Equilibrium (2002)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Kurt Wimmer

Writer (WGA):

Kurt Wimmer (written by)

Release Date:

26 February 2003 (Belgium)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

In a future where freedom is outlawed outlaws will become heroes.

Plot:

In a Fascist future where all forms of feeling are illegal, a man in charge of enforcing the law rises to overthrow the system.

Plot Keywords:

Future | Book | Underground | Death | Shot In The Back

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Dominic Purcell	...	Seamus
Christian Bale	...	John Preston
Sean Bean	...	Partridge
Christian Kahrmann	...	Officer in Charge
John Keogh	...	Chemist
Sean Pertwee	...	Father
William Fichtner	...	Jurgen
Angus Macfadyen	...	Dupont (as Angus MacFadyen)
David Barrash	...	Evidentiary Storage Officer
Dirk Martens	...	Gate Guard
Taye Diggs	...	Brandt
Matthew Harbour	...	Robbie Preston
Maria Pia Calzone	...	Preston's Wife
Emily Siewert	...	Lisa Preston
Emily Watson	...	Mary O'Brien

Also Known As:

Cubic (Europe: English title) (video title)
Librium (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence.

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Singapore:NC-16 | Netherlands:12 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia) | Iceland:16 | Canada:A (Ontario) | South Korea:15 | Philippines:R-18 | Sweden:15 (DVD rating) | Australia:M | Finland:K-15 | Germany:16 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Berlin, Germany

Company:

Dimension Films

Trivia:

The poem that Partridge reads in the church is "He wishes for the Cloths of Heaven" by William Butler Yeats.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Preston slides the 2 clips down the corridor, there are two guards running down the hall toward the clips and you can see one of the guards start to jump over them. In the next shot, the clips slide right up to the guard's feet.

Quotes:

[first lines]
DuPont: In the first years of the 21st century, a third World War broke out. Those of us who survived knew mankind could never survive a fourth; that our own volatile natures could simply no longer be risked. So we have created a new arm of the law: The Grammaton Cleric, whose sole task it is to seek out and eradicate the true source of man's inhumanity to man - his ability to feel.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Underworld (2003)

Worth seeing twice in two consecutive days (which I did.)

I went in to see "Equilibrium" with no knowledge of the movie other than a two line synopsis from a local newspaper and the movie poster in the theater lobby. As usual, I was practicing my theory of "lowered expectations." I expect a movie to be horribly awful ahead of time, so I can not be disappointed. I was not disappointed. At the end of the film I could not sit still in my seat. I felt the urge to go out into the world and proclaim the utter awesomeness of "Equilibrium." Such words as "Sweet," "Crazy," and "Righteous" sprang forth from my lips in rapid succession when I talked about the movie with my friends. Not since the "Fellowship of the Ring" have I desired to sing a movie's praises. And I mean literally SING. "Equilibrium" could, and should, be the sleeper hit of the year. The film's action sequences stir up the blood and pump the adrenaline as if you were riding a roller-coaster. The art style, while minimalistic, and thus maybe confused for low-budget by some, is actually quite successful in portraying a totalitarian and emotionless society. The acting is excellent as well, and quite possibly the best I have seen in an action film in long time. While the nay-sayers will say that the film is too unoriginal, borrowing elements of its story and premise from "Fahrenheit 451" and "Brave New World," these complaints can be disregarded as the movie adds enough of its own style and story to make the comparisons plausible in basic premise only. In the end, like any movie, "Equilibrium" is meant as entertainment. And entertain it does. It does it so very well. It mixes action and with substantial plot and original style to make an excellent whole. Go see it. Go see it twice. Go see "Equilibrium," Cleric.