The Adjustment Bureau

Usually when a film has been sitting on the shelf for a while, it's a sign that the studio knows they have a lost cause on their hands. In the case of The Adjustment Bureau (which was supposed to come out last year), I don't know what Universal was so afraid of. This is a heartwarming and surprisingly triumphant love story with sci-fi and fantasy elements. The commercials don't really play up the love story part. It's a shame. This is a winning and intriguing film that I can picture working with a wide variety of people. I hope it finds an audience.

The idea behind the film, based on a short story by author Philip K. Dick, follows the idea that we as humans have no real free will. We are constantly being observed by "case workers", men in business suits and hats, who watch over our lives, and make sure we follow the strict plan laid out by "the Chairman". Who is the Chairman? I believe the movie allows you to picture it as whatever you want, it just states that there's a higher power controlling these men, and giving them orders. Are these men angels or spirits? Once again, the movie is intentionally vague. "We've been called angels", one of the men says at one point, with a hint that there's something much bigger at work here. All we need to know is that these case workers also exist to "adjust" or straighten things out when someone's life goes off course, and begins not to follow life's plan that's been laid out for them.

That's what happens when rising young Senator David Norris (Matt Damon) walks into the public men's room at the Waldorf Astoria hotel. He thinks he's alone, and is practicing a speech he's about to make, only to find a lovely young woman named Elise Sallas (Emily Blunt) hiding in one of the stalls. She's crashed a wedding at the hotel, and is hiding from security. There's an instant connection between the two. They know it, and we know it, thanks to the undeniable chemistry between Damon and Blunt. This chance meeting gives David the inspiration to give one of his strongest speeches ever. But, when he looks to find her again, she has left. It's not until three years later that David sees her again, and learns of the existence of The Adjustment Bureau. He has another meeting with Elise on a bus. He has never forgotten her, and neither has she him. The problem? According to life's plan, they were never supposed to meet again after that one time three years ago.

This is when the Adjustment Bureau make themselves known to David. They inform him that because of his accidental second meeting with Elise, his life is now following down a completely different path, and it's their job to put it on the right path that he was following before. He must never see her again. He also must not tell anyone about their existence, or else they will "reprogram" him, which more or less hints at a total lobotomy. Despite their warnings and sometimes harsh tactics (they kidnap and threaten him when he does not listen), David knows that his destiny is with Elise, and refuses to let anything stand in his way. The film becomes a cat and mouse chase, as David attempts to stay ahead of the mysterious Bureau for the right of living his life the way he wants to. His efforts to be with Elise threaten to become successful, so the Adjustment Bureau must send in one of their strongest agents (Terence Stamp) to keep the two lovers apart.

The Adjustment Bureau is that rare film that is not only full of intriguing ideas, but actually puts them to good use for most of its running time. I was fascinated hearing David's conversations with the Bureau, about whether or not free will really exists, or if it is just of the mind. What really surprised me, however, is that the film's central romance is quite certainly heartwarming. It helps us get behind David, as we want to see the two people who find their lives turned around by this mysterious Bureau get together. I found myself drawn into the film in a lot of different ways. I liked the characters, I was fascinated by what they were talking about, and the ideas that writer-director George Nolfi expresses. Most of all, I was impressed by the fact that the movie was giving these ideas ample time to grab the audience. While the movie has a number of chase and action sequences, they don't overpower the story or the characters, so the film never becomes mindless.

Credit goes to the cast for being able to bring out the humanity in all of the characters. Even the actors playing the members of The Adjustment Bureau come across as oddly sympathetic at times, thanks to the performances by Stamp, John Slattery, and Anthony Mackie as the lead members. We get the sense that they are not completely emotionless to David's plight. But it's Matt Damon and Emily Blunt who keep the film grounded in some sort of reality. For all of the film's talk about magic doors and hats, as well as humans being watched over by an otherworldly force who dress up like they're in a 1940s film noir, this really is a "love conquers all" story, and Damon and Blunt have the chemistry and the easy charm to make us buy the premise. They're in the movie to give us something to relate to, and do a more than capable job.

So, while I don't know why The Adjustment Bureau missed its original release date, I am glad it's here. Much like its weekend competition, Rango, it's a smart and involving antidote to a lot of the films that have been clogging up theater space so far in 2011. Not only does this film work as an effective romantic drama, but it also works as an intelligent sci-fi story about humanity itself. I can picture audiences having different interpretations about what's going on behind the scenes of the story, and that in itself is intriguing enough.

See the movie times in your area or buy the DVD at Amazon.com!

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