Equilibrium

Rating:
Summary: favorable
Review: This film, although violent, is a great testament to what makes us human beings and unique. Human nature will not be contain, controled or limited. I would prefer Christian Bale over Keanu Reeves any day!

Rating:
Summary: Critics Should be ashamed
Review: I viewed this with my partner as a mistake, and was utterly surprised by the fusion of the Metropolis Genre and Orwellian despair.
This alone was worth the view.
Naturally I was stunned by well done "Gun Kata" and actions scenes. Critics panned it, well I'll pan the critics then. Their ignorance clearly a result of over stimulation and a bubble gum culture dummed down for the masses.
The matrix, among a few has done well to dull the minds of the critics (which they incidently panned in the UK as well) but this alone proves the critics missed the point of the movie altogether.

The superb action scenes were incidental to an excellent plot and a harsh social statement of the human condition. I find it ironic that the point of determining what matters in life was ignored by the critics in what mattered in the movie.

Rating:
Summary: Crazy? Crazy like a fox!
Review: I must admit I found Equilibrium more entertaining on the big screen, but it is THE best kung fu-turistic movie built in recent years. But I digress, the style was more Japanese than Chinese. So it may have been Bushido-licious! Unlike Reloaded, I wanted to see EQ again, which I did as long as it was at the theater (2-3 weeks). It's like a unusually good snack chip, before you know it, the bag is empty and wanted more. The action scenes are slick, straight forward and full tilt. So delicious you'll look for crumbs. Odd, considering it had no where near the budget of reloaded...or a jacked up ending either. Bottom line: EQ is better than the last 2 Star Wars movies and Reloaded. Bold - but are you bold and daring?

Rating:
Summary: I hope it gets reloaded
Review: ...The opening scene took me away, the opening scene and everything goes black, people begin to get bored untill "It begins" the music i mean, i could watch this movie without any voices as the soundtrack is phenominal lifting and carrying you through the story line. The fight scenes (which i must add contain the now generic "Katana" although its acctually done write in this movie)have not a hint of bullet time due to the budget but subtle usage of occasional slow motion is all you need. Ok the idea that a man can know exactly where his enemies are at all times and never taking a scratch is a bit far fetched but if we wanted realism you shouldnt watch sci-fi.

The acting is awsome, Bale gives a fantastic portrayle of a blank slate being ruthlessly thrust into a bleack but colourful world. Sean Bean, one of my favourite actors is at his best although his role is small and entirely voice acted i really felt for the guy.

Of course there are plot holes the size of texas but its dealing with an issue that is in reality flawed so i ignor that fact and concentrate on the emotion that is so tied to the soundtrack it is precedented.

I could say more, but a keyboard cannot express it, oh yeah did i mention the music rules all.

Rating:
Summary: Thank you Sir, May I please have another?
Review: Ok people listen up, I know this movie didn't debut across the country, I know it didn't have big name backers flooding daytime TV shows with celebrity interviews and non-stop TV spots. I also know this movie was not a large budget undertaking. But it should have had all three. This movie is definately in the top five movies of all time as far as I am concerned. While lacking the budget for special effects and expensive location shots, this flick manages to score actors of the highest caliber making for an incredible performance even by Hollywood standards, there is not a single second of unbelievable acting that throws your trust in the story. The shooting locations, (Berlin, Rome) lend an impressive aura of authority to the movie's setting that only compliments the amazing character interaction. Christian Bale's performance as a Grammaton Cleric named Preston is without flaw. You can feel his rage at the machine that crushes all opposition to the Law. You can see his inner turmoil, and you can sense his fear when he mounts the Resistance. Not to mention the absolutely mind-blowing
action scenes the man can produce (you have never seen anything like it, and no, this film does not use hong kong wire acting.)
Angus MacFadyen portrays a head operative in the all controlling Big Brother society of the future with authority and magnificent presence; and Taye Diggs plays the role of devoted statesman and dangerous enemy to the hilt. (Literally!). The film has a well thought out premise and doesn't engage in gratuitous violence for the sake of shock value, making the action sequences in which Preston (Christian Bale) annhilates the bad guys (think black storm troopers in Matrix leather coats)are enough to cause you to jump on your coffee table and throw your drink through the wall and scream "HELL YEA" loud enough to scare your neighbors...or maybe that's just me. (If you have a high powered surround sound system, invite your friends over for this one). The director (Kurt Wimmer) did an absolutely amazing job splicing this one together, and the musical overtones and backgrounds will have you biting your tongue off in anticipation, and crying at the cruelty of man to his peers.
I could talk about this movie forever, but I will simply say, when the sequel is made I will buy a copy sight unseen...although I hope they get rid of the white cadillac of the future. Oh yeah, and you guys who say Matrix is better...The Matrix WAS my favorite movie. Equilibrium crushes Matrix, and Matrix Reloaded underfoot with a giant steel-toed spiked leather standard issue grammaton cleric boot. Sorry Neo :(

Rating:
Summary: Equilibrium
Review: I was first not interested in viewing this movie when it hit the theaters; but after a co-worker raved about seeing it on pay-per-view over the weekend. I was intrigued and rented it the flowing weekend. Since then - I have been kicking myself for not seeing it in the theater. It is truly an awe-inspiring film. The fighting senses are precise and well choreographed. It was nice to see their fighting style based off dance - which if you think about it - it is. I have had a love-affair interest with Christian Bale since he exploded onto the movie sense in "Empire of the Sun". He is an amazing actor - his facial expression capture you and pull you into the film until you can literally feel what he must be going through. This is a must see

Rating:
Summary: Fine Film
Review: This film embodies all the things i love about movies great acting,wonderful action, original idea's (Gun Katta) an action film more concerned about plot and pacing than explosions.

