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Absolutely one of Spielberg's best. Easily the best movie I've seen in awhile. What a vision! Special effects actually enhanced the STORY in a very matter of fact way without calling attention to themselves.There is one scene which I can't even imagine how it was filmed (and I have worked with a few FX houses.
Some very strong performances, especially by Samantha Morton as a "pre-cog". Just keep thinking about all the great scenes.
The film is a mix of Spielberg, Kubrick, Hitchcock, and even a little tribute to DePalma.
I have two criticisms though- there is a major logic flaw at the end and the movie is 30 minutes too long. Fixing the length would have fixed the flaw as well.
Someone needs to be a stronger editor for Spielberg, he just has a bad tendency to ramble on as in AI. If Minority Report had ended at on ekey point it would have been a masterpiece.
Go see it everyone, I'd like to hear some comments.
I'm guessing the flaw has to do with his "eyes" and the fact that they didn't disable access to anywhere when he was a fugitive? If not, there's another one. After all, get fired from an office and see how long your pass-key works for.What scene amazed you? Remember, in the age of computers you can be certain it likely wasn't film -- just little pixels pasted to a screen.
Doug Schneider
Yes the eyes thing was a bad one (and I'm actually in the security business).The one I was refering to was at the end when Cruise tells the old man "You must kill me to make the precrime scenario come true...."
Not true at all, the whole premise of the movie was that they stopped people BEFORE they killed anyone. Presumably when he fired the gun the whole precrime unit would come swooping down to prevent it.
The FX effect I thought was brillant was when Cruise and his partner were struggling in the apartment building. This was when he was trying to get away. They were FLYING in a tiny room with several other people standing there and flames shooting out of the rocket pack.
THAT was a difficult scene. I doubt it was computer generated. It was too small a space to allow much camera leeway. I presume they must have built several sets without a different wall or ceiling on each set.
Anyway, it's sometimes the easiest looking things that are hardest to do- like a long continous camera move such as "Panic Room" where the shot enters a room and through a teapot handle. I've been told that scene took longer to film than any other.
...what effect could you not figure out?As for me, I felt I had stumbled into Scooby-Doo by accident with that plot, and if the movie had ended thirty minutes sooner it wouldn't have been better. It needed at least two more hardcore rewrites.
That's being a little ridculous. What's your idea of a good movie- The Flintstones? or something really popular like La Fidélité that 12 people have seen.
I dare you to tell me that MR doesn't have the same plot as "Monsters Inc!" Maybe you were amazed at the "twists," good for you. At the end of the movie Tom Cruise gives Max Von Sydow two choices, I thought "well, there's another option..."You'll have to excuse me for actually... thinking during the movie.
What's my idea of a good movie? Dr. Strangelove, Some Like It Hot, Psycho, Jaws, and many others. Sorry I got carried away. I named more than one, you're right, probably only 12 people saw them.
If the number of people who see a movie makes a movie great in your eyes, you should rush to see "Leeloo and Stitch" which was only $4,000 behind "Minority Report" last weekend.
"I dare you to tell me that MR doesn't have the same plot as "Monsters Inc!" "If you're attending & quoting films like this, slamming MR seems particularly ludicrous.
"You'll have to excuse me for actually... thinking during the movie."
You have no monopoly on that habit.
"What's my idea of a good movie? Dr. Strangelove, Some Like It Hot, Psycho, Jaws, and many others."
I liked all of those too. I also happened to like MR.
Comparing this to Scooby Doo is simply infantile.
joe
Spielberg's Minority Report was a pedestrian effort directorially. The obligatory fight sequences were lame, the script was forgettable, plot holes you could drive a truck through- Spielberg's bread and butter.The story raises some interesting, important and topical points about the nature of crime and justice- and then sets about completely ignoring them.
Ultimately the film's conclusion is Hollywood at its worst.
His vision of the future is easy to criticize, but good science fiction is never really about gadgets- as PK Dick proved time and again, the "science fiction" provides the opportunity for an author to explore and discuss issues in our present or our past- without the constraints or mundane trappings that "normal" literature demands.
It would have been interesting if Spielberg was capable of really challenging an audience with serious questions about justice, instead of assuming the audience needs to be "entertained" by SFX and childish plot devices.
I can't believe some people are comparing Minority Report to Bladerunner. Not even close.....The storyline of MR is so formulaic (I predicted the ending about an hour into the movie) and "safe". Looked like something created by an accountant and a Hollywood exec. And the ending was pure drivel. The fight scenes looked like something from an Arnie movie. I also hated the trite attempts at humour. Would someone please make a hardcore sci-fi movie (like Bladerunner or Alien) not pitched at the lowest common denominator.
On a postive note, I loved the special effects - they were used sparingly to enhance the movie, not dominate it.
Doug ;-)
I saw it as well and agree with your comments. Spielberg just can't resist the classic hollywood happy ending. A much darker conclusion, while troubling and unsatisfying on its own terms, would have been much more effective.It stikes me that he really does stand in stark contrast to Lucas in his use of digital fx. Lucas gets lost in the digital wallpaper and forgets the characters, narrrative, pace, etc... But Spielberg (forgetting the totally throw away drivel-brained dino extravaganzas) increasingly seems to subordinate them to the story and characters, using them to set a scene rather than dominate it.
Saying it is the best hollywood film this year does not do it justice. But I'm not so sure I would call it great either. I want to see it again just to absorb and think about it more. The one thing I can say is that his films are becoming increasingly interesting and I can't wait to see what he does next - the absolute opposite of Lucas.
Interestingly, the theater I saw it in (one of the largest in my area with stadium style seating) was not featuring MR in its largest theaters. Those spaces were reserved for Bourne Identity and Lilo. I'm guessing they think this one will confound too many folks. In a world in which the #1 box office flick in the US last weekend was Scooby Doo (!) they are almost certainly right. Too bad.
joe
joe
Agree totally with your general appraisal of Spielberg's work. I greatly admire Stanley Kubrick, an absolutely brilliant artist, but still can't understand his decision (mistake?) in giving A.I. to Spielberg to direct. The first 40 minutes or so plays like a Kubrick film, and it was a great idea, one that Kubrick had developed as a pet project for years. But the rest?...all flash and silly dialogue over substance. It's encouraging to read that some think he will get better in this respect.
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