Minority Report
Steven Spielberg, Director

Review by Rada Djurica


If a manufacturer (Treyarch) is willing to make a game based on the film "Minority Report," then already you'd imagine it must be an incredible film. But then, if you realize who the director is, you begin to understand why the film would inspire a computer game. Among the directors of science fiction, Steven Spielberg is the master.

It is certain that the game world recognized the challenge. But according to Brian Reed, the lead designer on the game, things went more smoothly than expected, because they had a substantial level of access to relevant materials such as the direct inspiration from Spielberg.

"Minority Report" has everything needed for a big budget film: suspense, high tech, a decent plot, an attractive, spacey environment, high budget actors to carry the film... The same producer recently produced the summer's smash hit, "Spider-Man."

If you compare "Minority Report" with, let's say, "AI" featuring Jude Law, "Minority Report" is less emotional and human. However, it is, no more and no less, a detailed masterpiece, this time starring Tom Cruise. In addition to plot, scenery and cinematography, all the characters are likable, from the bad guy to the good guy. Every single actor was so carefully chosen that they match Tom Cruises' excellent performance.

John Anderton (Tom Cruise), is a "bottle-blonde" every man. He could be anyone and no one. He is the careful and precise future man, the perfect cocktail of human genes carefully built in some future tech lab.

The outstanding characteristic of this film is in the pacing. Fight scenes, or other scene, are perfectly timed. You don't get tired of anything, expecting even more from the next scene. This is a great surprise, considering how long this film lasts.

The plot is a typical game of cat-and-mouse. A good guy (Tom Cruise) is set up by his government colleagues, so he runs from the "law." He is forced to investigate the seemingly perfect government system for which he worked. And as you'd expect, underneath the shiny surface, he discovers the real bad guy: a mistake, a flaw and an almost perfect murder.

Nevertheless, the quality of the film depends on the special effects, coupled with a terrific imagination of the future world and its system. And even if there are drama, emotions and human factors, the SF content takes over completely, leaving the audience breathless.