Michael Bayis a director whose filmography is divisive to say the least. On the one hand, his early efforts such asThe Rock,Armageddon, andBad Boyswere extremely successful at the box office. HisTransformersfilms, though still renown for their box office successes, have been critically panned. Yet there’s one film that rarely comes up when discussing Bay’s filmography: the 2005 science fiction thrillerThe Island.
The Islandseems to be your standard post-apocalyptic science fiction setup. Lincoln Six-Echo (Ewan McGregor) lives with a collective of other humans in a secluded compound; he’s told that the outside world has been rendered inhabitable except for a mysterious island, and every day one of the collective’s member wins a lottery to travel to the island. However, Lincoln and another member Jordan Two-Echo (Scarlett Johansson) learn a horrifying secret: there is no island. They are clones of the wealthy elite, and the “lottery” sees the clones spirited off to be organ donors for their doubles. Lincoln and Jordan go on the run, forcing the compound director Dr. Merrick (Sean Bean) to send bounty hunter Albert Laurent (Djimon Hounsou) after them.
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The Islandboasts one of the strongest ensembles Bay has ever worked with; it’s only dwarfed byArmageddonin terms of size and star power. (ArmageddonalumsMichael Clarke DuncanandSteve Buscemialso have roles inThe Island.) Most impressive is the fact that nearly every member ofThe Island’s cast was either a part of or went to star in other genre films and TV shows. McGregor was coming off of theStar Warsprequel trilogy and is set to reprise his role asObi-Wan Kenobinext month in the Disney+ limited series named after the Jedi Master; he also starred as the villainous Black Mask inBirds of Prey and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn. Johansson would go on to star as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe; Hounsou would join her with his role as Korath the Pursuer inGuardians of the GalaxyandCaptain Marvel, as well as the titular wizard inShazam!Finally, Bean had starred inLord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ringand would later go on to star as Ned Stark inGame of Thrones. Eagle-eyed fans will also be able to spotStar Trek: VoyageralumEthan Phillipsas one of the clones.
The cast also gets to bring their A-game, especially since some of them are literally playing two people. McGregor is the film’s MVP; he plays Lincoln as rebellious and snarky - perhaps to provide a deliberate contrast to his Obi-Wan performance. He also plays wealthy automobile manufacturer Tom Lincoln; the scene where both Lincolns meet each other is one of the few scenes where Bay keeps the camera still, letting the gravity of the situation settle in. Johansson’s turn as Jordan is essentially a teenager; she has no idea how the world works and is trusting of almost everyone - which leads to some hectic chase scenes throughout the film. Honsou’s Laurent is terrifying at first since he pursues both clones with the dogged determination of a bloodhound, but in time he comes to sympathize with their plight - having gone through something similar himself. And Bean’s turn as Dr. Merrick is the perfect epitome of a god complex. “I give life,” Merrick explains in a long-winded speech to Laurent, his intensity growing as he dismisses the clones as little more than products on an assembly line.
The Islandis also Bay’s most cerebral film; while “cerebral” and “Michael Bay” don’t even sound like they belong in the same sentence, the film discusses themes of identity throughout its run. Lincoln is plagued by what seems like a series of unconnected dreams; it’s revealed that there was a defect in his cloning that allows him to retain his DNA donor’s memories and explains his rebellious nature. And while Merrick might see the clones as little more than products, Jordan and Lincoln return to free their fellow clones from being euthanized - leading to a climax where the entire clone collective emerges into the outside world for the first time. Whether intentional or unintentional, the Biblical symmetry to the story of Moses leading his people out of Egypt can’t be denied.
Despite a great cast, a good hook, and a proven director,The Islandwound up being a box office bomb. A large part of that was due to the marketing, which failed to mention the idea of clones and instead relied on the usual “Bayhem” to try and draw moviegoers. Add in the fact that it was facing off against films likeCharlie and the Chocolate FactoryandWedding Crashers, and the writing was on the wall. And as if there wasn’t enough salt rubbed in the wound, Dreamworks and Warner Bros. found themselvesslapped with a lawsuitby the producers of the 1979 filmParts: The Clonus Horroron the grounds that Bay had more or less remade their film without permission. The case ultimately ended up being settled out of court.
Despite its less-than-stellar theatrical run and legal woes,The Islandis worth a watch. Its cast rises to the occasion, Bay actually leans into the more horrific elements of the cloning revelation in the first half of the film, and the action is tempered by a story with heavy philosophical tones.Alex KurtzmanandRoberto Orci, who helped co-write the screenplay forThe Island, would eventually go on to write Bay’s first twoTransformersfilms as well as other sci-fi blockbusters includingJ.J. Abrams’sStar TrekandMission: Impossible III. I hope that Bay can return to this kind of film one day, as it’s proof that he doesn’t have to restrict himself to mindless action.
