Richard Giles

– Spoiler Warning –

Review, 25 June 2005.

It’s only three years since Spielberg and Cruise entertained us with the first Minority Report that was based on a Phillip K. Dick short story. This year Minority Report II (MRII) maintains the feel and thrills that made the first one successful at the box office and a smash hit DVD.

Minority Report was released in June 2002 and was moderately successful in theaters despite the good reception from critics. The story followed John Anderton (Tom Cruise), a Detective for the Pre-Crime Agency who had a squeaky clean record of arresting people for crimes that they were about to commit. It was the successful release of the DVD with awarded special features that won the best reception from the public.

Spielberg uses the same blend of action and special effects to bring us the sequel. The year is now 2061, seven years since the Pre-Crime agency is shutdown. The three Pre-Cogs, psychics incredibly attuned to future crime, Agatha (Samantha Morton), Arthur (Michael Dickman), and Dashiell (Matthew Dickman) who were left in hiding at the end of the original movie, are suddenly abducted by unknowns. Dashiell luckily escapes and goes hunting for Detective John Anderton, who helped Agatha expose the murderer of her mother.

Like the Minority Report, the special effects do not distract from the movie. Unlike Star Wars Episode III, like its predecessor, that overloaded the viewer with overly colourful special effects, MRII uses them to enhance the movie, and although there are plenty they blend into the futuristic world seamlessly. As with the first there is a feast of futuristic insight awaiting a hungry audience for a peek into the future. For this new movie Spielberg collaborated with well know visionary futurist Richard Giles to add an incredible authenticity to Washington D.C.’s mid-twenty first century look and feel.

The cinematography echoes from the original, with the washed out dreamy blue that permeates the whole movie. A tribute to the lives of the Pre-Cogs who live most of it out within themselves. Seeing the most disturbing part of the future in their dreams that are perpetually like viewing a broken DVD that skips between fast forward, rewind and slow motion.

The first movie built the characters up well. Allowing us the insight into how Anderton felt about his lost son. This gives more scope with new characters as well as building on the old. Cruise, along with the supporting cast, again provide some believable performances, and add great strength to the characters. Anderton, who now has a six year old child with his wife, is found living his life out quietly as a security consultant. Dashiell convinces him that he needs his help to find the two Pre-Cogs before they are used for the genocide that he sees in his psychic collages. Dashiell is reluctant to involve any government agencies because of his belief that they are involved in the abduction.

Using his psychic ability in the same fashion that Agatha did in the original movie to help John avoid the Pre-Crime Officers, Dash helps Anderton track the abducted. Anderton also uses his underground connections, such as the eye doctor from the first movie, to avoid the governments grasp. Already the Police, the CIA and the FBI are chasing them because of the belief that John is the kidnapper.

It turns out that a new secret government agency is responsible, and is in the process of cloning the Pre-Cogs for military and anti-terrorist purposes. Although they are only seventy to eighty percent accurate in their agreement of future events, the reason for the Pre-Crime units disbandment, this hit rate is well worth it to the military agency. They use genetic enhancements to allow the Pre-Cog Clones to see future world events rather than localised murders.

As critics pointed out in 2002, MR was well timed to make for interesting moral discussions that were raised with President Bush’s announcement of his intention to create the Department of Homeland Security. How could a person or terrorist be arrested if they had not yet committed a crime. The sequel is equally well timed being released after the Department of Homeland Security is being questioned about its methods in tracking and arresting suspected terrorists.

The same privacy issues are highlighted here as was in Minority Report. Eye scans used to track residents of the city, lock downs of motorways to capture suspects. It raises interesting issues that come months after the release of the American ID Card. How long will it take for advertisers to use the technology to track and match adverts like those displayed across the walls of the D.C. buildings. It also raises further questions for the use of cloning.

The film ends with Dash dieing in his attempt to assist Anderton in saving Agatha and Arthur. Both are safe, and a Government investigation is commissioned to look into the practice of the Special Military and Anti-Terrorist Offensive Department. A task force is established to work with the Pre-Cogs and Clones. The aim is to find a way to integrate or segregate these humans with/from the world. Ethically and morally they can not be “destroyed”, but they pose a threat to the world with their ability to see the future and be exploited in fashions akin to giving a weapon to a baby.

Both movies seem to draw the movie out a little longer than needed. On reflection both endings highlight the moral issues a little more than a truncated version. Its also pleasing to see that Spielberg manages to continue the dark feel of this movie, similar to the first, something I believe he has fallen short on with movies like A.I..

I enjoyed Minority Report immensely, and had concerns that the sequal would not compare favourably. It’s good to see that this one doesn’t just re-make the first and is willing to explore new moral ground.It does capture the best of the original, while adding a new angle to the story, exploring the posibilities of using genectics to provide for destruction, the yin to the originals yang. Both films are rewarding mentally and provide a enough physical fodder to satisfy any action buff.