The Island

Directed by Michael Bay, The Island follows Ewan McGregor’s Lincoln Six Echo and Scarlett Johansson’s Jordan Two Delta as they make a disturbing discovery about the seemingly idyllic future paradise in which they reside. It’s an agreeable sci-fi-friendly premise that’s employed to progressively tiresome (and flat-out interminable) effect by Bay, which is a shame, certainly, given that the movie’s first half is generally far more watchable than one might’ve anticipated – with McGregor and Johansson’s affable efforts, coupled with a brief emphasis on the heroes’ fish-out-of-water antics, initially compensating for Bay’s expected penchant for excess (eg Mauro Fiore’s egregiously slick visuals, Bay’s reliance on shaky camerawork during action-oriented sequences, etc). There’s little doubt, then, that The Island‘s downfall stems from a padded-out, aggressively over-the-top second half rife with seemingly endless action sequences and set-pieces, with the protracted (and entirely underwhelming) climax undoubtedly ensuring that the whole thing peters out to a fairly disastrous extent – thus confirming the picture’s place as a typical Bay misfire that’s at least an hour longer than necessary (or warranted).

*1/2 out of ****