For moviegoers tired of watching films that are either reboots of a classic or sequel of popular franchises, “The Creator” is a refreshing change.

This science-fiction movie delves into the timely topic of artificial intelligence and the moral dilemma it presents to society at large: how heavily should AI be integrated into the daily lives of people?

Director Gareth Edwards, also serves as writer, received heaps of praise from audiences at the time of this review.

The film is set in the mid-21st century, and AI influences human lives so heavily at this point, it is blamed for detonating a nuclear weapon in Los Angeles that kills one million people.

Reacting in fury, the US government wages a full-scale war against AI with the help of Nomad, a giant orbital weapons platform that can wipe out cities with ease.

Meanwhile, New Asia continues to develop AI systems under Nirmata, the Creator. The film’s protagonist Joshua Taylor (John David Washington) is assigned to go undercover to locate and eliminate the scientist.

However, he falls in love and marries a woman there named Maya (Gemma Chan) but loses her after a raid in their compound goes awry.

Five years later, Taylor joins another mission to locate a new weapon by New Asia, but lo and behold, the weapon in question is an android in the likeness of a little girl.

With most of his team killed, Taylor and the little girl are forced to go on the run. What follows is a cat-and-mouse game filled with guns and explosions as the duo evade capture, forming a paternal bond in the process.

Now, with movies like “Rogue One” and “Godzilla” (2014) under Edwards’ belt, it’s safe to say he understands the importance of spectacles and visual storytelling.

And a visual masterpiece it is, as he makes use of its US$80 million (RM378 million) budget to produce some genuinely impressive visuals, even better than many movies these days that cost two or three times more to make.

The futuristic world in this film is set up well, too, and the technology and weapons used by the characters carry a lot of realism, even though it’s set decades in the future.

Washington is a likeable and complex protagonist, and the “Tenet” actor communicates his character’s motivations and goals with ease.

Scenes when he interacts with the “weapon” (whom he later nicknames Alphie) are cute and tender, which makes his eventual decision to protect her much more fathomable.

Speaking of Alphie, newcomer Madeleine Yuna Voyles’s performance is wonderful for such a young actor. She brings a lot of childlike innocence to the role without making her naïve, with the right blend of curiosity and fear when she’s thrust into the fight.

One small nitpick, though: there are inconsistencies with Alphie’s powers as she’s able to turn off all electronics in the vicinity early on, but in a later scene she can’t shut down the machine claws that’s stopping Taylor in his tracks. How come ah?

The script does get a little carried away with the action scenes and spectacles, which ends up taking time and attention away from exploring the intricacies and ethical dilemmas concerning AI.

While it falls short of the potential it has in that regard, the film does deliver some genuinely emotional payoffs in the end.

Overall, “The Creator” comes across as a movie with lots of passion and thought put into it, and if you’re a fan of sci-fi film in general (or video games like “Cyberpunk 2077”), it’ll be worth your time.

As of press time, ‘The Creator’ is screening in cinemas nationwide.