Surrogacy

~ Warning. Movie Spoiler for the new movie Surrogate. ~

Surrogate. Overall, 4.5/5

It's a pretty good movie for something that hasn't been hyped up. It isn't a movie for just anyone to watch. It kept me thinking, but not just about what was going to happen next or anything directly related to the movie, but just about the different concepts and ideas that this movie spawn from. The reason why I rate it so high is because after one of the longest school days of my life, and a tiring drive back from San Diego, this hour and a half long movie managed to gain my full attention, and kept my mind moving. Acting wasn't half bad since most of the time it was robots, reminded me a bit of iRobot the way they moved, and the plot was a little...unexpected to say the least. Filled with a couple surprises and it was like a PG rated movie (I think PG-13, but the way movies are rated now-a-days it might as well be).

So now to the "movie spoiler" part of my very first movie review. well sorta.

The movie was basically about technology, it's social influences, it's addictive properties, it's ability to create a "new" life, and a lot of the modern day problems of the advancement of technology.

The first thing that struck me hard was that each human had their surrogate (a robot that represented themselves in their daily lives), and the surrogate did their daily routines by control of mind through a control center (controlled by the real human at home). Portraying the slothfulness of mankind by having them never leave their homes, I think this is a pretty good representation of all the n33ts, hardcore gamers, geeks, and all the other people that spend more time on their virtual lives than physical lives. If this is truly "advancement" then maybe one day in the not too distant future, everyone will be something like that.

The second thing is that each surrogate had a youthful body, nice and fit, no wrinkles, nice eyes, perfect teeth, basically the "perfect body." This fake image of people represents another part of technology that isn't too much of a problem, but it is what makes the online community so fakely appealing. The idea that you can be transformed by using the internet. It is a place where the introverts can become outspoken and a place to create new identity. Even though in comparison it may seem too far from reality, with time I do believe that similar things can happen.

The addiction is my last point. Technology, as you can see from me being on my laptop at 3 a.m. is very addicting, this is undeniable. A new way to communicate with people, access to unlimited information, but regardless of the use, it's addicting. The movie takes it even further to say that through these different characteristics of new technology (of creating a new self), it has become a new lifestyle. Technology is becoming to future of mankind. This new lifestyle, once created, becomes so addicting that the word addicting is an understatement.

Sorry, I know I said last point, but a line in the movie caught my attention "to kill the addiction you have to kill the addict," the whole car ride back I was asking my brother what he got from it (we went to watch it for his birthday), but this quote was ringing in my head. I think this is partially true, obviously not kill the physical body, but the mental body that is attached to the addiction. "I have been crucified with Christ, that I no longer live, but Christ lives in me, the life I live..." That's the verse that came immediately to me. Some food for thought, do you kill the addict to kill the addiction?

This movie DEFINITELY makes you think a lot, though it isn't too suspenseful or actiony, or dramaticy, or lubby dubby, or anything of those sorts, I recommend it for those who want to challenge themselves about the world that we live in today.

Now we type with our fingers, what if we could type with our thoughts? o.o Before you think I'm crazy (i'm probably just really tired) think about this, the world was first thought to be flat, cause if it wasn't the water would fall off right? Things unimaginable can become reality.