Review of Morgan (2016) by Ageeknamedbob — 11 Sep 2016

MORGAN is latest take on the age-old concept of “scientists create life. Life doesn’t act they way the scientists desired. That is, life keeps trying to kill them.” One of last year’s best films (perhaps the best depending on when you ask me) EX_MACHINA used that base in an original, thought provoking and absolutely engrossing manner. MORGAN is not EX_MACHINA, the first film as a director from writer Alex Garland. I bring this up for MORGAN is also a first feature film, this time for Luke Scott, son of famed director Ridley. This is writer Seth W. Owen’s second produced feature. So new to the job is not an excuse when EX_MACHINA is compared. For genre films from famous director's sons, you should also check out ANTIVIRAL from David Cronenberg's son Brandon.

​.

Scott gathered a stable of great character actors to try to give life to Owen’s underwritten script. Most notable is the continually underappreciated Rose Leslie, best known as Ygritte in GAME OF THRONES (“Yew knoew nuthin’ Jon Snew”) and the underseen HONEYMOON. The exception is Kate Mara, who continues to bland her ways through roles. I suspect people keep thinking they’re getting her more talented sister, just as I can only guess the actors in MORGAN thought they were getting Luke’s more talented father (or owed him a favor). Stalwarts like Brian Cox, Toby Jones and Michelle Yeoh each have a few scenes to sell along with people you might not have seen in many things before – including Chris Sullivan, making his second painful encounter this year with a genetically enhanced strange little girl after his turn as the diner owner in STRANGER THINGS. Jennifer Jason Leigh is in this film, although I kept forgetting she was. Paul Giamatti is the most known, presenting a house-hold face to the picture in one overly long sequence that is seemingly meant to move sympathy further to the titular character. As Morgan herself, Anya Taylor-Joy is admirable, continuing her hopefully rise to fame from this spring’s period horror masterpiece, THE WITCH.

​.

That sympathy for Morgan is one of the issues of the piece. It’s not that we, the audience, feel for her. It’s that the film, from sequence to sequence, doesn’t seem to be sure if it wants us to. The scientists are all likeable, so when thing to go pot as we all know they will, we feel bad for them; but if we also feel for Morgan there is a conflict there. Conflicting sympathies can work in a stronger film. If there were more exploration into what Morgan is, how she actually feels and the implications of her creation – that sympathy can go both ways. But it all remains simply at surface level. Films of this sort, even the other bad ones like SPECIES and SPLICE still try to bring up something new into the set up, but MORGAN has nothing to say. It doesn’t even try. It could be the focus is elsewhere but it doesn’t come through. Instead the lack of discussion into “what makes a person” is a gaping hole in the script. “But, Bob, isn’t Kate Mara the protagonist in the ads?” you ask. Why sure, reader, she is. But she’s cold and lifeless, distant and hard to indentify with. But I wonder if we are meant to. It maybe spoilers but not really with how telegraphed it is, but there is a twist with her character that would indicate we’re not meant to follow her despite her being the surrogate into this situation. This “twist” is so blatantly set up that I’m not worried about spoiling it.

​.

Not just the character twist, but the entire film is telegraphed and empty. One can see every beat well before it happens, but the Scott has set it up in a way that it feels like he’s being clever and surprising. Its only in the programming where Scott attempts to make the film visually interesting or move in anyway. For fifteen minutes, the film becomes a slasher film, but creates no tension. Then comes the lowest energy car chase I’ve ever seen in film. Despite this lifelessness, it doesn’t drag – so that’s something. It just feels like it’s going through the motion.

​.

MORGAN isn’t worth anyone’s time. Any film it reminds you of is better: even the SPECIES films. It brings nothing new to the subgenre. Instead, watch EX_MACHINA. Seen EX_MACHINA? Watch it again. Or JURASSIC PARK. That’s a create life that goes wrong for everyone else movie that can’t be beat.