DVD : Minority Report (Widescreen Two-Disc Special Edition)

In association with Amazon.com

Rating:

- Entertaining adaptation of Dick's classic short story
"Minority Report," like "Bladerunner," is based on a Philip K. Dick story (although this time a short story). The plot revolves around a future where murders have almost been eliminated, thanks to a technology that allows the protagonist, John Anderton (played by Tom Cruise) to see into the future and stop a murderer before the act has been committed. The plot, which is excellent, is only half of the reason this film makes the list. The film resembles "Bladerunner," in more ways than having been based on a Dick story; the world it takes place in is beautifully detailed and believable, one in which scanners on billboards read your identity and then produce a specialized advertisement just for you. The future portrayed is believable, both gritty and sleek, and the ethical questions raised by the film are especially poignant as we increasingly live a world were we are videoed, photographed, and observed on a greater, and greater level.

Rating:

- A modern classic.
Sci-fi crime thriller set in the year 2054 about a policeman - played by Tom Cruise - who works in the Department of Precime in Washington D.C. which uses people with the gift of precognition to prevent murders before they happen. But one day the precognitives predict that Tom Cruise himself will commit a murder; a prediction that leads to Tom Cruise going on the run to clear his name and in the process uncovering a murder that happened in the past; one that somehow the Department of Precrime didn't know about. I found this to be a quite excellent film, with an intelligent plot, first-rate protagonist played by Tom Cruise and a wonderfully realised future world (the special effects really are something else). Spielberg is as usual in his element when making science fiction and this film is even better than the outstanding 'A.I. Artificial Intelligence' which he made the year before. A flawless combination of exceptional story telling and science fiction vision that is quite simply film-making at its very best. A modern classic.

Rating:

- Spielberg & Cruise, what a combo
Does Steven Spielberg ever do anything that's bad? Not likely. This is an interesting story with many innovative ideas and gadgets. Tom Cruise makes the whole thing believable. The cast is great including Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton, and Max Von Sydow. It's a long movie, but it moves along fine.

Rating:

- Roller coaster thrills marred by swiss cheese plot
John Anderton (Tom Cruise) is chief of the Precrimes Unit in Washington, D.C. in the year 2053. The unit has abolished murder in their city with the aid of three "precogs" who can see the crimes before they happen. Police arrest the suspect based on the visions and the prisoner's are put into suspended animation immediately. The "trial" each receives is apparently limited to their appearance in the precog visions. Anderton believes in the system wholeheartedly and is proud of the results. Just after he learns of odd discrepancies in a few cases, however, the precogs have a vision that implicates him in the murder of a man he's never heard of. Anderton makes a run for it to try and prove his innocence. The rest of the movie is a roller-coaster ride as he tries to escape from the police while uncovering the real villain.

Minority Report is a mixed bag of a movie. The action sequences are all exciting and Cruise conveys enough urgency that it goes a long way toward carrying the film. At the same time, the plot suffers from numerous holes and inconsistencies. For example, the precogs can only see a murder when the killer forms the intent. But Anderton's murder is predicted even though he knows nothing about the victim and certainly has no intention of killing him.

Overall, I enjoyed Minority Report. It's well produced and Cruise's energy and passion in the role help show once again why he's a major star. The story doesn't hold up very well to even casual analysis so you need to be prepared to just let that slide or skip the movie completely.

Rating:

- One of the best in the breed; a film that is mentally as well as visually captivating...
`Minority Report' is one of those movies that just gets better and better EVERY TIME I watch it. It's beautifully constructed, intense, meaningful, thought provoking, thrilling...an all around edge of your seat thriller that delivers on every front. Stephen Spielberg, the man who's famous for delivering intense science fiction thrillers doesn't disappoint this go around either. `Minority Report', while remarkably absent from the Oscar shortlist, makes a huge impact on the viewer. From an impressive and remarkably realistic script (we'll get to that in a minute) to the superb special effects and some well handled performances `Minority Report' never fails at being spellbinding.

So let's tackle that script for a minute. The thing that I love most about films of this nature is that they challenge the audience to think about the future in ways they maybe don't want to. While films like `I, Robot' may take things a little overboard (while I don't think that the idea of robots providing assistance is out of the question) there are films like `A.I.' and the like that tackle things in a manner that is believable. Now, while the initial concept of psychics predicting murders and thus stopping crime altogether is a bit far fetched, the world in general that is portrayed for us in `Minority Report' is not. A world that follows us around, watching our every move so as to `serve' us better is, in my humble opinion, right around the corner.

`Minority Report' also broaches on the subject of humanity and our willingness to suffer for the betterment of others. The three precogs give up their freedom, their lives, their shot at anything remotely normal in order to help the government stop the plague that is murder. Sure, what they are doing is something admirable and it makes life in general so much better for the rest of upstanding society, but do we think about what this means for them. They are forced to relive nightmarish situations over and over with no sense of comfort. `Minority Report' also asks the viewer to contemplate how necessary this scenario really is. Now one can argue that murder is wrong, but is it really necessary to lock someone away for a crime they have yet to commit, especially when it is one of passion that merely needs to be prevented, not avenged?

Spielberg's handling of the material is utter perfection here. He directs a masterpiece, giving us cinematic gold. There really is nothing about this film I can pick at or find as a fault, and I am an adamant Cruise hater, but even he delivered wonderfully here, really digging into the heart of his character to deliver real signs of pure emotion. Colin Farrell delivers a fine breakthrough performance for himself. This was the role that got him noticed and preceded his 2003 rise to fame. Max von Sydow is also deliciously mysterious as Lamar but it's Samantha Morton (an actress who is just orgasmic in everything) who steals the show here. Her portrayal of Agatha is honest and fragile and the backbone to the end of the show.

So, it's obvious that `Minority Report' has left me smitten and I hope that it will do the same for you. It's one of those movies that impresses the first go around, but it begins to root itself in its audience after repeated viewings. There is no denying it is a masterful piece of American cinema. One of the movies I'll never get tired of that is as visually stunning as it is mentally captivating. A true triumph of cinematic bliss.

page 1 of 127