"I was defenseless against the small dress."

Rating: 9/10 (25 February 2012)

Stories involving time travel, alternate realities and dream worlds are usually enough to make your head hurt, but this one seemed to flow a bit more naturally than most considering the genre. The concept at the core of the story appears to be an examination of the concept of fate versus free will, and the writing for the picture can be quite clever at times. Others on this board cite "The Matrix" frequently in coming up with comparisons for this picture, and the thought occurred to me as well while watching. The Chairman could have been The One or The Force just as easily, but I also found myself thinking "The Day The Earth Stood Still" when Richardson (John Slattery) related Man's mucking up things on Earth for the better part of history. Pictures like this done well can inspire, just as The Chairman was inspired to rewrite the programming for David (Matt Damon) and Elise (Emily Blunt). They can also create paralysis if one remains subject to the fates and resist exercising the free will that's an inherent part of humanity's makeup. I liked this one; like the principal players I felt recalibrated by the experience and never once was confused enough to feel like I had reached my ripple limit.