Movie trailer voice: “David Norris is about to see something no one is supposed to see. Once you know their secret you become their target. The Adjustment Bureau.” It’s tragic when a brilliant concept doesn’t measure up to its full potential. This is the case in The Adjustment Bureau with Matt Damon and Emily Blunt…

Some of The Adjustment Bureau movie trailers would have you believe that you were in for a classic piece of mystery science-fiction in the style of an Alfred Hitchcock man-on-the-run thriller. That movie is Minority Report with Tom Cruise. While both movie titles are similar, are based on Phillip K. Dick short stories and have a number of parallels, they are not on par.

The co-leads deliver and do a great job in a Dharma & Greg sort of dynamic. One’s a politician, one’s a dancer in an opposites attract spin – but mysterious forces seem to be working against their happily ever after. You want them to find love, you want the guy to get the girl… problem is, the guys in hats don’t. They’re so stuck on their little join-the-dot timeline notebooks… that they’ll do everything in their power to keep the two star-crossed lovers apart.

“Show you mine if you show me yours?”

Writer-producer and debut director, George Nolfi, has been credited with writing Ocean’s Twelve, The Bourne Ultimatum and now directing The Adjustment Bureau. He and Matt Damon obviously have a good working relationship, which is probably why Damon agreed to star in his directorial debut. Unfortunately, for both of them, the film is not as polished as their previous collaborations and feels unfinished.

Matt Damon’s connection with Jason Bourne has made it possible for us to believe the kid from Good Will Hunting, Saving Private Ryan and Rounders can stay ahead of authorities without breaking a sweat. However, The Adjustment Bureau has overstepped the mark, by suggesting that he can do something he’s not known for… romance.

Primed as the next Minority Report, The Adjustment Bureau has made an adjustment of their own. Instead of becoming the science-fiction thriller of the decade, it’s chosen to be the City of Angels of the year. To be fair it’s a mixture of the two – something that ultimately doesn’t quite work as a science-fiction classic or epic romance.

“It’s not you.  It’s me – I don’t share finger food.”

Getting to this point of realisation is entertaining, enjoyable even. The Adjustment Bureau starts as if it’s about to blow our minds with its philosophy about fate and existence in something akin to The Matrix. Unfortunately, this hanging over the edge and looking down technique never turns into full-fledged flying. Nolfi is so busy suspending the audience that the film fails to take – avoiding any real sort of statement, without a rule book to define its world or a satisfactory ending.

The Adjustment Bureau builds to a crescendo and then drops us, too timid to deal the final death blow. While it looks the part: a first-rate ensemble, slick visual effects and a thought-provoking story with religious overtones – it fails to make its mark as a science-fiction staple, an enigmatic romance or a complete thought even. This leaves the audience bewildered, slightly disappointed and eager to figure out where it all went wrong.

Watching The Adjustment Bureau as something in the same league as The Lake House or The Curious Case of Benjamin Button makes more sense and the allure of the mystery behind the men in hats does keep you hooked long enough to enjoy the ride. Overall, a great concept with its merits… spoiled by some wishy-washy indecision and a tapered conclusion. It’s the sort of movie you’d expect to have a director’s cut… let’s just hope it gets a chance to see the light of day.

The bottom line: Afloat.

Release Date: 10 June, 2011
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