The Island

Two members of a utopian society (Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson) discover a chilling secret about their existence and must run like hell. The premise for Michael Bay’s latest provides for some decent sci-fi, and the actors do a nice job in this rare good movie from the often over-indulgent director. Bay tones down his slapdash editing style, allowing for story development. Some of his pretty shots are actually allowed to remain on screen for more than two seconds! The result is arguably the best movie he’s ever made, although some sequences in the final half have him resorting to his old tricks. McGregor gets a chance to cut loose, especially during a sequence where he acts with himself. Johansson proves to be a capable actress heroine, running around and looking scared with the best of them. This is actually the second OK film in a row from Bay (I actually liked Bad Boys II), so the former commercial director is on a roll.