Minority Report succeeds upon all levels

Rating: Null/10 (3 August 2002)

Philip K. Dick's short story comes to a remarkable life in this extraordinary epic that Steven Spielberg just happened to direct. Being his second futuristic, sci-fi thriller in less than a year, `Minority Report' shattered most everyone's opinions, unlike last year's `A.I.: Artificial Intelligence.' Going places he couldn't go with `A.I.,' Spielberg really gives `Minority Report' it's own perfect setting, believably set in the year 2054. Everything seems to be more open, and useful, as in `A.I.' where it seemed most of the outside settings where bright lights when indoors.
`Minority Report,' as mentioned above, is set in an amazingly realistic Washington, D.C., fifty odd years in the future. One of the highest-ranked and well respected cops in the new Pre-Crime Police Force, John Anderton (Tom Cruise), gets a wakeup call when the pre-cogs, three select people who can see future murders, accuse Anderton of murder.
Running from authority, which seems to be the movie's main premise, Anderton runs into a collage of outlandish characters and places, including a mysterious man who removes peoples' eyes so they cannot be identified, and a loner caretaker in charge of all the current pre-crime prisoners. Without a doubt, the action scenes in the film are top-notch, never outdoing their selves in pride or length. Two of the scenes that stick out in my mind would have to be Anderton's pursuit among the highway, where he must jump from vehicle-to-vehicle to escape his capture and a scene in an apartment complex where a group of Police-controlled electronic spiders are sent to identify all living persons inside.
Professionalism aside (heh), this movie just kicks some major ass. From the moment you see him, you know Anderton is a hard-ass, and won't quit being one the whole movie. That's Tom for you, folks. Another actor who really caught my eye was Colin Farrell (Hart's War), who played an FBI rookie to inspect the whole Pre-Crime process. I've never seen anybody transform their voice as much as him, starting with a deep Irish accent smoothly going into a perfect American one.
The actors, the settings, the plot. Everything seems to be intact. And it is. `Minority Report' succeeds in keeping the audience thrilled, yet intrigued with the plot at the same time. Twist and turns seem to be two of the biggest ingredients in this thrill ride's list, enough to make the ending unpredictable to even the most intelligent of moviegoers. Even if you manage to see one or two bad reviews of `Minority Report,' don't let them fool you. Those people are probably still aching over their oddly terrible `A.I.' experiences.