is that continues to produce the videogames that he enjoys.

 

[Citizen87645]

But did they at least have the decency to give them current consoles to use, or were they using early 2000 game consoles in 2019?

 

[ThomasC]

But did they at least have the decency to give them current consoles to use, or were they using early 2000 game consoles in 2019?

 

[Ruz-El]

My take on the sponsership: the Corporation would of sent out bids to industries for cloths, entertainment, etc. Winning bids would than be exclusive, and uniform in the complex.
Of course, this isn't a film that holds up to any serious scrutiny, if the clones think they are the last survivors of some catastrophy, than wouldn't the whole complex be alot more rag tag than it is? The complex of the clones is an Eden, with the clones themselves innocent Adam's and Eve's, with all their needs supplied by some god like force. The whole thing plays as a flimsy Eden metaphore, with their whole existence being wiped out when awareness creeps in (Scarlett is the cause of Ewans rebellion, she even becomes sexully aware before Ewan, in a really ham fisted way that didn't work for me at all. Don't get me wrong, I like to see Scarlett get down as much as anyone, it just didn't fit this film. I thought the film would of benifited by ending with Ewan returning to the house after his original was killed, have him imbrace Scarlett and end the film, leaving it open as to what else happened. The whole freeing the clnes bit was retarded, and them sailing into the sunset was just cheap) The product placement made sense to me in this case in that it is uniform and supplied to them. It doesn't make any sense in any way in the thinking that the clones are survivors.
Based on the trailer, do we even need spoiler tags discussing this film? All the twists are obvious, it's a Michael Bay film so you know shit will blow up! I think we are reading way more into this, as the final result doesn't really bear any scruttiny!

 

[Craig J. Koban]

I dunno gang. This film seemed like another journey into those excessive and self-indulgent MICHAEL BAY waters.

 

[Kevin Grey]

Again, doesn't fit in with the movie's fiction. The complex was *secret*. To the outside world the clones would have no need for clothes, entertainment, real food, etc since the clones were being kept in a persistive vegitative state.

You're right it doesn't hold up to scrutiny. The product placement was there for one reason- to help mitigate the excessive cost of the film. Bay has been very upfront about that.

 

[Matt Leigh]

Craig, that was more a review of Michael Bay and less of a review of the film.

The movie struck a really good chord with me. Ewans' curious youthful character who is always questioning the makeup of the world around him was very well done. The script was extremely well written, facilitating the character, the audience's perspective, and supplies a intriguing initial concept and lot of very clever action sequences which exist to further the plot. The story is also loaded with irony especially considering the sequence where the clones are busted for the use of the stolen credit card aka identity theft.

If it were any other director making the movie I wouldn't be surprised to hear more people championing the film.

As far as the product placement in the film is concered, as far as any of the companies who supplied the installation were concerned the products were being used for the people who work there and not for the product themselves. It also makes sense that the corporation itself would spend the money on the best they could get to ensure the clones were as healthy as possible. As well, the people who worked in the installation were military or under a military contract so they had extremely strict rules as to what they could say and do. At the end of the day there were only a few hundred clones in the facility, which looked as though it was built in an old classified nuclear silo, anyway so its not like it would have been dificult to conceal.

The spoiling of the secret of The Island is hardly surprising. Had I not known the reveal from the trailers I would have guessed it 10 minutes into the film and I don't think there is anything short of having the installation appear as though it is in space that would have made me think otherwise.

 

[Jerry R Colvin]

I can be as big of a movie snob as anybody else sometimes, and for years I had been guilty of pre-judging a film based soley on the director..... until supposedly great directors such as Martin Scorsese and Woody Allen started making really crappy films.

Why not keep an open mind? The Island was a fun summer flick. It was a good break from all the remakes/sequels/adaptations out there.... (although I'm not claiming it was a completely original piece of work)...

 

[Juan C]

I can be as big of a movie snob as anybody else sometimes, and for years I had been guilty of pre-judging a film based soley on the director..... until supposedly great directors such as Martin Scorsese and Woody Allen started making really crappy films.

Conversely, even Adrian Lyne made Jacob's Ladder.

 

[Benson R]

I think a lot of people critical of the movie either havent seen it or went in determined to hate it.

You can take my opinion with a grain of salt as I have enjoyed all of Michael Bay's films including Pearl Harbor. Its not that I dont agree with many of the criticisms of his films, its just that I always find more moments I really enjoyed that outweight the bad.

Anyway I thought this is his best film so far and would only agree that the 2nd half needs to be trimmed down a little, though I'm not sure what could have been removed.

I dont even agree that "you should check your brain at the door". Sure the film isnt particularly deep, but the main characters are pretty well realized and the film actually has interesting ideas to explore.

I am shocked this film looks to be one of the bigger bombs of the summer.

