DVD Talk Forum - an interpretation of ‘minority report’

Here is just my interpretation of ‘minority report’. Saw it when it came out, lots of people talked about it, the talks came again when dvd was released, and still some more because it was named number one film of year by ebert I think.

Anyhow, I didn’t like it. But for all the talk I hear, I feel people are missing the major point of the movie (most common complaint is that cruise doesn’t go blind after spider scans one eye). If my interpretation is wrong, show me, if I’m right, I hope you enjoy (although of course in anything you never truly know until the author her/himself reveals).

This comes from old email I dug up, so keep in mind it’s in disjointed email format.

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saw "minority report". Someone asked for my thoughts, and I wrote up thingie. Thought u may be interested if u've seen it. lemme know if u'r opinions differ.

So I don't usually watch movies unless someone recommends one to me, cuz I think most suck. Recently a couple people recommended "minority report" so I went to watch it tonight. (I also like tom cruise movies from before with simple plots, but he's doing more artsy films now).

It sucked.

Rest of this is what I thought about the movie. If u plan on watching, then be better to read rest of this afterwards. Also cuz u won't know much of what I talk about.

I'm not religious by the way. This movie is mostly filled with religious overtones as its themes. Some is said explicitly. They say directly in the movie that the 3 fortune tellers are thought of as god. This is supported indirectly by statements made from tom cruise who believes in the system and thinks "its perfect", the system "is never wrong"--just like god. So in terms of plot, they divided it into 2 main themes with a transition element in between. Just like in religion your faith is suppose to be tested. Cruise has his faith tested when the system turns on him as a killer. Just like biblical story of Isaac or whoever that was told by god to kill his son. Cruise is devout however and believes in the system and tries to prove his innocence. After lots of detective and action stuff, the plot transitions in his house with the girl and his wife. Here again the girl is portrayed as god--in what has to be one of the dumbest scenes (I started laughing, people looked at me, but whatever). Right when the girl starts talking about their kid, the wife suddenly sits on the bed, but worse is when tom just kneels down and sits in a certain way--a way that disciples are always portrayed as sitting in front of jesus. And as the girl tells the story there is a really nice bright light behind her and the drapes are flowing like she's enlightened. So cruise was tested, passed, the girl/god shows a vision, and now the plot transitions to part 2 where cruise shows his faith in the system/god. More detective type stuff happens, and it comes to point where cruise sets up situation with the old man on balcony. Cruise sets it up so old man can now kill him. but cruise has ultimate faith in the system/god. Cruise puts his life on the line, because if true, the system should prevent him from being killed. Cruise never flinches. And by having ultimate faith, the system provides and he isn't killed. That's most of plot.

The last scene is symbolic because cruise tests old mans faith, just like system/god tested his. This is like what disciples were suppose to do after studying the teachings of jesus, which is spread the word of god/get more believers/test others faith in god. Cruise had ultimate faith so he didn't die. old man sinful in his ways so in end he died.

In terms of religion, they try show this symbolically in playful way where the bar tech guy starts bowing to the girl but tom cruise dismisses him and tells him to get up. This is more symbolic cuz later cruise will do the same type of thing where he kneels before girl in his house.

Religious thing to say is 'none so blind as those who cannot see'. There is emphasis on eyes throughout whole movie. But more so, the girl constantly says, "cant u see?" which is just a variation. And symbolically girl/god will show them the light. This is evident with cruise and wife. In end they're happy and wife pregnant with another child. This could have happened before. what was stopping them from being together was loss of first child and not knowing what happened to him or if child is alive. Those conditions didn't change by end of movie. However, the girl/god showed them a vision, and it was after this that cruise and wife could again achieve happiness. Alone they were lost, but through girl/god, much happiness was abound.

