Fresh Science Fiction Noir peppered with Character segments.

Rating: 10/10 (21 June 2002)

From the opening Fox and Dreamworks logos, this film sets a style and tone that is clear - Science Fiction noir... a whodunnit framed in a future society issues and values.
The film doesnt soapbox - it simply moves forward with the story from the opening scenes. Its a smart film, knowing (or guiding) exactly what the audience wants to see.
The story mixes some wonderful character scene pieces - Peter Stormare's dirty doctor; the Lois Smith's slightly mad Pre-cog inventor; David Stifel's very cool Lycon the Black Inhaler dealer; and more. Such scenes give the audience a breather, fills in the blanks, moves the story, and provides an awesome texture and depth not found in many contemporary science fiction films.
The screen play does have a few "leaps of faith". I dont think they are holes, as this implies plot error. Rather, these are plot issues that may not seem plausible or represent common sense. Yet the core whodunnit mystery stays intact and is fair and interesting enough for the broad audience.
Another gripe is the length of the film. Without exposing plot, the story does tend to end anticlimatically, rather than a nice dramatic close. Spielberg does need to punctuate a bit more.
Spielberg's magic comes in presentation. He is just a master at finding the right camera angle, the right nuiance, the proper pacing. The effects for most of the film are seamless with their film counterparts. The two-shot with Samantha and Tom is a master stroke of a director absorbing the audience into a scene.
Its a go-see for sure.