Equilibrium

I went to go see this tonight, didn't know a thing about it. Never seen the trailer, or read any plot synapsis or anything of it. I have seen the poster...and read the brief review on Penny-Arcade, but that was it.

Knocked out of my ****ing seat.

Your jaw will drop.

People are gonna cry that this is just a weak ripoff of the Matrix, but they are just stupid fools. It doesn't have anything at all in common with the Matrix except that it is a sci-fi movie, thats about it.

Christian Bale does a good job playing his role. Taye Diggs...doesn't do a bad job...doesn't do a fantstic job...but it really doesn't matter what kind of a job he does, and you'll understand that when you see the movie...and you will see it or I'll cut choo.

It is pretty rare that a movie actually takes an immediate spot in one of my all time favorite slots, but Equilibrium straight jacked one of the higher ones in the Sci Fi category. Deffinitely a must see for any sci fi fan, any straight sci fi fan. It is awesome, and not in the overplayed "damn that was awesome sense", in the holy **** I am in awe sense. But only if you are fan of this genre...otherwise it may just seem stupid, but either way you should do yourself a favor and see it. I drove 30 miles, and waited over 4 hours to see it.

I think it is pretty damn safe to call this movie an instant sleeper classic. If it doesn't become mainstream, which I think it will, it will atleast have cult written all over it.

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Horror's Not Dead
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Someone called this movie "the thinking mans Matrix". That doesn't do this fine film justice.

Equilibrium is far and away the best film I've seen in years.

Yes, there is action galore and a high enough body count to get grandma's panties in a bunch, but don't let that fool you.

This movie isn't about action. It's about comming to terms with what it means to be human, both good and bad.

The plot seems over the top at first glance, as does the action... but it never fell apart for me. It works.

I can't wait for this to come out on DVD.

I fully agree. I think it is either a movie you will connect with entirely, or just not care much of anything for it.

I loved it. I cannot wait until its DVD release in May.

You have my interest piqued. It sounds good.

I have to admit, I haven't heard of it. But that is probably a good thing. I'm not a big fan of most mainstream films. I will definitely check it out when it arrives in the rental mode.

i just saw this film....i agree with OG...i really really liked it...i am a sci-fi fan, but more than that, i'm a fan of anything different and this movie was certainly different!!

i didn't really understand HOW they conformed society to willingly inject themselves every day...if it was in the water or something then i would have understood it - but its kinda like a backwards drug problem...the criminals in this future existence are the ones that DON'T take drugs...i liked that thought

as for any matrix references, one would have to be on drugs to even compare the two...other than the fact they are both set in the "future", there was not one thing that could link the two flicks

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"So you take me for what I am...a psychopathic, schizophrenic, serial-killing, femme fatale?"

i thought this was a great movie.
i cant wait to get it on dvd

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Hey, I'm wondering if anyone knows when this will be coming out on DVD and if there are any places I can preorder it. I loved the movie, it's right up there on my top favorites with The Matrix and Signs (I loved how the director made the movie). Any ideas?

YO EQUILIBRIUM IS COMING OUT IN MAY ON DVD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 2003 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's a great film.


Loved it. Not necessarily more entertaining than The Matrix, but certainly more cerebral.

I loved it!


Christian Bale was was great. Like n7of9, I too am a sci-fi fan. The plot is thought provoking, the action is marvelous, and the style and performance is perfect......for my taste at least .

This movie was pretty good. I will say that I was definately shocked by it. I watched it expecting that it wouldn't be that good.......(future note: don't do that ) I thought the idea with the "angles" in combat was awesome. Pretty good film, I think I might have to get this one.

me needs a job and wants to buy dvd.

I have the dvd screener

Awesome. Still debating as to whether it should be ***1/2 out of **** or flat out ****, but it was a great film. Some of it's action scenes put even the Matrix to shame. It's budget was very small in comparison to most and it recieved a limited release, which is a shame. Bale did a great job, and so did the actor who played the main villian of the film, father.....(I know his name, just I don't put it here for spoiler purposes).

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"I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!" - Howard Beale

There was something very interesting about the movie, and I was wondering if anyone else noticed it.

Two of the main targets of the film's message were obviously political correctness and conformity.

