EQUILIBRIUM

Release Date: December 6, 2002 (top 20 markets)
Studio: Dimension Films
Director: Kurt Wimmer
Screenwriter: Kurt Wimmer
Starring: Christian Bale, Taye Diggs, William Fichtner, Sean Bean, Angus MacFadyen, Dominic Purcell, Emily Watson
Genre: Sci-Fi, Thriller
MPAA Rating: R (for violence)

Plot Summary: In a futuristic world, a strict regime has eliminated war by suppressing emotions: books, art and music are strictly forbidden and feeling is a crime punishable by death. Clerick John Preston (Bale) is a top ranking government agent responsible for destroying those who resist the rules. Whe he misses a dose of Prozium, a mind-altering drug that hinders emotion, Preston, who has been trained to enforce the strict laws of the new regime, suddenly becomes the only person capable of overthrowing it.

Review By John Barker:
- Who said they don't make 'em like they used to?

In my newly found role as critical and theoretical disciple of the action genre I cast an omnipotent gaze on some of the genre’s lesser known examples which is where we find Equilibrium.

While its release in March of this year at the cinema heralded none of the hype or publicity drive the proceeded The Matrix Reloaded, another similarly themed futuristic thriller, it deserved a lot more critical and spectorial attention.

The storyline makes for slightly more interesting reading than most science fiction occupying the paranoid space of Phillip K. Dick and the techno-enlightment style of William Gibson’s work. In a post apocalyptic future, society has rebuilt itself after a nuclear war and has blamed all of its ills on one factor, emotion. To combat the usual feelings of love, anger, hate and joy the whole of society administers a drug which quashes feeling known as Prozium.

It is taken at regular intervals and anyone found to possess emotions through human or artistic outlets is summarily executed by a race of enforment officers called Grammaton Clerics lead by John Preston, (Christian Bale).

Since the penalties for so-called ‘sense crimes’ are so stiff people defend themselves with deadly force and so the Clerics are trained in sought of geometric martial art. This inevitably leads to some over-the-top action.

But Preston decides at one point hot to take his regular doze of Prozium and he begins to feel, and more than that he decides that the judicial system that he enforces is flawed and brutal and begins to explore a whole spectrum of feelings. This leads him on Joseph Campbell-esque quest to bring down the system he once believed in.

The futuristic presentation of a society without laughter and love is a terrifying prospect but this is where the film touches its deepest nerve as it asks the question; Is our society really that different now? My opinion would be yes, as we have become slaves to a kind of emotional apathy caused by persistent consumerism and selfishness. But viewers can make up their own minds about the films socio-political implications.

Where the film is undeniably a success is in the combat scenes which are fresh and funky drawn from a variety of sources including the wire-work of Hong Kong Action Cinema and the machine gun mechanics of western action cinema. The result is highly watchable mayhem that really gives the illusion of hyper-kinetic speed.

Also of note is the art-deco minimalist style of the films mise-en-scene and costume design which has all the clinical cool of a Frank Lloyd Wright designed hospital ward.

Hospitalisation is probably the only factor that could save Taye Diggs from a critical battering given his lack of ability in portraying his role. His part as Grammation Cleric requires an emotionless performance as the drug Prozium should repress this facet of his personality but all the moronic man can do is smile, laugh and show aggression lessening the believability of his part and the film in general.

On the other hand Christian Bale gives a mesmerising performance burying every last ounce of emotion in the films opening hour and then letting lose a flood of sensual and expressionistic counter flow in the films latter scenes. It is a shame Bale has yet to have a full blown box office hit and another Oscar-nomination will surely grace his presence again, after his first for Empire of the Sun, if given the right material.

The next personality to gain subsequent recognition from this film, apart from Bale, is writer/director Kurt Wimmer who constructs high budget entertainment with low budget money. This is the perfect example of a wealth of good ideas which should lead to a sleeper hit, but alas not everyone has as much good taste as me. The direction and composition is artistically driven in the prison and home scenes making the best use of the horizontal and vertical lines of this post-industrial environment.

In summation then Hollywood will always try and imitate its biggest successes, (in this case The Matrix), but a formula repeated can sometimes be enjoyable and this is one of those rare occasions.