TRAILERS for The Island inform audiences that it is "from the makers of Pearl Harbour" - not a great selling point, I'm sure you will agree, because that film was stinker.

No doubt cinemagoers were turned off in their droves because of this piece of marketing genius, which is a shame because this film is really not that bad.

However, it's not that good either - mainly because director Michael Bay doesn't quite know where this film is going or what he is trying to say about mankind.

Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson live in a futuristic facility along with the rest of those who survived a contamination of the earth.

Dressed like dental hygienists and living in an Orwellian nightmare, their only escape is by winning the lottery, which allows them to start their life over on a paradise island. But when McGregor's character, Lincoln Six Echo, starts to investigate the purpose of his existence he discovers some frightening truths.

Up to this point, Bay's film is intriguing but rather disappointingly descends into a series of boring chases, with McGregor and Johansson trying to flee the reality of their existence. Both leads are good, and Sean Bean takes the extraordinary step of playing the baddie - something he has mastered well.

The result is an enjoyable, if forgettable film, which raises some interesting questions but supplies far fewer answers.

EB