It’s been a hot minute since we had some quality original science fiction. We were on a roll there for a bit in the 2010s, with the likes of Ex-Machina or Arrival, but largely we’ve been in sequel territory for a while now. Rogue One director Gareth Edwards, who has been on a hiatus since that 2016 film, seeks to rectify that with The Creator. It may not be wholly original, as it wears its influences on its sleeve, but it’s certainly worth your time and money. Let’s dive into why.

The Creator stars John David Washington as Joshua, a soldier in the U.S. Army working undercover in New Asia, home of the A.I. in the year 2065. Years after artificial intelligence nuked Los Angeles and the West declared war on their robotic servants, word of an A.I. superweapon that can end humanity has reached high command, forcing Joshua back into active duty to track down the A.I, assassinate it’s creator and bring an end to the conflict. I’m keeping this description super vague, as there’s a lot of critical and key info that happens early on in the film that dictates the plot, so if that sounds a little bland, I promise you it isn’t.

The reason for that is that this is a character story and we 100% buy into the plights of these characters. Joshua is inherently a likeable guy and we’re on board with both his quest and his motivations for undertaking it from the get-go. Washington plays Joshua with a perfect balance of charisma and likeability with emotional baggage and uncertainty in his demeanor. He’s lost a lot in life, from loved ones to some of his limbs yet Joshua is never a nilhist or bitter about the cards life has presented him, thus making us really enjoy him as a character.

And while Washington shines in this movie, it doesn’t belong to him. Nope, this movie belongs to Madeleine Yuna Voyles who plays Alpha-O, otherwise known as “Alfie”, the A.I. weapon Joshua is tasked with hunting down. I’m not sure where Gareth Edwards and his casting department found this child actor, but holy smokes, she steals this movie. Child actors are often tricky to work with, due to their limited experience but Voyles plays Alfie as if she’s a seasoned pro. What’s more, is that this is her one and only IMDb credit. Excuse me? She carries so much nuance in her performance, making us doubt whether this A.I. is, in fact human, or capable of human emotions. Paired with Washington, the two embark on a Lone Wolf and Cub -type journey to find the titular creator of the A.I. Along the way, they cross paths with a myriad of characters, from Ken Watanabe’s Harun to Allison Janney’s Howell, Joshua’s ruthless commanding office. Joshua is also haunted by the memories of his dead wife, Maya (Gemma Chang), who died during an operation.

Apart from the top-notch acting, this movie looks fantastic. Greig Fraser, who shot Rogue One, The Batman and Dune, serves as co-cinematographer alongside Oren Soffer and it looks fantastic. They shoot practical footage on location and then bolster those shots with CGI backdrops. Much like Dune, the movie feels tangible and real as a result, as if we can pack up and go to these places right now. We’re treated to everything from Megacities found in Cyberpunk 2077 to shanties set in New Asia and it all works. What’s even wilder is that this movie has a production of $80 million, a far cry from the $200 million Quantumania cost. Shows that a film can look amazing on a smaller budget if the right players and disciple are brought into the task, the cinematography and the VFX work here was nothing short of stellar.

What’s interesting about The Creator I think is the thematic message of the movie. I won’t dive into it, but it does have some philosophical questions to bring up about A.I. that certainly leave an impression. But at the same time, there’s plenty of action-set pieces to keep you entertained, offering the perfect marriage of popcorn entertainment and intellect.

The Creator certainly isn’t quite as novel as it may appear. While not based on any other books or films, it certainly pulls heavily from other material, such as Terminator, Star Wars, Blade Runner and the previously mentioned Lone Wolf and Cub (article coming soon on that title). But these films are clearly inspiration and The Creator thankfully never feels derivative of those works. In fact, the film’s themes and world could have benefitted by diving further into it via an extended run time. I hope that there’s a director’s cut of this film that pushes the three-hour mark, as a lot of themes I feel could be further explored. Not to say that things feel undercooked here, but there’s the opportunity to do even more. Likewise, the ending felt a bit rushed and could’ve actually benefited from a longer runtime.

You can tell this project was a passion project by Gareth Edwards, who not only directed it but co-wrote it with his Rogue One scribe, Chris Weitz. Having meaningful sci-fi on the big screen again is great and I hope people go out and support this movie over the weeks to come as it tells studios that we want original content that leaves a mark. Is The Creator the next sci-fi masterpiece? No, but it’s still a damn fine movie.