Film Notes: Minority Report (2002)

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Last seen on June 14th, 2017.

The tonal shifts stretched my suspension of disbelief to its limits, but never broke it, making for an absurd and trippy yet coherent and immersive experience. There is humor in the action, but the stakes are high, and visceral pain for at least one of the characters often feels imminent.

I have not read the book (by Philip K. Dick), so I don’t know which themes dominate in the original. The film’s religious undertones, carried by lines like the recurring “Can you see?” give the sci-fi an edge of mystery. Precognition would be considered by most a divine power, and the story pits our protagonist, John Anderton (Tom Cruise), against it. Either this divinity exists and Anderton is predetermined to sin, or this power is fallible and humans have free will after all.

There is nothing in the film to suggest that precognition is fallible– all its predictions come to fruition.

As the film repeatedly drives home: “the fault is always human”.