The Adjustment Bureau
Written and Directed By: George Nolfi
Starring: Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Anthony Mackie, John Slatterly, Michael Kelly, and Terrence Stamp.
Director of Photography: John Toll; Editor: Jay Rabinowitz; Original Music: Thomas Newman; Production Design: Kevin Thompson
Rated: PG-13 for some language, a flash of sex, and some brief moments of violence.
Scanning any library for their philosophy section will be dozens, if not hundreds of books, on whether this species has free will, or if our lives are determined for us. Some explain that a higher power controls all, while some argue physics controls are lives, while others fight for human control. However, in The Adjustment Bureau, which is adapted a short story by Philip K. Dick, director George Nolfi asks a different question: do we deserve free will?
A simple but endlessly complex question, and one that challenges in this slick and often reserved science fiction thriller, beefed up by the presence of its star Matt Damon. Mr. Nolfi, making his directorial debut after co-writing The Bourne Ultimatum and Ocean’s 12 for Mr. Damon, understands the ultimate rule of science fiction: less is more. Instead of giving us an incredible layered and complex universe, Mr. Nolfi instead focuses on characters and the romance that connects them. He lets us indulge with Mr. Damon as he flirts with his co-star Emily Blunt, letting us understand these characters before we get into any ridiculous notions of how a team of free will advisors could ever control the world.
