The Adjustment Bureau

A classic tale- boy meets girl in men's bathroom- boy instantly falls for girl- boy is forbidden to ever see girl again by the perdurable beings that control the fate of the universe- ah. c'est la vie.
I was originally drawn to the cinema to see this film because of it's female lead. I love Emily Blunt. There, I said it. I haven't seen her in a role yet that I haven't adored her in. My favorite being  'Young Victoria'-but we'll get to that later. Matt Damon was just a bonus.

The premise of the film, is that Matt Damon's character, David Norris, is an up and coming politician- the youngest man to ever make it into congress. People wonder how it is that he's come so far and so fast- growing up an orphan in Brooklyn, it seems that he has achieved the impossible, over coming the odds to really make something of himself. It's about ten minutes into the film that we discover he is being helped along by 'the bureau'; a group of fedora wearing agents who control his fate- keeping him on track to change the world. Of course Norris and the rest of man kind is oblivious to their existence, but they are the ones who keep the world spinning- keeping humanity from destroying itself. They can freeze time- plant ideas in people's heads or erase their memories- and did I mention that they work out of a large, swanky office building in lower Manhattan? odd.



It ends up that Emily Blunt's character, Elise, was not everything I had hoped she would be. I found her very hard to relate to; a contemporary ballet dancer who meets our male lead in the men's bathroom of a hotel after she's crashed a wedding reception just for fun. Sure, she's confident and witty- likable even... but nothing I could empathize with. We, the audience, are led to believe that there is some instant and impenetrable connection between Norris and Elise, a spark that can't be extinguished. Things seem to be on track for a fiery romance, until the Adjustment Bureau intervenes.
I forgot to mention, Norris accidentally sees the bureau earlier in the film when they're changing the mind of one of his friends- of course they then explain who they are and tell him that if he ever tells anyone about them they'll wipe his brain. Easy as pie.

The day after the 'restroom trist' Norris and Elise, have a chance meeting on a city bus- this is where the fedoras com in; the bureau tells Norris that he's never allowed to see her again, and they burn the phone number which he procured earlier on- his only way of finding her. Years pass- and he rides the same bus every day, trying to find her. When he does- the bureau once again tries to pull them apart.
Here's where I had a hard time- He's after this girl for three years- that he had only met briefly- that he doesn't seem to have much in common with. He's a successful business man- he ought to have no trouble getting a date. Likewise, Elise has been engaged when we catch up with her again- and then broken it off, all out the memory of Norris- from their brief meeting. Believable? I think not. So the plot spirals from here- him chasing her- them together- he leaves to protect her- but then realizes he can't live without her- and for me Elise's ability to pickup with him again and again makes her even less real.

I won't tell you exactly what the bureau claims to be- but I can tell you that I wasn't thrilled with their explanation. It was too blunt- too simplified. It was like simplifying Chaucer into a 'fun with dick and Jane' book. On the upside- I did find them all likable, and easy to relate to- they all seemed to be genuinely sincere in their concern for the planet, and for Norris' future. This is why they forbid him to ever see Elise again- she will interfere with his future life- his success- and the success of the political offices they hope to elevate him to.
There was some good action sequences, a lot of excitement and frustration- emotionally it was pulling me every which way. It was a good film- worth seeing- and it could easily be enjoyed by a variety of movie goers. It had the action, the romance, some comedy elements. It was well rounded. This is a good group movie- see it with your friends- get their takes on the plot elements- and maybe you'll all find yourself asking the same question... What would you do for true love?