eyes: getting new eyes, cruise see differently/symbolically from other/victim perspective--again testing his faith in system to see if he still believes in it after being on the receiving end. His eyes still have security clearance as fugitive? wife use his eye to get it--she believes him/sees things his way. he has no (original) eyes, no identity to system/god, then later in funny-type moment he chases after eyeballs, holding onto faith/eye, showing he still believes in it. cruise believed before and after in system, however before he didn't really know everything (minority reports, old man's murder), so he had a sort of blind faith, symbolized by losing 1 eyeball--still has 1 because he believes, but lost 1 because he didn't see everything completely. also suppose to be funny/disgusting when he eats the sandwich and drink. but again showing blind faith, how cruise believed strongly but in part for wrong reasons--old man represented by the rotten food--and cruise chose this because he was in dark/ignorant, his eyes wrapped in bandages at the time. also surgeon kept telling cruise he'll go blind if look too early, spider shines light in 1 eye, but cruise is fine afterwards. however he lost his 1 original eyeball-- he's being enlightened/shown a blinding light like plato parable of cave or something.

cruise could have avoided city until time when he was suppose to kill guy passed. investigator said cruise return cuz cruise believe himself to be innocent. if he stayed away, and didn't kill, that would also show he's innocent. the problem with that however is it would prove his innocence by showing the system failed. by predicting cruise would kill, the system/god is portrayed as turning on him/testing him. but cruise maintains his belief in the system, and does not turn on it when it seems to have turned on him.

And there's 3 fortune tellers much like the holy trinity.

Prisoners referred to as "flock" when cruise was arrested. guy playing organ. Could have been any instrument from guards justification of playing for music's sake, but piano organ associated with church.

Another issue is free will. Throughout latter part of movie girl keeps telling cruise he "has choice". Free will was problem for religion/catholicism early on. If god know all, and he created humans, and humans do evil, then god should know this and created this on his own. But this issue was resolved like 3rd or 4th century by Thomas Aquinas or whoever by stating humans have free will (making up their religion as they go along). Same way, future was not totally written, and girl/god was giving cruise free will by telling him he has choice. And cruise with his ultimate faith, used his free will wisely/for good. One might think that girl was right because cruise did kill the guy. But this was only made to look like prediction, because actual killing happened after timer went off, after the prediction said he would. So cruise did kill guy coincidently, but it was different. And again, cruise being a good disciple, gives old man choice and tests his faith, but old man fails.

investigator try desperately to find flaw in cruise, more so than system. much like religion, where atheists or whoever try to find flaw in the christian person to try and associate a flaw in religion/god itself.

There was something else, but I can't remember. I'd have to watch it again to remember (hahahaha, yeah right).

some stuff that was prolly meant for something but i have no idea: garden lady kiss cruise on lips (only mothers do that)(mother nature?), cruise prison number same as first apartment he busted into.

questions about story structure: how did it happen first time? the version we saw, cruise only went to apt cuz he saw the vision of himself killing the guy. but what would motivate him to go there in the first place/if time were allowed to flow unaltered, if the system were down or non-existent. it's kinda circular.

And I thought girl predict only murder, because it causes cosmic tear in universal karma or whatever. And that’s why she can't predict rapes. But there's that scene where she predicts bunch of dinky stuff like umbrella and dropping change. Possibly showing that girl/god was all powerful, all knowing, but doesn't follow explanation in movie. Or shows how cruise puts himself in her hands and has faith. I prolly missed something said in the movie.

And it seems we'll be getting lots of hand exercise with computer in the future.

And there's that argument about fate early on with ball rolling off. Goes against other hollywood physics about chain of events, and how 1 thing will cause whole other slew of things to change that would have been. But anyhow cruise argument doesn't really hold water. For 1 reason at least: just because u've seen 1 million balls roll off table, it doesn't mean u KNOW the next time it'll do the same. U'r not controlling the event, u'r only an observer. So it may give u confidence in u'r prediction, and give high probability, but that doesn't mean on 1 million and 1 trial, ball will do same thing (for whatever reason: physics of universe change so balls roll up at that instant, earthquake, table breaking at end, something falling to impede path at end, etc).

And also there's emphasis on importance of children, but my issues with that are for another thing.

I'm not religious by the way.
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