Island: B-

Got a chance to catch a preview of the new movie "The Island" last night thanks to some free tix at our local comic shop. While this is by no means a great movie it is far better than I expected going in. Basic idea: clones being made to harvest for body parts begin to realize same. It's an action movie, with some truly over the top sequences that actually come off pretty well. I would put this in the league of last year's "I, Robot" -- a "B" movie with lots of money and big stars. And what's wrong with that? Absolutely... nothing (say it again).

Actually, Ewan MacGregor and Scarlett Johansson make a pretty good team on screen; their characters are supposed to have only been "matured" to about the mentality of a fifteen year old and there is a real innocence and sweetness to them. MacGregor also plays the man he is a clone of, with rather interesting results. Sean Bean makes a good evil scientist, and Steve Buscemi plays, well, Steve Buscemi, which is always worthwhile. Michael Clarke Duncan inexplicably took a brief, almost throwaway role that makes you think there was more to it before the editors got ahold of it.

What is it with Ewan? This movie has clones, futuristic speeder-bike battles, a futuristic Los Angeles that looks like an early model for Coruscant, and even a kind of "I am your father" conclusion....maybe those Star Wars movies had more of an effect on him than I thought...

In conclusion: if you see it in the theater, dont pay full price; you could wait for DVD except everything in the movie is really BIG so you might lose some detail if you like that sort of thing.