Morgan (2016)
Directed by Luke Scott
A corporate risk-management consultant must determine whether or not to terminate an artificial being's life that was made in a laboratory environment.
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25 films that influenced Morgan
What critics say influenced Morgan
Morgan is directed by Luke Scott, the youngest son of Ridley Scott, the British filmmaker who is a producer here and, more importantly, the director of 1982's Blade Runner, the masterpiece that this urgent successor borrows more than a few strands of DNA from.
Ex-Machina is a clear comparison, but the colour of Taylor-Joy’s skin in particular can’t but recall Darryl Hannah as she once appeared in Scott Snr’s Blade Runner.
And his directorial debut, Morgan, does not compare favorably to Blade Runner.
If made by anyone else, Morgan would feel like a weak homage to Blade Runner and Alien.
The movie touches on themes first raised in "Blade Runner," "Terminator," "West World" and even "Apocalypse Now."
The unnamed company in the film may as well be called Weyland-Yutani or the Tyrell Corporation, because many of the themes and ideas of Scott’s Alien and Blade Runner make their way into the subtext so plainly they may as well be called text.
First-time director Luke Scott (son of Ridley Scott, who co-produced) knows how to pace a thriller, and some of his moves compare well to his old man's work on "Alien."
Its basic plot elements feel built out of off-the-shelf genre parts, recalling not only Ex Machina in its focus on an artificially intelligent being, but also director Luke Scott's father Ridley's Alien in its characters—most of them scientists, one of them a steely eyed corporate fixer in the mold of Ian Holm's Ash from the 1979 sci-fi horror classic.
Scott’s eclectic collection of tech-savvy shut-ins share a funky chemistry that recalls, yep, the doomed crew in “Alien.”
A number of scenes in Morgan recall moments from Ridley’s work (Alien and Hannibal, especially), but at its core this is a high-concept retelling of the Frankenstein story.
If made by anyone else, Morgan would feel like a weak homage to Blade Runner and Alien.
The unnamed company in the film may as well be called Weyland-Yutani or the Tyrell Corporation, because many of the themes and ideas of Scott’s Alien and Blade Runner make their way into the subtext so plainly they may as well be called text.
In addition to tapping into Ridley Scott's themes, the film echoes ideas tackled in the recent films "Hanna" and "Ex Machina."
The film with which critics tend to compare this is last year's gorgeous and provocative Ex Machina, but the movie it really should be measured against is 2011's masterfully conceived Hanna.
Written by Seth W. Owen, the screenplay is blandly reminiscent of films like “Ex Machina” (artificial intelligence asking hard existential questions) and “Hanna” (deadly teen girls), only not as thoughtful or as elegantly executed.
Off the top of my head, the Species franchise and Hanna (2011) also feature a GMO girl assassin no one can control.
Indeed there’s a kind of audacity in putting out so lame a product while ignoring such recent entries as “Hanna” and “Ex Machina,” wherein genetic modification weaponizes the human form, or “Her” with its endearing, all-too-human operating system.
Suddenly, disappointingly, “Morgan” becomes a cross between the underrated adolescent-assassin thriller “Hanna” and the worst parts of the “Terminator” franchise, as a second protagonist — a ruthless consultant from the research corporation that has bred Morgan from synthetic DNA — proceeds to investigate the cause of the stabbing incident and the “viability” of the firm’s “asset.”
That's because, with its conclusion, Morgan changes gears, going from a patient sci-fi thriller that's more akin to last year's Ex Machina, which it will inevitably be compared to, and ramps up the action.
Meanwhile, although the character dynamics here don’t match the strange interplay in last year’s similarly themed genre standout “Ex Machina,” they’re solid enough.
In addition to tapping into Ridley Scott's themes, the film echoes ideas tackled in the recent films "Hanna" and "Ex Machina."
Luke Scott, son of the more famous Ridley, will already be used to hearing his nippy debut compared to Alex Garland’s recent Ex Machina.
The film with which critics tend to compare this is last year's gorgeous and provocative Ex Machina, but the movie it really should be measured against is 2011's masterfully conceived Hanna.
"Morgan" appears to be another "Frankenstein"-inspired thriller, like "Ex Machina," but it's considerably less innovative, more derivative and reminded me of David Cronenberg's early horror tale "The Brood" with its homicidal "kids" on the loose.
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"Morgan" appears to be another "Frankenstein"-inspired thriller, like "Ex Machina," but it's considerably less innovative, more derivative and reminded me of David Cronenberg's early horror tale "The Brood" with its homicidal "kids" on the loose.
Morgan is the pistol whipping, flesh eating, test tube baby of this sloppy scientific experiment that combines elements from Vincenzo Natali’s Splice and last year’s Academy Award winning Ex Machina.
Vincenzo Natali’s 2010 film Splice tied similar elements together for greater tragic power.
In recent years especially, it feels like we’ve had a surplus of would-be Victor Frankensteins, from Oscar Isaac as the sweaty frat-bro version of a God Complex in Ex Machina to Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley’s noble effort to win the Worst Parents of the Year Award in Splice.
On paper, Morgan comes across as a cheaper version of 2009’s Splice.
Morgan also owes debts to last year’s Ex Machina and 2010’s Splice , among others.
When Jurassic Park author and “Westworld” writer-director Michael Crichton succumbed to cancer in 2008, he left an entire genre of literature and film (the techno-thriller) to be tended to.
From “Frankenstein” through “Westworld” through “Blade Runner” through “Ex Machina,” have we still not learned that nothing good comes from creating artificial beings that look, behave and begin to act like actual human beings?
When Jurassic Park author and “Westworld” writer-director Michael Crichton succumbed to cancer in 2008, he left an entire genre of literature and film (the techno-thriller) to be tended to.
Like “Jurassic Park,” sometimes those bright pennies turn into fatal time bombs instead of fat bank accounts.
Think of the lawyer in Jurassic Park being the main character, save for much younger and with an icy stare that suggests she is as cutthroat as any manmade monster.
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(Luke’s sister Jordan Scott directed the underappreciated Cracks .)
All his talent and wealth and yet now three of his children have directed forgettable films, daughter Jordan Scott with the 2009 drama "Cracks" and son Jake Scott's "Welcome to the Rileys."
Even though Alien was likely Luke Scott’s biggest influence, you can’t help but feel like Morgan is attempting to be a clone of John Carpenter’s The Thing.