“Surrogates” recently arrived on Blu-ray and DVD. I plan to give an all around review, but first I’ll talk about what to expect if planning to shell out money for the DVD. I received a DVD copy, replete with the “High-Octane action” calling card posted on the cover (can we get a new catch phrase?). Turns out its makers showed this DVD little love.
Barren is the bonus feature section, consisting only of a music video by Breaking Benjamin (ouch) and audio commentary. Four deleted scenes and two special features can be found but only on the Blu-ray version. Fortunately though, the audio commentary is engaging as director Jonathan Mostow (Breakdown, Terminator: Rise of the machines) turns out to be one of the more informative audio commentators. Worth checking out.
“Surrogates” the movie is rather fun but certainly not without flaw. Taking place in the not-so-distant future, virtually all humans have shed their physical appearance, thanks to brainwave interpreting technology that manipulates “surrogates” safely from a distance.
Rather than walking the streets, real people can be found sitting at home now, hooked up to what looks like a dentist chair, bones losing density like calcium was plague, while respective (and often better looking) customizable surrogates venture out to bid in the “real world”. Mostow has fun with this, providing some interesting setups, such as a boy/girl hookup scene where the female later turns out to be a forty-something bald man. The ethical dilemmas run deep.
Bruce Willis plays an FBI agent named Greer who, along with his partner Peters (Radha Mitchell), discovers the bodies of two surrogates outside a nightclub. No big deal in this world, but the pair soon discover the surrogate owners dead too, something guaranteed impossible by the manufacturer.
Not only was it apparently possible for a surrogate to continue after the owners death, but their brains were meeeelted! And here’s the crux, one of the kids was the son of the man (played by James Cromwell) who invented surrogates in the first place. The hunt kicks off.
“Surrogates” is fast paced, introducing new relationships on occasion, but eager to return to its main story. This balance struggle is palpable and certain elements may feel underdeveloped. When its revealed Greer and his wife Maggie (Rosamund Pike) lost a son, Maggie copes by shutting down emotionally.
The ensuing interplay adds an emotional element the film otherwise lacks, but without development, I was left hoping Greer would ask for divorce rather than rescue his wife from stoicism. Ving Rhames also plays a role as the leader of an anti-surrogate colony. For a movie with no immediate villain, he’s a perfect match, but without much screen time, there’s not much to hate.
Mostow navigates the plot on a need to know basis, careful to not introduce anything beyond necessary in the movie’s 88 minute runtime. This can leave a sense of emptiness however, especially in relation to the characters who, with the exception of Greer, purposefully come off as robotic. Hence, Bruce Willis is tasked with maintaining the soul of the movie, and he does so in dependable fashion, walking the line between relentless badass and passionate husband.
Despite its flaws, “Surrogates” works due to its self-awareness. Its heavy moral content speaks loudly enough to be inferred without much trying on anybody’s part. This gives the movie room to breathe in other aspects, and does so by embracing its unabashed silliness and absurdity.
Without giving in to the despair of dehumanization, “Surrogates” paints an inviting world based on an uninviting premise. It leaves the audience with the best of both camps, a bit of mindless entertainment for the time being, and something to think about later.
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