Intelligent mix of sci-fi, action and crime drama genres

Rating: 8/10 (2 July 2002)

Minority Report is a well-done attempt to mix the sci-fi, action and crime drama genres. The film begins in a future Washington DC with a very intriguing future society in which crime has practically been wiped out due to psychics who can predict crimes before they happen. Tom Cruise plays John Anderton, the man in charge of "pre-crime", a division of the police devoted to stopping criminals before they commit their crimes. Everything seems to be running smoothly until the system notifies Anderton that a murder is about to take place. Anderton is shocked to find that he, himself, is the murderer and that he's going to murder Leo Crow, a man he's never heard of, in only a few days' time.
What follows is an examination into the morality of the entire pre-crime setup as well as the morality of John Anderton himself as we eventually discover his relationship to Leo Crow and what it means.
Overall, Minority Report is a pretty slick production. It works very well, has a good script, features a fine set of actors, strong action scenes and neatly ties up all its plot points. It reaches a more or less satisfying conclusion and I rate it at 8/10.
That said, I can't help but think that this movie did slightly wimp out a bit in the end. I won't spoil it, but I thought it could have taken a more subversive tone near the end which could have shot made it even more memorable. Still a fine movie, though.