Clone wars

SPOILER WARNING! SPOILER WARNING!

"The Island" is one of the better science fiction movies I've seen. It has obvious similarities with "The Matrix", "The Village" and "The 6th Day".

The year is 2019. Humanity has been forced underground, due to an environmental disaster that contaminated most of the Earth. The underground society is crowded and authoritarian, with overseers regulating every detail of the citizens' lives. A mysterious place known as The Island is the only place on the surface that hasn't been contaminated. The only way to leave the underground compounds is to win a free ticket to The Island in a special lottery.

However, the main character of the movie, Lincoln Six Echo, starts to suspect that something is terribly wrong with this futuristic society. He discovers that the outside world isn't contaminated. He also sees how two of the lottery winners, rather than being taken to The Island, are gruesomely murdered by the overseers! Bizarre cloning experiments take place in a secret part of the underground facility.

Lincoln and another inmate, Jordan Two Delta, manage to escape from the underground base. Chased by black helicopters, they pass several ghost towns, but finally make their way to Los Angeles, which turns out to be a thriving, hyper-modern city with no contamination problems whatsoever. More bizarre revelations follow, until Lincoln and Jordan decide to return to the underground facility (really a prison) to free their friends from the clutches of the overseers...

"The Island" got pretty mixed reviews when released in the United States. I agree that the movie lacks the magic that makes "The Matrix", "Blade Runner" or even "Star Wars" so special. Instead, we get a combination of two or three over-worked Hollywood themes: futuristic prison break-out, chase with special effects and cool wheels, and (surprise) a bunch of clones. Still, I'd say "The Island" is above average. Somehow, the stereotypes seem to work, and the plot is pretty interesting.

For that reason, I give it five stars. And guys, watch out for the clones! :-)