L'Agence

"The Adjustment Bureau" is a first-time piece of directing work by a certain George Nolfi, who before had worked in Hollywood pretty much exclusively as a screenwriter. He also composed the script for this picture and that is half of what impressed me so much. Just looking at the way he choreographed his images, and worked so well with his two stars, despite the occasional lapse here and there expected of somebody making their first feature-length motion picture, I must say I am eagerly looking forward to his entire career. For "The Adjustment Bureau," while not any kind of a masterpiece, is one of the most unexpectedly pleasing and wholeheartedly enjoyable movies of the year.

Mr. Nolfi's involvement in the third Jason Bourne movie may have had some input in his getting Matt Damon to take the lead as an ambitious but somewhat dubious New York governor candidate. Through some odd and very charming circumstances, Mr. Damon runs into a bold, pretty young ballet dancer played by the always intoxicating Emily Blunt. Affectionate toward each other at first sight, they slowly fall in love and try to reach each other several times over a period lasting years. But the only thing tearing them apart and stopping them is not a jealous ex, not a terrorist plot, but instead a group of mysterious men in 30s-style jackets and fedoras calling themselves the Adjustment Bureau.

The screenplay was based on a Philip K. Dick story called "The Adjustment Team" and although the story is completely warped, the purpose of the titular men remains essentially the same. Their purpose, as a character played by very-good actor John Slattery explains, is to control how time plays out. Time and fate is prewritten in what is called 'The Plan' and they work in groups to make sure that things play out according to 'The Plan,' using whatever methods possible to make sure that the rest of the world falls in accordance to it. And as it turns out, the romance between Mr. Damon and Miss Blunt is something that is prohibited in their strategy and the film evolves into a very passionate and exciting story about two people deciding what is more important: to be with who you love, or to do what is better for the world entire.

With a plot this extravagant, it is surprising that director Mr. Nolfi did not blunder into an entirely corny yarn. Occasionally, he does falter (some of the scientific lingo gets a little too pseudointellectual for my taste) but as a total, he succeeds in weaving a strong and passionate tale. But that may also return to the surmise that "The Adjustment Bureau" is not really a science-fiction tale. Rather, it is a deep romantic thriller that benefits from two sharply-written characters and two very charismatic performances. The movie rides on the romance between Matt Damon and Emily Blunt and you could not ask for better performances. This coming from someone who typically gripes at the 'Love At First Sight' gimmick but became an instant sucker for it here within ten minutes. Mr. Damon, who usually casts himself as tough guys with pasts, takes a chance at playing a softer, more emotional type who does not hurl a fist until the third act and does not instantly become a stuntman. And Miss Blunt does a fabulous job playing a courageous and strong-hearted woman. It's their chemistry and their moments together that really benefit the picture. For right away, I believed in the love brewing between them and it mattered to me whether or not they actually got together at the end. Just looking at these two people together is absolutely charming and even the obligatory love moment between them in bed is performed and shot in such a way that it does not become unnecessarily erotic and doesn't stop the story. Rather, it seems to work, like a piece of a puzzle.

That is the definition of a good love story. If you were to take it out and transplant it in some totally different movie, it would still work.

The love story is more interesting than the Adjustment Bureau men themselves and that may be one of the weaknesses of the picture. Despite some great performances from John Slattery, Anthony Mackie, and Terence Stamp, and the fact that we see inside of their operations quite a bit, we don't really come to know much about them. In addition, because this is a first-time directing job, some of the shots are imperfect. A moment where Mr. Damon tries to escape from the Bureau men and trips on a rising floor tile is awkward. The shot seems sped-up too fast and his leg hangs in the air for too long.

My only real complaint about "The Adjustment Bureau" would have to be the much-griped-about ending, which has some religious subtexts that may anger some. Not offended myself, I just felt it, despite that wonderful shot of the two leads - and one of the few times where I liked the shot of the camera whirling 360 degrees around them - was a bit of a cop-out and not entirely satisfying.

But my few notifications aside, I must happily repeat that this is one marvelously entertaining and emotionally-gripping little movie. And despite the fact that there have been some better-made pictures this year, few of them are liable to last as long in the memory as it. Sometimes it's better when a picture does not aim for masterpiece-status and it's better for the audience going in with an open mind and not assaulted by a big hype campaign. For then a movie like this becomes even more surprising and delightful. Congratulations all around, especially to Mr. Damon and Miss Blunt for their fabulous performances, and to writer-director George Nolfi, who has made a more-than-impressive first step into the most-cherished profession of directing motion pictures.

I'm starting to like this new genre of science fiction romance that "The Adjustment Bureau" falls into. Hollywood seems to have learned how to add a significant amount thought to their films, just with their usual dumbing-down procedures.

