Movie Poster

I assume you dream, Preston.

# Review

Equilibrium takes place in a dystopian world where the average citizenry takes drugs to suppress their emotions to eliminate conflict. All emotional artifacts such as poetry and paintings are illegal and those who violate these laws are deemed Sense Offenders and are executed. The government employs agents called Clerics to hunt down the Sense Offenders. One such agent is John Preston (Christian Bale), who discovers his emotions after failing to take a dose of the drug.

The story feels like 1984 but with very stylish action sequences. The story is interesting but clichéd and the characters are mostly one- or two-dimensional except Preston. The casting is great, with Bale as Preston, Sean Bean as Preston’s partner Partridge, and Angus Macfadyen as Dupont, Preston’s boss. Unfortunately, the supporting characters do not get much character development. The film is amazing visually though. The Matrix-like gun fu scenes are amazing and hold up well even today. The costume and setting design are both very futuristic and minimalist. The sound design, especially the use of Beethoven, is very artful.

# Conclusion

An underrated tech noir with awesome fight scenes.

# Overall rating: 7.9

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