The makers of the film practiced in production what they preached within the story:

The only black person in the film was a bad guy. I'm very hard pressed to realize another recent film with this characteristic. It seems making this kind of casting decision would be incredibly unpopular in today's hyper-sensitive world.

There are more black guys in the movie than Taye Diggs. (Watch the scenes where ther are crowds). True, Taye is the only main character that is black, but movies shouldn't be required to have any number of black guys in movies, or any race of people for that matter. Its the kind of thing Django would argue for. Todays hyper-sensitive world has crossed Beale. It better shape up.

wudnt the dvd be better, unless the extra fetaures is crap

I'm writing from Italy, i've seen the movie only tonight...

It's a great film... just like Orwell-meet-the-Matrix doing a-very-good Kung Fu with Blade Runner in the heart...

Talking about action scenes, they're simply AMAZING... a great gun-Wing Chun, nice Kung-Fu and bushido... a modern samurai fighting against himself, his role and his soul... what he has to do (and he was trained his whole life for this..) and what he desires (and he spent his whole life killig emotions)...

And the metaphoric messages, such as the f-u-c-k-ing religions that teach only dogma, " you must have faith" ...

But we must break our chains, idelogical chains, political chains nd religious chains...

'couse the chains bring man to the ground and don't let him fly...

And every chain means radicalism... and radicalism is the real problem of the world...


In faith,
Morfeo.

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33. Da lo santo a los perros, echa tus perlas a los puercos; lo que importa es dar.
(From "FRAGMENTOS DE UN EVANGELIO APÓCRIFO" by J.L. Borges )

Great film!

[spoilers]

Some drug points:

JamesGwel-smething said on another thread that...

"I heard they changed the name to distance the movie from the actual drug named Librium(R) that is used to treat anxiety, panic disorder, symptoms of alcohol withdrawal, tremor, and tension headaches."

There u have your answer me-thinks n7. We're already dosed to the eye-balls with weird chemicals. People are addicted to pain killers, kids are put on ritalin that don't need it, "wonder" drugs are constantly put out (and we're the guinea pigs - an anti spot-pill that was spuriously pushed onto me [my spots were totally in decline, but suddenly two local practitioners were telling me i had "chronic acne"! F*ckers! I was pretty as a picture]... killed 7 people that year! Lovely)

Ok, so we're already in a state of emotion-repression to some extents. Too many people think "happiness" (which the film points out is not a natural permenant state) is available in a bottle. The point is that this type of chemical-manipulation doesn't even have a spiritual or beneficial social use [but if we're told enough that it does, maybe we'll believe ] -- whereas you can argue that some ritually used drugs do.

You could also see this as an attack on non-relative/accomodating drug prescription. In the book (but not the film Awakenings doctor Sacks looks at the intriguing problem of medicating people with a regular dose of l-dopa (or whatever it was) when people seemed to have individual reactions to it not just based on body mass etc. Their reactions were psychological. How can you prescribe a one-size-fits-all medication then without ignoring variety?

....

Some other ponderings:

The: let's-not-take-rational/logical-life-too-far/seriously thing...

This seems like a direct attack on overly-rationalised living. We need space to lets things develop between people. We need to accept some realities of life - not create quick-fix technologies to address our simplified ("rational") understanding of the prob. These criteria for social change and control are shown to be over-played and destructive in this Equilibrium world. They're not allowed to establish their own balances within their emotional worlds and social lives. A one-size-fits-all solution has been enforced from above (tho of course, they must have had to spin it pretty heavily to get everyone going along - but as the film shows - once everyone's on the convincing gets that much easier. A purely rational person is the perfect sucker for most conmen - imagine what a dodgy government etc could do with a whole land etc of gullible fools

The samurai comparison is nice too. The idea of being the killer of emotions + the idea that for the common good some, who are most able to, should act as rationally/emotion-lessly as possible. Interesting tho that the hero's ability to empathise and guess etc suggests he has a very strong touchy-feely nature under the Librium etc. He learns to handle his emotions tho - not supress them so much as control them/redirect them (hence his "use" of his memory of the woman dying in the furnace to help him kill the "Father" etc)

Cool film

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