Its particularly dissappointing because Bay seemed to mature as a director here. Since this is his first failure I'm afraid he will not be encourage to stray far from the Bruckheimer formula for success in the future.

I think word of mouth will spread however, and maybe it will find life on video.

 

[Alex Spindler]

I'm also a bit sad to see the bad performance. There was a lot good here, and I think Bay managed to build on the ideas and shots he used for the Bad Boys 2 chase here to some good effect. His chase scene had some fantastic momentum going for it from start to finish, from foot race to aerial acrobatics. It's derivative of his other work, but it also shows some great understanding of what the material needed and he delivered some restraint with the camera (the lack of which he's often criticized for) when the situation called for it.
I loved the implication that there was a eugenics program established with rigidly defined rules that the clones must be vegetables. I didn't like the mumbo jumbo of why Lincoln had memories or why the clones had to be awake at all, but I really enjoyed the idea of how a 'body farm' would operate under those conditions. Using behavior modification so they weren't curious or sexually aware (and the idea of using a clone to carry a child to term for someone was also a neat idea...but how do you explain it if you're famous?).
The product placement was kind of moot for me. It's a given these days and even films like Minority Report have to work them in from time to time (which did it pretty creatively I think). The concept cars in this one and a nicely integrated CK ad balanced out the more blatant drink and MSN ads.
I thought it was a good Bay film, with two good leads. I'd fault some of the plot, but it's a fair amount more solid than some of his films are. Some of the shots he gets in this film are absolutely beautiful and the intro was packed with fun little details. Not as good as The Rock but better realized that Pearl Harbor, which was far too desperately trying to be Titanic to be any good.
How, about him making a Transformers movie...I can't see how this will work. He can surely wrangle explosions and car chases, but directing CG characters will be a stretch (as will seeing a robot transforming into a car on the big screen and it not looking goofy). Who had this great idea that this could be made into a movie in the first place? It works as a cartoon simply because it was the 80s and was great for a kid's brain to use as fodder for the toys themselves. I mean, it was jets and dinosaurs with lasers and Scatman Crothers. Although I suppose I can imagine the trailer now...(flying very close to the Autobot logo so that you can't make it out until they pull back)'In a world gone jaded that there was no mystery left...one boy is going to find out that there's More than Meets the Eye! (cue transforming sound and the logo changes into the title). Oh, this will likely end up terrible no matter who directs it. I wonder what David Fincher's Transformers would look like?

 

[Patrick Sun]

Was anyone else ducking when the barbells were flying into cars at full speed?

 

[Quentin]

I was too busy wondering why Bay was directly ripping himself off (BB2) and how much better the camera work was in Matrix: Reloaded.

 

[Quentin]

I enjoyed the film...with many reservations.

Despite all the familiarity, I liked the first act. The Bay-isms (heli shots, rotating shots, chase) of the 2nd act didn't ruin it for me, but it held it back. The resolution was fun...I liked

the body switch


but, I thought the following moral decision could have been stronger.

The finale was good fun.

Scarlett looked FIIIIIINE.

 

[Mikel_Cooperman]

I think a lot of people critical of the movie either havent seen it or went in determined to hate it.

Or they like Good movies.

 

[Nathan V]

I know that as a literate filmgoer, I am not 'supposed' to like Michael Bay, but when I see those slo-mo low angle shots of Djimoon Hounsou, I can't help myself. It's a matter of taste, I guess.

Bay's best film by a country mile, IMO. The first script he's tackled that has relatively well-developed characters and an intruiging premise. What a pleasure to see him apply his glossy, endlessly fascinating visual style to a good script, rather than the abominations of scripts that were Bad Boys 2 and Armageddon. The cast is exceptional, and Bay's photography is staggering. Visually he just keeps getting better. I didn't think it'd be possible for anyone to top the Bad Boys 2 chase, but it happened.It's great to see an action film that relies heavily on creative visuals and practical effects, rather than CGI. (btw, the bb2 car chase was a reaction to the matrix car chase; Bay wanted to outdo the matrix car chase without using any CG).

The worst thing about all this is that the film's BO take is most likely going to keep Bay from continuing to go in this direction, filming literate scripts. (I'm not saying The Island is literate, just that it's a more literate direction for Bay to take). In other words, the BO take will encourage Bay to not take risks in the future, which is a shame.

Regards,

Nathan

 

[PeterK]

I thought the first half was very good, and I was expecting this to be a really good movie halfway through. but then things kinda went downhill from there. I didn't like that guy from armegedon at all.

 

[Kevin Grey]

Not buying it- Matrix Reloaded and Bad Boys 2 were released approximately 2 months from each other.

 

[Alex Spindler]

That and the BB2 chase did have several CG shots. It was certainly filled with more physical car stunts than Reloaded, but it had some well integrated CG put into it.