Surrogates (Movie Review)

This movie nearly slipped under my radar for its lack of trailers in theaters or on tv in my area, but I'm so glad I saw it!

In the future world of "Surrogates" everyone is able to live day-to-day life through virtual reality controlled robots called surrogates. While plugged into a control unit at home, users can let themselves physically go to waste while they live out life in either idealized versions of their own bodies, or completely different custom made surrogate bodies. They can see, hear and feel just as if they were in their own bodies, with the exception of pain, which they are protected from at all times.

Until recently, it has been impossible to suffer harm through use of a surrogate, but when several surrogate users start turning up dead, Agent Greer (Bruce Willis) is sent in to investigate. What follows is a great ride with plot twists and super-heroic action that is all too short, presented in just under 90 minutes.

Willis once again delivers a performance that is understated yet emotionally engaging. A chief subplot involves his strained relationship with his wife, who wants to limit their contact to surrogates, while he wants to be with her in their own bodies more often. The plot-line is so engaing that in another movie it could have been the A story.

Although the strongest moments are not given away in the trailer, one of the climactic plot points can be predicted if you've seen even one trailer for this movie, so avoid them if you haven't seen any yet.

Special effects bring the sci-fi elements to life very effectively in both action beats and calmer moments. In Willis' surrogate form, they use special effects to remove wrinkles and sagging skin, much like what was done for Professor X and Magneto in X-men 3. Either it wasn't on par with Benjamin Button effects, or they were going for a somewhat plastic "Ken doll" look. Depending on which you assume, the anti-aging effects on Willis either look really good, or don't quite meet quality standards recently set by Benjamin Button. Other visual effects, while not new, look wonderful.

I do wish the ride would have been a little longer. I'm not sure what extra story there might have been to tell, but I could have spent more time in this world and seen more of the great action sequences this movie contained. Even one more 3-5 minute action sequence with some money thrown at it might have brought this flick up to "Iron Man" standards in that department, if not overall.

The element of the movie that stands out the most to me is it's message. Although the statement being made about online relationships (not necessarily romantic, but online human interaction in general) is obvious to frequent internet users, it is not preachy, but rather pleading. We see the tragedy of human disconnection as it plays out in the romantic subplot, and in numerous other places in the movie. This is no doubt the central theme. The movie even starts with one of the characters narrating: "Life is not meant to be lived through a machine." What the movie "Gamer" communicated in an exploitative manner, "Surrogates" says more eloquently and with deeper and fuller expression.

I'm not suggesting that online friendships are all shallow. Neither does this movie. What I believe the creators of this movie are saying, which I agree with, is that we shouldn't kid ourselves into thinking that online friendships/romances/etc. are the way we are meant to fully experience human relationships. In chat rooms and message boards, if we become frustrated with a conversation, we can simply disconnect from it. We see this idea played out several times in Surrogates. Behind the safety of a computer monitor or surrogate body, we can escape as soon as we have reached our emotional limits. But in face-to-face, everyday relationships, we sometimes have to stick it out through angry or tear-filled conversations. Sure, we might storm out of a room in anger. But making that decision takes more consideration than just clicking that "X" in the upper right corner.

Full human relationships, the kind that are messy and can't be "turned off" or "facebook blocked", are the kind that can yield friendship and character growth on a level simply impossible when attempted through a "Surrogate" or screen name. So if you and I claim to care about people and relationships, this movie gives us something to think about.

One of the best movies in the last 6 months. Don't miss it.

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence, disturbing images, language, sexuality and a drug-related scene

Quality: 9.0/10

Relevance: 9.5/10