Behind PMC's Banner: Multiple Personalities Proliferate in 'The Island'
December 28th 2006 08:51
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When innocent young Jordan, who has been brought up in a totalitarian society made up of other clones of the privileged few who can afford to keep them held against their knowledge in an underground Arizona facility, flees to Los Angeles to find out more about the woman whose DNA she shares, she unexpectedly encounters a reproduction of Scarlett's Calvin Klein commercial for the fragrance Eternity and learns that the person she's looking for is a celebrity. Scarlett muses over the TV loop of the ad whilst in character as a simulation of a famous actress. “Just one moment can change everything,” the poster reads, an easy-to-miss detail. This Michael Bay-inspired piece of brand candy was given the 2005 Charlie Kaufman Meta Award for Self-Reflexive Product Placement, something of a novelty itself.
I also found the interaction between Ewan McGregor’s Lincoln and his wealthy designer double quite witty, as Lincoln, who sports a generic American accent in the movie, is bemused by his maker’s strong Scottish brogue and attempts to mimic his tones. It can be read as subversive commentary on the actor being forced to modify his image in order to make himself more Hollywood-friendly. Later on, a representative of the firm that has kept him captive mistakes him for his Scottish counterpart and asks him to tell him more about his cultural background. At this point in the film Lincoln tenses up and responds to the employee with violent resistance. Is it a co-incidence? You decide.
Can you think of other postmodern/creative uses of actors?
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