Watch and enjoy.

Rating:
Summary: Equilibrium: Derivative Does Not Mean Inferior
Review: Usually when a film is released that borrows its theme, plot, and special effects from others, I tend to degrade its quality even before I view it. However, in the case of EQUILIBRIUM, director Kurt Wimmer gives us a film that may have begun in familiar territory, but soon enough stakes out its own original niche. In FAHRENHEIT 451, a fireman who burns books soon enough turns to reading them. In THE MATRIX, spectacular aerial dueling scenes punctuate a tale of a future, dystopic society. In 1984, a figurehead Big Brother is the symbol by which the Inner Party rules society. In EQUILIBRIUM, all three motifes combine to produce an engrossing film that suggests our society is not all that far from the one pictured here.

Christian Bale is John Preston, a policeman called a "Cleric", one whose job it is to ensure that all of society is rendered unemotional via daily injections of a drug that sounds suspiciously like our own Prozac. The opening credits tell us that after World War III, the surviving political states decided that hyperemotion was to blame for the widespread nuclear destruction. Thus was born the need for the Clerics, a martial arts trained political police force whose function was to track down and eliminate all those who refused this drug. At this point, a number of subtexts arise, enough in any case to suggest an allegory that has meaning for us. To begin with, director Wimmer implies that the forced repression of emotion, while eliminating the negative excesses of that emotion--like war and street crime--nevertheless have unintended consequences. Unlike Spock's planet Vulcan, where a similar de-emotionalizing goes on, in this society, such a repression of all emotion leads invariably to a concommitant repression of civil rights. All sense criminals are killed upon capture without recourse to a trial, a point not lost upon Cleric Preston, who complains of much the same thing to his superiors. As Preston gradually learns that his support of his superior, called the "Father" is based on the false belief that the nonemotional ends justify a similar nonemotional means, he begins to associate psychologically with the very people he is sworn to apprehend. His conversion proceeds slowly, beginning with his killing of his own Cleric partner who has already been infected with the lure of emotions. Several reviewers have complained of what they see as a maudlin scene of emotional growth when Preston risks his life merely to save a cute puppy dog from extinction. Yet, such seeming trivial scenes of conversion are need to establish a coherent and convincing segue of a man from emotionless killer to one who now feels such a wide range of emotions that he finds it impossible to hide them. Part of the joy of this film is the plot twists that evolve into a cat and dog game in which both cat and dog exchange places more than once. True, there are logical lapses, such as having an untaped police interrogation or not having a 1984-style ubiquitous television camera in every home. Yet, these lapses do not do more than intrude for the moment. The incredible "Gun-Kata" fight scenes between a Cleric like Preston and untrained police officers have to be seen to be believed. There is also the surprisingly effective acting of Sean Bean and Taye Diggs, both of whom provide the evil counterpoint to the emotional growth of Cleric Preston.

EQUILIBRIUM promises to be an untrumpeted current day version of BLADE RUNNER, a similar dystopic future vision. I cannot recall that EQUILIBRIUM was released to theaters to any great extent. But after having seen the video, I can see that in this nightmare version of a future prozac state, the ability to remain human is far more than a function of computerized actions. What is further required is the profound contemplation of all actions that are forced upon one by a Father who is paternal only in the visual sense. Cleric Preston learns this by the closing credits. So must we.

Rating:
Summary: An awesome film that deserves more recognition.
Review: My husband and I rented this film after it was reccommended to us by a Blockbuster clerk who knew our taste: action, sci-fi, and great acting. I had never heard of it before. We loved it! I was so surprised after having watched it that it was so little advertised. I don't believe it ever appeared in theaters in our city. I've heard it was panned because of a weak and over used plot. The plot I admit wasn't too complex. It is along the lines of classic Science Fiction dystopia fables like War of the Worlds, Time Machine, Planet of the Apes, and Kubric/Spielberg's A.I. etc., where the idea is more important than the story. Its also reminiscent of books like "The Giver" and reminded me a great deal of George Lucas' film school break out flick, THX (some number). But because the plot is so familiar it frees the viewer to concentrate on what the story is really about: the moral conflict and development of the main character, John Preston, masterfully played by Christian Bale. Bale is the kind of exceptional actor who can convey a complex range of emotions in his facial expression. Music, set design, costume, all compliment the age old theme of man's conflict against himself. John Preston discovers that the discipline he's learned as a law enforcing cleric is the key to controlling his newfound emotions, and become the liberator of his world. Besides the incredible performance of Christian Bale, the action sequences are amazing, a blend of violence and artistry that becomes a poetic experience. My husband and I agree this is one of the best movies we've ever seen.

Rating:
Summary: Sensational!!!!
Review: I've ever seen a sci-fi film more intersting, moving and exciting than this. Christian Bale's performance is extraordinary and that alone worth to whatch it.
You can't miss it! AMAZING!!