The Island (2005)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

Michael Bay

Writers (WGA):

Caspian Tredwell-Owen (screenplay) and
Alex Kurtzman (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

22 July 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Your time will come...

Plot:

A man goes on the run after he discovers that he is actually a "harvested being", and is being kept along with others in a utopian facility.

Plot Keywords:

Environment | Clone | Lottery | Escape | Fish Out Of Water

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Ewan McGregor	...	Lincoln Six Echo / Tom Lincoln
Scarlett Johansson	...	Jordan Two Delta / Sarah Jordan
Djimon Hounsou	...	Albert Laurent
Sean Bean	...	Dr. Merrick
Steve Buscemi	...	James McCord
Michael Clarke Duncan	...	Starkweather Two Delta
Ethan Phillips	...	Jones Three Echo
Brian Stepanek	...	Gandu Three Echo
Noa Tishby	...	Community Announcer
Siobhan Flynn	...	Lima One Alpha
Troy Blendell	...	Laurent Team Member
Jamie McBride	...	Laurent Team Member
Kevin McCorkle	...	Laurent Team Member
Gary Nickens	...	Laurent Team Member
Kathleen Rose Perkins	...	Laurent Team Member

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sexuality and language.

Runtime:

136 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Taiwan:PG-12 | Malaysia:18SG | Iceland:16 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | USA:PG-13 (certificate #41894) | France:U (with warning) | Australia:M | Singapore:PG | South Korea:12 | Hong Kong:IIA | Finland:K-15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Germany:16 | Canada:G (Quebec) | UK:12A | Ireland:12A | Norway:15 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Netherlands:12 | Sweden:11 | Denmark:11 | Brazil:14 | Argentina:16 | Peru:14 | Czech Republic:12

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

This is the first Michael Bay film not produced by Jerry Bruckheimer.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Lima One Alpha is being poisoned shortly after giving birth, we see a toe tag on her right big toe; in the next shot, it has moved to her left foot.

Quotes:

[first lines]
God-Like Man: You're special. You have a very special purpose in life. You've been chosen. The Island awaits you.

Movie Connections:

Features Shrek (2001)

Soundtrack:

Kyrie from Missa Papae Marcelli

Good Action Thriller

I saw the movie at the Detroit red carpet premiere on Monday, July 18. In attendance were Michael Clarke Duncan and Djimon Hounsou.

The movie reminded me very much of Total Recall and The Matrix, not only with the plot line, but with its intensity. This was a very good summer action thriller. It was a little slow at first but once Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson's characters discovered that they were clones, the action picked up immensely.

I was a little surprise about the lack of time Duncan was in the movie. Hounsou did a fabulous job as the hired gun. I am not a Ewan McGregor fan but I think he did a great job as Lincoln Six Echo and Tom Lincoln, especially when both Six Echo and Lincoln were in the same scenes together. Johansson looked good on the screen but her dialogue was limited.

Steve Buscemi did an funny job in his supporting role as McCord, the human buddy of Lincoln Six Echo. The scene when Johansson's character, Jordan Two Delta, and McCord go through McCord's closet to find some normal clothes for Johansson is a riot.

As parts of the movie was shot in Detroit (See when Ewan and Scarlett arrive in L.A.), I was looking for shots of the Motor City. In this sense, the movie did an excellent job making Detroit and "L.A." look really snazzy. However, in two shots of downtown "L.A.", you will see on the side of one of the buildings, a giant mural of Stevie Yzerman in his Red and White Red Wings jersey. I don't know if this was a goof, but it was interesting to think of why Yzerman would be on the side of a building in L.A. forty years hence.

Overall, I give it a seven. If you are a giant action and science fiction fan, you should not miss The Island.