The Island (2005)

A man living in a futuristic sterile colony begins to question his circumscribed existence when his friend is chosen to go to the Island, the last uncontaminated place on earth.

Director:

Michael Bay

Writers:

Caspian Tredwell-Owen (screenplay), Alex Kurtzman (screenplay)

Stars:

Scarlett Johansson, Ewan McGregor, Djimon Hounsou

1 win & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ewan McGregor	...	Lincoln Six Echo / Tom Lincoln
Scarlett Johansson	...	Jordan Two Delta / Sarah Jordan
Djimon Hounsou	...	Albert Laurent
Sean Bean	...	Dr. Bernard Merrick
Steve Buscemi	...	James McCord
Michael Clarke Duncan	...	Starkweather Two Delta / Jamal Starkweather
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

Storyline

Set in a dystopian future, a group of people work in a facility, essentially as slaves. They do have an incentive though - a regular lottery is held and one of them gets to leave the facility and its restrictions and move to The Island, a paradise. Lincoln Six Echo is one of the workers in the facility and he is infatuated with Jordan Two Delta. His life is fairly uneventful and mundane until Jordan Two Delta gets selected to go to The Island. Then Lincoln starts to discover the truth about the facility and The Island.

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Plot Keywords:

island | clone | same actor playing two characters simultaneously on screen | actress playing dual role | cityscape | 

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Taglines:

Plan Your Escape

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Genres:

Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

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

Details

Official Sites:

Warner Bros [France]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 July 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

La isla

Filming Locations:

Cook Bank Building, Rhyolite, Nevada, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$126,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$12,409,070, 24 July 2005, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$35,818,913

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$162,949,164

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks, Warner Bros., Parkes+MacDonald Image Nation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

136 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Bay "called in a favor" to get Michael Clark Duncan in the film for two days of filming. "I figured since I discovered him in a gym and put him in Armageddon, and he went on to do Green Mile and get an Academy Award nomination."

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Goofs

(at around 7 mins) When Gandu 3 Echo is called out of the elevator for creating a disturbance, we can clearly see the label on his sleeve is "G3A", which would incorrectly signify that he is of the Alpha generation.

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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.

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Connections

Featured in The Greatest Movie Ever Sold (2011)

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Soundtracks

Siboney
Written by Ernesto Lecuona & Dolly Morse (as Theodora Morse)
Performed by Connie Francis
Courtesy of Universal Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Just a little better than pretty good, but also just a little unoriginal

Michael Bay has had his directoral ups and downs, but here in the big budget action realm, the director of the excellent The Rock seems right at home. This time, Bay welds the action to a solid, if somewhat unoriginal sci fi plot - which blends elements of Logan's Run, THX-1138 and Gattaca.

Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johanson are an attractive couple living in a completely medically regulated community designed to repopulate a world decimated by a mass extinction. Ethan Phillips, Djimon Hounsou and Sean Beam all provide excellent support. Beam is miraculously transformed into his clever, arrogant and suspect character. Phillips is also particularly memorable as their slightly unhinged pal.

Life in an enclosed, sterile environment, with all of their needs taken careof - including neatly arranged and identical uniforms, jobs, and three square can be a great bore, so - once a week or so - the sponsoring corporation gives away a one way ticket to the only place in the outside world which isn't lethal - The Island.

McGregor's Licoln Six Echo and a number of his cohorts are becoming increasingly agitated and curious about their home. All the while, his platonic relationship with Jordan Two Delta (Johanson) grows. But then, she wins her ticket to the island.

I have described the basic set up, and sci-fi fans will probably understand that this film actually sits among Logan's Run, gattaca, THX-1138 and other intelligent dystopian sci films. What may be a little harder to visualize is how stylistically indebted to Gattaca and THX-1138 this film is. Ewan McGregor doesn't really look like Ethan Hawke, and Scarlett Johanson is certainly not easily mistaken for Uma Thurmond, but between the cinematography, the themes, and the overall prettiness of the cast, the homage is obvious. The camera work is excellent, and the pace is spot-on, though it does become a little breathless toward the end.

Nevertheless, The Island stands on its own as a nice example of big budget sci fi which does not insult its audience's intelligence and uses its budget to tell an interesting story - not just to show off a lot of special effects and highly improbable action (though there is quite a lot of both here anyway). Recommended for serious and semi-serious sci fi fans.