A future civilization and its malcontents

After collaborating with executive producer Jerry Bruckheimer for nearly a decade on the action extravaganzas “Bad Boys,” “The Rock,” “Armageddon,” “Pearl Harbor” and “Bad Boys II,” director Michael Bay has gotten his own act together and taken it to DreamWorks. His first film for Steven, Jeffrey and David is a grand-scale sci-fi thriller set for release July 22.

Not to be confused with the 1980 pirate tale of the same name, which was based on the Peter Benchley novel, Bay’s “The Island” is set in the not-so-distant future.

Ewan McGregor stars as Lincoln Six-Echo, a young man who lives in a contained, utopian society. His greatest ambition is to be chosen to go to “The Island” -- allegedly the only uncontaminated spot left on Earth.

But the society isn’t quite as utopian as he’s been led to believe. In fact, Lincoln discovers that it’s a horrible ruse, and the island’s inhabitants are worth more dead than alive. Lincoln and a fellow resident named Jordan Two-Delta (Scarlett Johansson) decide to escape to the outside world -- with a group of henchmen (led by Djimon Hounsou) hot on their trail.

The eclectic cast also includes Sean Bean (as a baddie, of course), Steve Buscemi and Michael Clarke Duncan. With Bay at the helm, “The Island” will no doubt be filled with eye-popping sets, explosions, car crashes, taut action scenes and a mind-numbingly loud soundtrack.

-- Susan King