equilibrium (2002) review
Have you watched V for Vendetta lately? That film and 2002’s Equilibrium share more than a few themes. Both present a depressing dystopian future with oppressive government as the main feature. Both films are hypnotically shot, peppered with bursts of mesmerizing action and force the viewer to consider life in the absence of free will. The antagonist of Equilibrium presents the logically accurate case that human emotion is the catalyst for all violence and ultimately, suffering. What if we could rid ourselves of emotion entirely? It’s a compelling premise and dare I say, timely. While V for Vendetta is a political action film marketed as an action film, Equilibrium is an occasionally slow paced but unrelentingly cerebral pure action film with strong science fiction and political action elements. The “gun-kata” fictional fighting style practiced by Christian Bale’s John Preston is a pleasure to watch and wholly unique. The fight choreography is often compared to The Matrix and while there is a grain of truth there, Equilibrium is no Matrix clone. The darkly lit cinematography style and forebodingly manic energy of the opening scene sets the tone and is a sight to behold. Imagine the gunplay from The Matrix minus the excessive wire-work and if the gun-wielders were less concerned with looking cool and more with avoiding return gunfire – that’s the gun-kata in Equilibrium. The film deserves its cult status. Christian Bale has been a great action star this whole time, way before he donned the cape and cowl.
Equilibrium receives a score of 7/10 for general audiences and 8.5/10 for fans of cerebral action with fights that always serve the story.