Minority Report (2002)

Director: Steven Spielberg

Screenplay: Scott Frank and John Cohen (based on the short story by Philip K. Dick)

Cast: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Max von Sydow, Samantha Morton

Music: John Williams

Time: 145 minutes

Bottom-line: Interesting concept, and excellent script-writing

"We don't choose the things we believe in; they choose us."

Steven Spielberg’s futuristic sci-fi thriller brings together several themes and ideas, combining neo-noir, crime, drama and of course, science - in fact, it is a standard example of a film belonging to the "tech-noir" genre. Tom Cruise plays the lead role, supported by Colin Farrell, Max von Sydow, Samantha Morton and Kathryn Morris.

The flaw is human.

If the future is set in advance, does free will exist? This dilemma is one of the fundamental themes of Minority Report. The year is 2054, and in Washington DC, there is an organisation called Precrime. Their speciality: three “Precogs”: psychics who can predict the future. Their use: to inform the department about murders that occur in the future, so that Precrime can send in forces to prevent them from even happening. Seems neat, right? The Precrime captain is John Anderton (Cruise), who has separated from his wife after the disappearance of his son. When a United States Justice Department agent Danny Witwer (Farrell) comes to audit the program, the Precogs predict that John would murder a man in 36 hours. Determined to prove his innocence, John takes off. As he starts his investigation, he realises that the system is flawed… and as always, the flaw is human.

 

Cruise as Anderton

The fact that you prevented it from happening doesn’t change the fact that it was going to happen.

I like the way the scenario is introduced to the viewers. The futuristic setup, the Precrime organisation, the concept of the Precogs and what they do, and later, the glitches in the system, are explained in a lucid manner. Spielberg combines the standard wrong-man genre with an extensive science-fiction backdrop that makes the film stand apart. The pace of the story is perfect, with the clues leading to the right answer revealed at the right moments. Then there is the action and suspense, of course – the scene where the “spiders” search for Anderton is sure to give you goosebumps and make you sweat, and the one where Anderton tries to escape from the shopping mall is ingenious.

 

Farrell as Witwer

The science part of the film is the debate between free will and determinism. Precrime works based on the fact that the murders will occur, but have not yet done so. The question is, what is the guarantee that the events to follow will create a different future than the ones predicted by the Precogs? The “future” killer has a choice or free will to shy away from committing the murder, but then determinism says that all the future events are set. Minority Report illustrates this in one of the best ways possible.

The filming style is the highlight when it comes to the technical aspects. A technique known as bleach bypassing is used, such that the film has a high level of contrast, and in several scenes, it looks like a black-and-white picture; the scenes have a “washed-out” appearance. The first few minutes themselves are indicative of the distinctive narrative style, as compared to any other Spielberg film. Tom Cruise’s and Samantha Morton’s (who plays the female Precog, Agatha) acting are excellent.

 

Morton as Agatha

Minority Report may be a movie about flaws, but the film is quite clean. It’s a bit over-dramatic at times, but other than that, the science, the action, the story and the visuals are superb. A sci-fi movie that actually talks a bit about science, it’s worth watching!

My Rating: 4.5/5

Rotten Tomatoes rating: 90%