David (Matt Damon) has met Elise (Emily Blunt) and based on one spontaneous kiss and one flirtatious encounter, he's determined that she's the one he's supposed to be with. They have other plans. Oh yes, the indefinable, ambiguous pronoun "they". Just to keep a sense of the intrigue afloat, I'll define "they" as the men of "The Adjustment Bureau". What they want, we don't really know. But David wants the girl—a beautiful girl—but just a girl nonetheless.

For us, questions of free will, fate, soul mates, success and pre-defined destinies abound. All running around an intricate maze of New York architecture. Although intricate might not be the best word because there's nothing here for us to figure out; the film lays everything out well in advance, and over and over again in case you missed it. At least there's intelligence to the story but unfortunately no subtlety.

"The Adjustment Bureau" has pretty city-scapes and pretty people playing more profound characters than pretty people usually play. As with most genre-mixing films, there is something for everybody. I got the intelligence that is usually sorely missing from big-budget Hollywood action films although I could have done with a bit more respect.

There's no reason why The Adjustment Bureau isn't included in the top "fate flicks", like Inception, Interstellar, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Unbreakable, and Minority Report. It's really good! I went with my family to the theaters to see it when it was released, and we were all on the edge of our seats. Except my mom, who was jealously eyeing Emily Blunt because she knew my dad had a crush on her.

Basically, if you like the Bourne Identity movies, you'll love this one. Matt Damon stars in another thriller about fate and total strangers knowing more about his life than he does, but I liked this better than the more famous trilogy. I'm not the biggest Damon fan, but I was so engrossed in George Nolfi's screenplay, the lead actor could have been played by anyone and I would have liked it. He starts the movie as a senatorial candidate, but a chance encounter with a beautiful interpretive dancer (Emily Blunt) rocks his world. He sees her again and they start dating, and pretty soon they fall in love. But one night, he gets kidnapped and taken to a mysterious warehouse by the "bad guys".

Are they really the bad guys, though? They're the titular bureau, led by Terence Stamp, in charge of making sure everyone stays on his or her path. When people deviate from their predestined path, they "adjust" things so life goes back on track. Depending on your point of view, Damon is the pot-stirring villain and Stamp is the hero who sees the bigger picture - which is why this movie is so enjoyable. You can root for anyone you want to, and it can spark any number of conversations afterwards with your friends. You'll also see lots of familiar faces, like John Slattery, Michael Kelly, Jennifer Ehle, and Anthony Mackie, as well as New Yorkers giving cameos, like Jon Stewart, James Carville, Chuck Scarborough, Michael Bloomberg, Terry McAullife, Jesse Jackson, and Madeleine Albright. Check it out!

This movie has been a very good experience for me. I found the story extremelly interesting and intelligent.I enjoyed every second, cause there was a lot of action, mystery (in the nice way of it), romance, humor, and at the same time the story made you think deeper about life it self. About getting out of your little every day life and try to see the "greater picture". How ready and capable is any of us "every day people" to make a change, to believe, to dare, to even actual think "differently" in any part of our lives...

Jan 11: I was invited to see and rate this movie at a free audience screening. While biting the hand that feeds you is incredibly bad form, this film is not worth paying a full price admission. DO see it on the big screen, but go to the matinée instead.

Caveat, I'm not the target audience, (and hadn't read the short story source first) so for you to calibrate: I rated Jumper at 7; Avatar at 6 bumped up to an 8 for CGI; and Last Airbender at 3.

This film has all the individual elements for a great time: The opening draws you into the story; Blunt is engaging and sensual; Stamp is villainous; Damon/Blunt have fabulous chemistry including a great meet; initial mystery, sophisticated humor, snappy repartee, wonderful score, and superb scenery. The supporting characters are well cast and acted. However, the thin plot doesn't sustain the whole movie, and it takes too long for the minimal plot to unfold, even though there are myriad chase scenes to divert you at first.

The movie was seemingly created for chase scenes, with a poorly contrived reason for the "boy meets girl, boy loses girl but continues to search for her storyline", tossed in to justify all the chasing. In attempting to make everything mysterious, the audience is kept as ignorant as the characters to the point where it became "THATS the reason he's been chasing after her? How DISAPPOINTING!" when the cause for separation is unveiled. The secret meetings which presumably either advance or reveal the mystery were annoying instead. Finally, in the last portion of the movie, the opening doors and running become so repetitive, you can feel like the Blunt character, who has her hands over her head and is screaming. The ending is abrupt, contrived and disappointing, a veritable deus ex machina version.

Conversely, my companion who loves everything sci-fi or sci-fantasy, and reads Phillip K Dick (including the short story on which this was based) rated the movie "excellent" as opposed to my "ok". Even though the movie diverges from the short story, he suffered no confusion or disappointment with the story line, big reveals, or ending. He also thought the cast, romance, and humor were great.

We both agree--do see the movie on the big screen as it certainly enhances the suspense and startling moments (political crowd scene, adjustment scene, car crashes, action scenes and finale) and shows off the great NYC locations. He says go ahead and pay full price,the movie is worth it