If you can accept the central conceit of the movie, the Adjustment Bureau is a touching and thoughtful study of the nature of free will and the nature of love. It is also a compelling argument for the return of the fedora to mainstream use.

David Norris (Matt Damon) is a politician with his eye on a seat in Congress who finds his past come back to bite him in the ass on the even of the election. A compromising photo steals his lead and he loses and loses badly. A chance meeting with Elise Sellas (Emily Blunt), a professional ballerina crashing a wedding in the same hotel as Norris’s concession press conference inspires Norris to tell it like it is in the speech which wins back the confidence of the people and sets him up as a lock in the coming election. Everything would be peachy from here if Norris didn’t have a second chance meeting with the girl and then accidentally open the wrong door at the wrong time to see agents from the Adjustment Bureau messing with his campaign manager’s mind. Norris learns that there are people who are not human who make small changes to people’s lives to produce particular outcomes as designed by the Chairman. It seems that Norris was never supposed to see Elise again as it will be devastating to both his future and hers as well. What follows is the existential struggle Norris must go through to come to terms with either letting her go or letting both of their hopes and dreams go down in flames.

Again, if you can hang with the premise, the movie has a whole lot to offer. While it skirts particular religious affiliation, it is heavily implied that the chairmen=god and the agents=angels and that works pretty well as it addresses a common question about a god who can know everything and at the same time has given people free will to do whatever it is they want to. Obviously this is a contradiction as if you know the outcome of something then people can’t be acting of their own free will. It can be dodged by saying that god knows all possible outcomes but that really doesn’t work since there supposed to be a plan. This movie addresses that and does so in a thoughtful way that can have you thinking critically for days afterward.

The romance aspects of the movie work really well and don’t feel stiff or contrived. There is an easy chemistry between Blunt and Damon and the relationship is handled in a way that is consistent with what is going on in the story. This isn’t some kind of sweeping chestheaver but a much quieter and more thoughtful romance that feels very real and very authentic. This is important because none of the science fiction aspects would really pan out or amount to much if you couldn’t get behind the central relationship.

The sci-fi is also a bit subdued as it is how it is in this world but never really goes over the top. Even the powers to change things in the world and how they get around is relatively subdued. The effects are nice but understated and help to drive home that this is not a magnificent fantasy world but a world that might actually exist.

The performances are solid across the board. Damon handles shifting emotions and hard decisions with ease and you never doubt him at all. He manages to fight for what he wants without being self-righteous. He manages to pine without feeling like a creepy obsessive. When he makes hard choices to keep Elise from having a ruined life, you see the pain. Blunt has a bit less to do but handles her work with equal skill. As the film jumps forward in time she does a great job of reacting the way someone might if this guy that she likes keeps disappearing and reappearing in her life. The love here is hardfought and the movie earns its own tension by building it on a solid foundation that engages the audience and makes them care about what is going on. John Slattery (Roger Sterling from TV’s Mad Men) turns in a solid, if stoic performance as Richardson, the first ‘supervisor’ who steps in to try to reel Norris in. Likewise, Terrance Stamp turns up the menace as Thompson who is brought in to really put the screws to Norris.  Anthony Mackie really shines as Norris’s case manager Harry. The regret he feels for a couple of life-times worth of dealing bad hands to Norris and his family is palpable and further grounds the movie emotionally.

With all the good there is a little bad. Some of the plot devices stretch credibility a little and there is only so much dues ex machina you can comfortably handle in a film and by the end of the movie you may have had your fill. It didn’t derail the film for me but it might be a bit much to stomach for some viewers, particularly if the premise is a stretch to accept in the first place.

Conclusion [9.0 out of 10]

In a sea of dead films with no ideas, the Adjustment Bureau really tries to say something. The worth of what it is trying to say is for you to decide as the audience but for my money the film works very well. It is elegant and well told and an engaging watch if you can plug in to the premise. If you are into films like Dark City and Inception then all the better.